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3 months ago
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A RIDDLE bamboozling social media users contains a woman’s name – and you’d be in rare air if you can spot it.
The boat-themed brainteaser has attracted an array of suggested solutions, with many completely missing the mark.
Who is the woman in the boat?
Social media users are scratching their heads over a sailor’s nameIt’s a simple rhyme that has puzzle-solvers tearing their hair out.
The riddle goes: “There’s a woman in a boat. On a lake wearing a coat.
“If you want to know her name, it’s on the riddle I just wrote.
“What is the woman’s name?”
Spot the name?
The adventurer’s identity is painfully tough to pinpoint.
Reacting on social media, one respondent was certain they had the answer.
They said: “Her name is Anita. This can be derived from the phrase ‘Anita boat’ which sounds like ‘a need a boat’.”
Another added the name must be Teresa, in reference to the opening words “there’s a”.
A third humorously suggested her name was ultimately unimportant.
They wrote: “Who gives a toss … She is obviously enjoying herself.”
The true answer can be found at the very beginning, with the rest of the riddle designed to deviate your attention.
But it’s not Theresa.
The voyager’s name is, rather boringly, “there”.
If you break it down and turn the apostrophe into “is”, it becomes: “There is a woman in the boat.”
So, “there” is the woman in the boat.
How do optical illusions work?
WHAT you see and what you think you see aren’t always the same thing.
When you see something, the information gets sent to your brain.
It’s then converted and turned into your perception.
If the brain doesn’t receive all the information it needs, it’ll make things up to fill in the gaps.
It might even include creating images that aren’t actually there.
Why the brain does this can ultimately be drawn back to survival.
As humans evolved, the brain became adept at gathering some information and filling in the rest so that you can respond to things – possibly threats – quickly.
And these days it means you’re prone to optical illusions.
All along, the woman’s name was simply “there”.
Many offered solutions, and many were wrong
English (US)