A coworker and I are arguing about the following riddle. I hoped you could give me a hand. A magician must cross a bridge carrying three gold pieces. He weighs exactly 68 kilograms, and each piece of gold weighs one kilogram. The bridge can carry no more than 70 kilograms or it will break. How does he cross the bridge safely, without throwing or dragging the gold across?
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I think anybody carting around three kilos of gold (approximate value $41,000) can probably afford to find himself a better bridge. Maybe not the answer you were looking for, but somebody has to keep an eye out for the practical stuff.
So let’s skip the math and keep it simple. Suppose we accept the proposition that a juggling magician weighs only 70 kg because “one of the gold pieces is in the air at all times.” This is equivalent to saying that the magician walks across the bridge with two gold pieces in his pockets and the third floating over his head.
It may be true that when strapped into a cockpit you don’t get noticeable, how shall we say, liberation of gas until above 25,000 feet. However, when you have sex you move around, or at least most people move around, thereby increasing opportunities for gas to escape. So it seems reasonable intestinal distension at 9,000 feet might lead to an attack of the toots.
Is there something you need to get straight? Cecil Adams can deliver the Straight Dope on any topic. Write Cecil Adams at the Chicago Reader, 11 E. Illinois, Chicago 60611, or E-mail him at cecil@chireader.com.
