The 5-Minute Interval Riddle

Clock riddles are fun and challenging puzzles that test your understanding of time, angles, and the movement of clock hands. These riddles often require logical thinking, basic math, and problem-solving skills.

A clock is ticking away normally, but after every 5-minute interval, it takes a pause for 1 minute. So after the first 5 minutes, it pauses for 1 minute, then continues. How long will it take for the clock to show exactly 12:30, starting at 12:00?

Hint:

The clock normally ticks every 5 minutes, but after each 5-minute interval, it pauses for 1 minute. So for every 6 minutes that pass in total (5 minutes of ticking + 1 minute of pause), the clock moves forward only 5 minutes of actual time.

Now, think about how much time it will take for the clock to show 12:30 starting from 12:00. How many 6-minute intervals are needed to cover 30 minutes?

Answer:

Understanding the Problem:

The clock ticks every 5 minutes, but after each 5-minute interval, it pauses for 1 minute.
So, every cycle takes 6 minutes (5 minutes of ticking + 1 minute of pause), but the clock only advances by 5 minutes in actual time during each cycle.

How to Solve It:

You want the clock to show exactly 12:30 starting from 12:00.
The clock needs to advance 30 minutes to reach 12:30.
Each cycle of 6 minutes only adds 5 minutes to the clock’s time.
To find out how many cycles are needed to accumulate 30 minutes of actual time, we divide 30 minutes by the 5 minutes gained per cycle:

Number of cycles=30/5=6cycles

Since each cycle takes 6 minutes, the total time taken for 6 cycles is:

6cycles×6minutes per cycle=36minutes

Conclusion:

It will take 36 minutes for the clock to show exactly 12:30.

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The 5-Minute Interval Riddle