# Lateral Thinking Puzzles - third time is best! **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [July 18, 2023, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214 "2023-07-18T13:39:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 38
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/741 "2023-08-25T02:09:08Z")
Were the pair of objects mirror images of each other like a pair of gloves or a pair of shoes? ---
**Author:** ![Rhodes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhodes/32/273_2.png) [@Rhodes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhodes)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/742 "2023-08-25T14:28:30Z")
It sounds like the pair is some sort of food casing (natural or manufactured, pending a reply to Ana\_Byrd). And a half-pair is useful in breaking the other pairs, or in extracting the food from the casings. An idea: Maybe Chronos is cracking a walnut (or similar) by squeezing 2 walnuts together. One nutshell splits into 2 halves. He discards a half and puts the other half on the countertop, and then uses that dome to smash the rest of the nuts. In which case the “objects” are walnut half-shells. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/743 "2023-08-25T14:34:21Z")
> [@Rhodes](#): > > And a half-pair is useful in breaking the other pairs, or in extracting the food from the casings. Pistachios! ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/744 "2023-08-25T18:27:29Z")
And @Cheesesteak got it! I was eating pistachios, and saved half of the first shell to use as a tool with which to open all the rest (it really is a superb tool for that purpose). Once I’d eaten all of the nuts, I no longer had need of that first shell, so I threw it away. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/745 "2023-08-25T18:41:04Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And @Cheesesteak got it! Oh no, this one belongs to @Rhodes , I had no idea what was going on until they mentioned one half being useful for breaking open other pairs. I just picked the right nut. I also need to work on my phrasing. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/746 "2023-08-25T19:02:09Z")
**A man was walking along the seaside above the beach. He thought of something he wanted to commit to paper, so he sat down and began writing in his notebook. After some time went by, he was placed under arrest. Why?** ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/747 "2023-08-25T19:05:16Z")
Was he sitting in the road, “ **above the beach.** ”? Therefore blocking traffic. Not sure why they would arrest him, instead of just move him along, though… ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/748 "2023-08-25T19:07:04Z")
Had he been on the beach, then walked away? Was it a nudist beach and so he was arrested for indecent exposure? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/749 "2023-08-25T19:47:32Z")
> [@Rebo](#): > > Was he sitting in the road, “ **above the beach.** ”? Therefore blocking traffic. Not sure why they would arrest him, instead of just move him along, though… Nope. > [@iamatractorboy](#): > > Had he been on the beach, then walked away? Was it a nudist beach and so he was arrested for indecent exposure?. Nope. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/750 "2023-08-25T19:55:45Z")
Had he committed a crime? If yes: while the walking / sitting / writing was going on? At some point before? After? If no: were there reasonable grounds for believing he had committed a crime because of what he wrote? Because of his actions? Is the content of what he wrote relevant? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/751 "2023-08-25T20:00:41Z")
> [@Fretful\_Porpentine](#): > > Had he committed a crime? > > **NO** > > If yes: while the walking / sitting / writing was going on? At some point before? After? > > If no: were there reasonable grounds for believing he had committed a crime because of what he wrote? Because of his actions? > > **HMMMM…I’d say “NO”.** > > Is the content of what he wrote relevant? > > **YES** yeppers ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/752 "2023-08-25T20:07:45Z")
So, arrested but had not committed a crime. Was this a case of mistaken identity? Or did it appear that he had committed a crime? ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/753 "2023-08-25T20:27:14Z")
Was the thing he wrote a creative work of some sort? (Song lyrics, fiction, etc.) Was it something that could be interpreted, out of context, as a confession to a crime? As writing that was _itself_ criminal, e.g. a threat? Is the country where this happened relevant? Is the historical era relevant? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/754 "2023-08-25T21:53:42Z")
> [@dirtball](#): > > So, arrested but had not committed a crime. Was this a case of mistaken identity? > > **No. Yes. Both.** > > Or did it appear that he had committed a crime? > > **No. And possibly yes.** Not bad questions, but hard to answer with just yes or no. > [@Fretful\_Porpentine](#): > > Was the thing he wrote a creative work of some sort? (Song lyrics, fiction, etc.) > > **YES** > > Was it something that could be interpreted, out of context, as a confession to a crime? As writing that was _itself_ criminal, e.g. a threat? > > **NO** > > Is the country where this happened relevant? > > **YES, BUT ONLY A BIT.** > > Is the historical era relevant? > > **YES, I’d say so.** Let’s skip the year guessing and say: **1915** is the year this took place. ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/755 "2023-08-25T22:02:01Z")
Was the suspected crime… Fraud? Plagiarism? Theft? Murder? Sedition or treason? Espionage? Something else? Was what he saw on the beach relevant? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/756 "2023-08-25T22:06:30Z")
**Espionage.** What he saw was not relevant. Just a beach, water, maybe a sunset? Nothing relevant. Just a nice beach scene. ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/757 "2023-08-25T22:09:27Z")
Is this a famous writer? Famous enough that we could reasonably be expected to know him? ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/758 "2023-08-25T22:16:16Z")
Did the walkway above the beach look like this? [![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Edvard_Munch%2C_1893%2C_The_Scream%2C_oil%2C_tempera_and_pastel_on_cardboard%2C_91_x_73_cm%2C_National_Gallery_of_Norway.jpg/320px-Edvard_Munch%2C_1893%2C_The_Scream%2C_oil%2C_tempera_and_pastel_on_cardboard%2C_91_x_73_cm%2C_National_Gallery_of_Norway.jpg) ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/Edvard_Munch%2C_1893%2C_The_Scream%2C_oil%2C_tempera_and_pastel_on_cardboard%2C_91_x_73_cm%2C_National_Gallery_of_Norway.jpg/320px-Edvard_Munch%2C_1893%2C_The_Scream%2C_oil%2C_tempera_and_pastel_on_cardboard%2C_91_x_73_cm%2C_National_Gallery_of_Norway.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/759 "2023-08-25T22:18:03Z")
> [@Ana\_Byrd](#): > > Is this a famous writer? Famous enough that we could reasonably be expected to know him? **This person has a Wikipedia article, but I do not know who has heard of him and who has not. This is not a massively famous person who everyone immediately knows.** ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2023, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214/760 "2023-08-25T22:18:18Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > Did the walkway above the beach look like this? Nope. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214.md?page=37) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-third-time-is-best/987214.md?page=39)