We may sometimes hear questions that seem to be relatively simple and we may snap off an answer without even thinking about it. There are also times when it is beneficial to stop and weigh the answer before giving it.
Many people have found that to be the case with a question that seems to be relatively straightforward. It is: “You have 5 cows, 2 dogs, and 1 cat. How many legs do you have?”
When you first hear this question, it may seem as if it is a relatively simple question to answer. On the other hand, there is more to it than what most people consider.
Take a moment to think about the question and consider the answer for yourself. You only have one opportunity to answer it correctly, otherwise you are going to join the majority of others who have gotten the wrong answer.
The reaction that most people would have is to take the total number of legs for all of the animals that were mentioned. That is a trap, however, and it is a clever one, indeed.
To show you how this works, let’s analyze the count of the legs.
Cows: Each cow has four legs. With 5 cows, that gives you 5×4=20 legs.
Dogs: Each dog also has four legs. For 2 dogs, that’s 2×4=8 legs.
Cats: A single cat has four legs, adding 1×4=4 legs.
Adding these together, you would assume that you have a total of 32 legs.
But that is the wrong answer.
So, what is the correct answer? We are about to tell you.
The true answer to this question is two legs. That’s right, unless you are missing a leg, you have two legs as a human. The question is about your legs, not the animal’s legs.
Were you able to get it right on your own?