8 Tough Brain Teaser Interview Questions from Google, Apple and Facebook

Silicon valley tech corporations are well-known for asking some fairly loopy brain-teaser interview questions…

I wished to seek out out precisely what these questions contain. And how tough they’re to reply.

So I spent a day on Glassdoor.com and a couple of different websites to provide you with the 8 hardest and most attention-grabbing logical interview questions on the market.

And not simply from any corporations…We’re going to have a look at 4 tech giants recognized for having the hardest interviews:

1. Facebook

2. Google

3. Apple

4. LinkedIn

Time to see what number of you may reply!

Facebook Brain Teaser Interview Questions and Answers:

Question 1:

A Russian gangster kidnaps you. He places two bullets in consecutive order in an empty six-round revolver, spins it, factors it at your head and shoots. *click on* You’re nonetheless alive. He then asks you, “do you want me to spin it again and fire or pull the trigger again right away?” For every possibility, what’s the chance that you just’ll be shot?

Answer…

The key trace right here is that the bullets have been loaded adjoining to one another.

There are 4 methods to rearrange the revolver with consecutive bullets in order that the primary shot is clean. These are the doable eventualities:

1. (xBBxxx)
2. (xxBBxx)
3. (xxxBBx)
4. (xxxxBB)

The different two eventualities would have meant you bought shot on the primary try. (BBxxxx) or (BxxxxB)

Now have a look at the second slot in these 4 doable eventualities above. Your odds of getting shot are 1/4 or 25%. (Only #1 would get you shot)

But when you respin… there are 2 bullets remaining and 6 whole slots. 2/6 or 33%.

Question 2:

You’re about to get on a aircraft to Seattle. You need to know if it’s raining. You name 3 random mates who dwell there and ask every if it’s raining. Each pal has a 2/3 probability of telling you the reality and a 1/3 probability of messing with you by mendacity. All 3 mates let you know that “Yes” it’s raining. What is the chance that it’s really raining in Seattle? 

Answer…

You solely want 1 of your mates to be telling the reality for it to be raining in Seattle.

It’s quickest simply to calculate the chances that each one 3 are mendacity, and it’s not raining.

Each pal has a 1/3 probability of mendacity. Multiply the chances collectively… you get 1/27 (1/3 * 1/3 * 1/3).

We’re not completed but although… 1/27 is the chance that each one 3 mates lied on the identical time.

The chance that a minimum of 1 advised you the reality? 26/27 or round a 96% that it’s raining in Seattle.

Google Brain Teaser Interview Questions and Answers:

Question 3:

You have a 3 gallon jug and 5 gallon jug, how do you measure out precisely 4 gallons? 

Answer…

We know we will’t get the ultimate outcome within the 3 gallon jug. It’ll overflow. We want to finish up with 4 gallons within the 5 gallon jug.

First fill the three gallon jug.

Then pour the three gallons into the 5 gallon jug.

Now the three gallon jug is empty, and the 5 gallon jug has 3 gallons in it.

Fill the three gallon jug once more. Slowly pour into the 5 gallon jug. Only 2 gallons will match as a result of it already has 3. Now it’s full.

Exactly 1 gallon is left within the 3 gallon jug.

Dump out the 5 gallon jug.

Pour your 1 gallon into the 5 gallon jug.

Fill up the three gallon jug another time and pour it into the 5 gallon jug! You have precisely 4 gallons (and probably a job at Google)

Question 4:

Why are manhole covers spherical?

Answer…

Good information: If you’re uninterested in math questions this one offers you a break.

Manhole covers are spherical as a result of it’s the one form that can’t fall by itself. The cowl can by no means by accident fall down the outlet.

Microsoft has been recognized to ask this query and in accordance with Glassdoor.com, Google is asking this too now.

Apple Brain Teaser Interview Questions and Answers:

Question 5: 

There are three packing containers, one comprises solely apples, one comprises solely oranges, and one comprises each apples and oranges. The packing containers have been incorrectly labeled such that no label identifies the precise contents of its field. Opening only one field, and with out trying within the field, you’re taking out one piece of fruit. By trying on the fruit, how will you instantly label all the packing containers appropriately? 

Answer…

So, you recognize all 3 packing containers are incorrectly labeled.

Go to the field labeled “Apples + Oranges.” Since the label is fallacious, it will need to have one or the opposite.

This is the field to take one piece of fruit from. Whichever comes out is what that field comprises. If you took out an apple, the field has solely apples. If you took out an orange, vice versa.

Here’s the place it will get difficult a bit difficult. But we’re virtually completed…

Let’s say you grabbed an apple. Move the “Apples” label over to that field. Now it’s appropriately labeled.

You know the “Oranges” field remains to be labeled fallacious (as a result of all 3 have been labeled fallacious to start out and you haven’t touched it). And you recognize it’s not “Apples”.

So it needs to be “Apples + Oranges”.

The final field is “Oranges”.

The identical course of above would work when you had pulled out an orange at first.

Question 6: 

You have a 100 cash laying flat on a desk, every with a head aspect and a tail aspect. 10 of them are heads up, 90 are tails up. You can’t really feel, see or in another means discover out which 10 are heads up. Your purpose: cut up the cash into two piles so there are the identical variety of heads-up cash in every pile. 

Answer…

By pure coincidence… this is a trick my pal Mike confirmed me final summer time. It blew my thoughts again then however hopefully it’ll make sense as I write it out.

You need equal variety of heads in every pile. There are presently 10 of them. You don’t know which but it surely doesn’t matter. All you need to do… take any 10 cash out of the 100, put them right into a separate pile, and flip these 10 over.

That’s pile #1.

Pile #2 is the remaining 90 cash, unflipped. Just go away them.

You’re completed. Seriously.

You can do that with any variety of cash. If you had 20 cash, and 18 have been heads, you’d must take 18 of them (it doesn’t matter which) right into a separate pile and flip these 18. That’s pile #1.

If you had 10 cash and 3 have been heads, you’d take 3 random cash into a brand new pile and flip these 3 in your first pile, and the remainder are your second pile.

Crazy proper?

If you don’t consider me simply seize some pennies and attempt it.

There are not any exceptions and it doesn’t have to be an excellent quantity of “heads” to start with both. It will also be zero. Or all.

LinkedIn Brain Teaser Interview Questions and Answers:

Question 7: 

You’re in a room with three gentle switches, every of which controls one in all three gentle bulbs within the subsequent room. You must decide which change controls which bulb. All lights are off to start, and you may’t see into one room from the opposite. You can examine the opposite room solely as soon as. How can you discover out which switches are linked to which bulbs? 

Answer…

Let’s name the switches 1, 2, and 3.

Leave change 1 off.

Turn change 2 on for ten minutes.

Now flip it off and shortly activate change 3.

Go into the room and examine…

The bulb that’s nonetheless heat however not lit up is managed by change 2. The one which’s presently lit up is change 3. The final one is change 1.

Question 8: 

How many golf balls would match right into a Boeing 747?

Answer…

This final one is hard, however they don’t anticipate you to get an correct reply. If you get a query like this (and there are a ton of variations- basketballs in a room, cellphones in Manhattan, and so forth.) they need to see your thought course of.

The hiring supervisor is going to have a look at how you’re employed your means by it and try and determine it out.

If you may break an issue down into smaller items, keep calm, and get a solution that’s not good however fairly shut, you’ve completed nice.

They won’t even know the reply. They simply need to see the way you method one thing that’s very tough.

Note: For 5 different main issues each hiring supervisor desires to see, try this article.

On a Practical Note, What Can You Take Away From This?

Question 8 above highlights a reasonably good level to recollect in your interviews…

There are loads of questions in an interview the place the hiring supervisor values your thought course of… generally much more than an accurate reply.

So when you’re stumped, speak out loud a bit and clarify what you’re considering. Ask a query if it’s worthwhile to. Try to interrupt it down into smaller items.

Specific data will be taught however they’ll’t educate you problem-solving. That’s why they ask logical questions in a job interview, and why they ask questions the place they anticipate you to battle or be not sure.

If you hear questions like this, it doesn’t imply you’re doing badly. Just keep calm, stroll them by your thought course of, present you’re taking a logical method, and you’ll have a fantastic shot at getting employed (even when you don’t provide you with the right reply in the long run!)

I speak lots about how to do that and why it’s vital in my job interview answers guide.

You Can Get Hired Even if You You Give “Wrong” Answers to These Questions

Here’s a fast story: My diploma is in Finance, which suggests I took a superb quantity of Accounting courses too. Early in my profession I had a cellphone interview for an Accounting place.

To make the story brief, I couldn’t reply even probably the most primary accounting questions. Really easy stuff that you just be taught your first yr in school.

Why?

It had simply been too lengthy since school and I had forgotten even the fundamentals. And I didn’t put together nicely for the interview clearly!

But I attempted to stumble by it and keep in mind what I might, speaking about what I used to be considering. Saying issues like, “well, this can’t be right because ___. So it must be related to ___.”

I made some progress. But I positively didn’t arrive on the proper reply, even after three minutes of strolling myself and the interviewer by it out loud.

But I nonetheless bought invited to the following spherical within the interview course of (a full day, on-site interview).

Why? Because the hiring supervisor appreciated my method to breaking down an issue that I didn’t instantly know find out how to remedy. That’s why being clear and exhibiting your thought course of is without doubt one of the (*8*) that you just’ll see me say over and over.

And that’s the most important takeaway that I hope you acquire from studying these mind teaser questions above (together with leisure).

You can do the identical factor I did and get extra job affords… even when you give a couple of fallacious solutions to tough questions like these!

The backside line is: Don’t panic while you get a query you don’t know; use it as a possibility to point out precisely how you’re employed by issues. Be assured with it, calm down, smile. Remember… you’re giving the hiring supervisor what they need!

UPDATE: 

If you’ve gotten interviews developing and don’t need to go away something to probability, I’ve created a new information the place you may copy my precise step-by-step technique for getting job affords. You can get more details here.

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