
There is a boat with a ladder attached to it, the ladder is eight feet tall. If the water rises four feet how much of the ladder will be on top of the water?
Common Wrong Answers
“Four feet”
This guess assumes that the ladder is independent of the boat, but since the ladder is attached to the boat, it rises with the boat as the water level rises.
“Zero feet”
This guess might come from the assumption that rising water would submerge the ladder, but again, the ladder is attached to the boat, which rises with the water.
“Two feet”
This guess could stem from a misunderstanding of how much of the ladder remains above water when only considering the water rise. However, the ladder remains fully above water because it rises with the boat.
Similar Riddles
A ladder hangs over the side of a ship anchored in port. The bottom rung of the ladder touches the water. The distance between rungs is 30cm, and the length of...
A boy fell off a 100 foot ladder. But he did not get hurt. Why not?
You see a boat filled with people. You look again, but this time you don't see a single person on the boat. Why? Hint: The boat has not sunk
A man who lived on the top floor of a twenty story building had to go up and down daily for work, and of course, for food and the other necessities. On most day...