# Kids solved this puzzle in seconds. Can you figure it out? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 19, 2015, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983 "2015-06-19T23:24:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/21 "2015-06-20T03:17:49Z")
The answer seemed blindingly obvious to me. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/22 "2015-06-20T03:42:52Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > The answer seemed blindingly obvious to me. I’m sure you’re as awesome as you think you are. the “puzzle” relies on hiding the one number in the sequence that can’t be represented recognizably right-side-up as up-side-down. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/23 "2015-06-20T04:38:07Z")
I got it instantly. I’m thinking if they weren’t shouting “It’s really hard! You’ll never get it! Well, kids get it but you won’t! We’re pretty sure you’ll be fooled. You’re fooled, right?!” I may have taken longer to get it. But the way they pitched it seems to have helped me get it right away. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/24 "2015-06-20T04:41:43Z")
I got it immediately. It seemed obvious to me. The puzzle puts you in a place where you’re seeing the parking spaces from the outside. But anybody actually parking a car in a parking space would see them from the opposite direction. A real world parking lot would be designed for drivers so it’s obvious the numbers would be painted from their direction. Maybe this is a test of how well you can put yourself in somebody else’s place. ---
**Author:** ![sandra\_nz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/25 "2015-06-20T04:44:03Z")
Another ‘got it instantly’. We should form a club. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/26 "2015-06-20T04:49:18Z")
Took me just a few seconds too, for me I looked at the numbers and then thought: "No one puts numbers like that in a row in a parking lot… Ah! got it! ---
**Author:** ![Kaio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@Kaio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaio)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/27 "2015-06-20T04:58:51Z")
I’m super tired right now so I started reading from left to right like you usually do. Then it occurred to me that the sixes and nines were basically identical, tilted my head, and there it was. Not 2 seconds maybe, but less than 5. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/28 "2015-06-20T05:11:04Z")
2 or 3 seconds for me. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/29 "2015-06-20T05:18:31Z")
Seems like the type of thing you’ll either get straight away, or not. When I looked at it I immediately thought, “those numbers can all be read upside down, what way are they supposed to be?” It was a small step from there to see the sequence. It might help that I’m reasonably fluent at reading upside down. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/30 "2015-06-20T06:45:30Z")
Immediately. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/31 "2015-06-20T06:57:56Z")
Got it in a few seconds. Helps knowing going in that young kids were able to get it within a few seconds. I imagine without that I might’ve over-thought it and taken longer. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/32 "2015-06-20T07:01:36Z")
I spent longer scrolling down to the image than I did figuring it out. It’s pretty blatant. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/33 "2015-06-20T07:55:09Z")
Got it in a few seconds BUT I had help, I was using a galaxy tablet so I noticed the numbers looked a bit odd and just flipped it.😃 ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/34 "2015-06-20T07:57:47Z")
> [@Richard\_Pearse](#): > > It might help that I’m reasonably fluent at reading upside down. ¡ooʇ 'ǝW ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 10:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/35 "2015-06-20T10:31:36Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Hey look, another post from [the Daily mail](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3127520/Are-smarter-Hong-Kong-grader-Logic-puzzle-Chinese-primary-school-exam-stumps-adults-6-year-olds-crack-just-20-seconds.html). > > I mean this seriously, not in a snarky way, but how about just keeping these all in one post instead of starting a bunch of new threads every day about Daily Mail articles. Had no trouble with Cheryl’s birthday or Hannah’s sweets. But I didn’t get the parking-space one until I scrolled down to the last hint before the answer. Then I realized the car’s parked crookedly because the driver backed in! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![chrisk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@chrisk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisk)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/36 "2015-06-20T10:49:33Z")
I think it took me 15 seconds or so. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/37 "2015-06-20T10:51:22Z")
Not two seconds but less than 30 secs. It didn’t even dawn on me until after I solved the puzzle that of course the numbers would be orientated to the driver trying to park his car rather than to the person trying to solve the puzzle. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/38 "2015-06-20T11:45:02Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > The answer seemed blindingly obvious to me. Me too. And I would hesitate to draw any conclusions from that. mmm ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/39 "2015-06-20T12:12:00Z")
Got it immediately. A few years ago when I first saw this puzzle it took me a few minutes, though. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983/40 "2015-06-20T12:38:59Z")
OK, I’ll be the one person who raises her hand and says she didn’t get it without scrolling down to see what the answer was…😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-solved-this-puzzle-in-seconds-can-you-figure-it-out/722983.md?page=3)