Mensa Brain Teasers Puzzles and Riddles

I just love puzzles, brain teasers, riddles and logic problems.

So much in fact that I have acquired a substantial amount of them.

I'm going to share some of my favourite ones with you here. Take your time and try to work each one out before you move on to the next one.

I have put the answers to the puzzles at the bottom of this article but no peeking until you have had a good go at working them out.

Trying to solve brain teasers is good exercise for your brain and is a good way to keep it healthy. In this article I'm also going to tell you some fascinating facts and give you tips on how to keep your brain in peak condition.

While driving down the Auto Estrada in Spain, Mr Jones sees two interesting number plates with strange configurations.

Mr Jones realises that the number plate from Spain has one letter that doesn't belong there and should be on the number plate from Portugal.

Can you tell which letter it is and why?

Did you know that doing puzzles and memory games can slow the decline of mental illnesses in old age or even prevent them from happening all together.

Doing regular brain exercises can prevent you from getting such terrible diseases as Alzheimer's disease and depression.

Children also benefit from brain games and will become more socialized and will do better when it comes to learning and doing well in exams.

You have six glasses in a line.

The first 3 glasses contain milk and the last three glasses are empty.

By moving only 1 glass can you arrange them so that they alternate from full glass to empty glass all the way along?

Every time you learn something new your brain makes new connections or neural pathways.

Inactive brain cells die all the time so creating new ones is important and the way to do this is through learning and problem solving. Each time you learn something new you are actually strengthening your brain and increasing long term memory functions, thus making it easier to learn new things. Just like physical exercise, the more exercise you do the easier it gets over time.

Did you know that each time you sneeze some of your brain cells die?

If you don't use your brain you will lose it so solve this next puzzle and make some new neural pathways!

 NEW DOOR

Regular exercise actually has many benefits when it comes to brain health.

You will sleep better and suffer less from depression with a good exercise routine. In fact, regular exercise can prevent mental health problems from appearing in the first place. What exercising actually does is feed the brain with an insulin-type growth factor delivered through the blood supply.

Sleeping better is also a good factor towards a healthy body because when you are asleep that is when the brain regenerates and releases hormones for growth and development.

17 27 37 47

 Your brain is a hungry organ. It uses twenty percent of your oxygen supply even though it only weighs three pounds and makes up only three percent of your total body weight.

A healthy brain needs plenty of oxygen and the wrong foods can actually deprive your body of it. The type of foods that can deprive your body of oxygen are sugar based and high in saturated fat or trans fatty acids such as alchohol, hydrogenated vegetable oil and candy.

Avoid too many saturated fats such as those found in meats but be aware that your brain does need some fatty foods. Because your brain is made up of sixty percent fat it does need some to grow and regenerate so it would be unwise to cut out fat altogether.

Good brain food includes dark chocolate, dark vegetables, sea food and beans. It is also very important to eat plenty of antioxidant rich foods like yellow or orange fruit and vegetables.

 You are in a room with 3 monkeys. One monkey has a banana, one has a calculator and one has nothing.

Which primate in the room is the smartest?

I hope you enjoyed my brain teasers, puzzles and logic problems and now for the moment you've been waiting for, the answers!

The Number Plate puzzle

The letter is Z because it is made with straight lines and all the other letters on the Spanish number plate have curves in them.

Glasses Of Milk

You pick up the second glass and pour all the milk into the fifth glass and put the emptied glass back in the second position.

New door

The answer is at the end of the question. One Word

How Many Squares?

There are 11 squares

Odd One Out

27 is the odd one out because the others are all prime numbers

Who is the Smartest Primate?

You are!