Brains On! editor and co-creator Sanden Totten is getting ready for the incredible Brain Teaser Tango competition! There will be dancing. And riddles! Sanden is confident in his ability to move and groove… but his riddles need some testing. So he calls on Brains On! host Molly Bloom to help him prep for the big event. Will Molly be able to solve Sanden’s serious brain stumpers? Grab your smarty pass to find out!
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ROBOTIC VOICE: Now entering Brains On headquarters.
[BEEPING]
[WHOOSHING]
[DOOR OPENS]
[FOOTSTEPS]
MOLLY BLOOM: Hello, Smarty Pals. You're just in time. I'm just headed to the labor kitchen. Sanden asked me to come down for some reason. He's always, you know, tinkering and making awesome new stuff in there and he usually has a batch of cookies baking.
[DOOR OPENS]
SANDEN TOTTEN: Hey, Molly. Just the person I wanted to see. Want to try this new batch of cookies?
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, wow, cookies, how unexpected and totally not a thing I was counting on being offered to me. Mm. [CHEWING] Hmm, interesting. I'm getting-- mm-- nutty flavors-- mm-- some-- mm-- saltiness-- mm-- umami. And is that a-- a hint of vinegar?
SANDEN TOTTEN: It's my vegan peanut butter shortbread, sweet and savory.
- [CHUCKLES] Who says you can't have it all? Was that why you wanted to see me, for a cookie taste test?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Always, Molly, but also, um, yeah, I kind of wanted to try out some riddles on you. You see, later today, Marc Sanchez and I are having a combination dance off riddle-solving competition, and I want to practice.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, yeah, I've heard you guys talking about that, the brain teaser tango.
[TANGO CHIME]
SANDEN TOTTEN: Exactly. Molly, I know my dance moves are already on point. Cha cha. But I wanted to make sure I could stump Marc with my riddles too.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, so fun. OK, let's hear them.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh, hoo hoo hee hee. Molly Bloom, you must answer my riddles three. A riddle is a tricky question designed to trap you in the maze of your own brain. ha ha hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: Is the first riddle supposed to be I figure out what voice it is that you're doing?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Yeah, I was trying to channel my inner Rumpelstiltskin kind of, you know, fairy tale goblin vibe. Anyway, forget that. Here, I got some riddles for you, Molly. Are you ready?
MOLLY BLOOM: I am so ready.
SANDEN TOTTEN: OK, answer them to the best of your abilities, hee hee hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: [CHUCKLES]
SANDEN TOTTEN: OK, Molly, one, what gets wetter as it dries?
MOLLY BLOOM: Hmm, wetter as it dries?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Mm-hmm.
MOLLY BLOOM: [EXHALES SHARPLY] Wet, wet, water. Something that's been wet but getting wetter as it dries, that seems like an opposite kind of thing.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Focus on the drying part.
MOLLY BLOOM: Drying, paint dries but it's not what. A towel!
[DING]
SANDEN TOTTEN: Yes, ding, ding, ding, Molly Bloom. Way to go. As you dry yourself off with a towel, the towel gets wetter and you get drier. It's drying and getting wetter.
MOLLY BLOOM: Ooh, that's tough.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Are you ready for another one, Molly?
MOLLY BLOOM: I sure am.
SANDEN TOTTEN: OK, here we go, riddle number two, hee hee hee hee. What can fill up a room without taking up any space?
MOLLY BLOOM: Fill up a room without taking up any space? A fart?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh, a fart. [CHUCKLES] I think that clears a room, actually. I don't know if it fills it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, right, OK. Um, fills up a room without taking up any space?
SANDEN TOTTEN: But you're on the right track, something intangible.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK. A great dance song brings everyone to the dance floor.
SANDEN TOTTEN: I mean, technically, you're right with all of these. OK, the answer was light, but I'm going to give it to you, Molly, because a good song would also fill up the room. I've seen it happen many times when I put on Loudly With a Chance of Scream Balls, Sanden's new band available now. Hear a hit song in the AI episode of Brains On. Thank you.
MOLLY BLOOM: They rock so hard.
SANDEN TOTTEN: OK, Molly, are you ready for riddle number three? Hee hee hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: [CHUCKLES]
SANDEN TOTTEN: What is tall when it's young but short when it's old?
MOLLY BLOOM: Tall when it's young but short when it's old? Hmm, not me. I get taller and taller every day.
SANDEN TOTTEN: You're, like, 60 feet by now, Molly. It's pretty astounding.
MOLLY BLOOM: I know, it's pretty impressive. Uh, taller and taller, short when it's old? Ooh. Um, em, a popsicle? That gets shorter, the longer it's in my mouth.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Hmm, up until a point. But then there's the stick. So it's not really getting shorter. But you're on the right track. Something that over time will be used up.
MOLLY BLOOM: An eraser? Pencil?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh, all of these are good answers and, again, I would say, perfectly valid. I was looking for a candle.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, a candle.
SANDEN TOTTEN: But I will give you the point for the pencil and anyone else who guessed something like a pencil, an eraser. Those also work.
MOLLY BLOOM: Ooh, Sanden, those were some brain busters. Very excellent riddle, Sanden, my friend.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Thank you, Molly. Hopefully, they're good enough to beat Marc. He is hard to stump.
[DOOR OPENS]
MARC SANCHEZ: Did someone say my name?
MOLLY AND SANDEN: Marc Sanchez?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Uh, hey, Marc. I've got a riddle for you. Who has terrible dance moves and enjoys my baking?
MARC SANCHEZ: That would be you.
SANDEN TOTTEN: What? No, no, my dance moves are great. I was talking about you, Marc. [SCOFFS] We'll settle this once and for all. See you on the disco floor, mon frere.
MOLLY BLOOM: To the dance floor!
[MUSIC PLAYING]
That's it for this Smarty Pass episode. It was made by Aron Woldeslassie and Anna Goldfield. Our executive producer is Beth Perlman and the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati, Joanne Griffith, and Alex Schaffert. Brains On is a non-profit public radio program. Thanks Smarty Pass friends. We appreciate you!
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh hoo hee hee hee hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: [CHUCKLES]
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh ooh hee hee hee. Riddles ah ha hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: I enjoyed that.
[BEEPING]
[WHOOSHING]
[DOOR OPENS]
[FOOTSTEPS]
MOLLY BLOOM: Hello, Smarty Pals. You're just in time. I'm just headed to the labor kitchen. Sanden asked me to come down for some reason. He's always, you know, tinkering and making awesome new stuff in there and he usually has a batch of cookies baking.
[DOOR OPENS]
SANDEN TOTTEN: Hey, Molly. Just the person I wanted to see. Want to try this new batch of cookies?
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, wow, cookies, how unexpected and totally not a thing I was counting on being offered to me. Mm. [CHEWING] Hmm, interesting. I'm getting-- mm-- nutty flavors-- mm-- some-- mm-- saltiness-- mm-- umami. And is that a-- a hint of vinegar?
SANDEN TOTTEN: It's my vegan peanut butter shortbread, sweet and savory.
- [CHUCKLES] Who says you can't have it all? Was that why you wanted to see me, for a cookie taste test?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Always, Molly, but also, um, yeah, I kind of wanted to try out some riddles on you. You see, later today, Marc Sanchez and I are having a combination dance off riddle-solving competition, and I want to practice.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, yeah, I've heard you guys talking about that, the brain teaser tango.
[TANGO CHIME]
SANDEN TOTTEN: Exactly. Molly, I know my dance moves are already on point. Cha cha. But I wanted to make sure I could stump Marc with my riddles too.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, so fun. OK, let's hear them.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh, hoo hoo hee hee. Molly Bloom, you must answer my riddles three. A riddle is a tricky question designed to trap you in the maze of your own brain. ha ha hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: Is the first riddle supposed to be I figure out what voice it is that you're doing?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Yeah, I was trying to channel my inner Rumpelstiltskin kind of, you know, fairy tale goblin vibe. Anyway, forget that. Here, I got some riddles for you, Molly. Are you ready?
MOLLY BLOOM: I am so ready.
SANDEN TOTTEN: OK, answer them to the best of your abilities, hee hee hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: [CHUCKLES]
SANDEN TOTTEN: OK, Molly, one, what gets wetter as it dries?
MOLLY BLOOM: Hmm, wetter as it dries?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Mm-hmm.
MOLLY BLOOM: [EXHALES SHARPLY] Wet, wet, water. Something that's been wet but getting wetter as it dries, that seems like an opposite kind of thing.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Focus on the drying part.
MOLLY BLOOM: Drying, paint dries but it's not what. A towel!
[DING]
SANDEN TOTTEN: Yes, ding, ding, ding, Molly Bloom. Way to go. As you dry yourself off with a towel, the towel gets wetter and you get drier. It's drying and getting wetter.
MOLLY BLOOM: Ooh, that's tough.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Are you ready for another one, Molly?
MOLLY BLOOM: I sure am.
SANDEN TOTTEN: OK, here we go, riddle number two, hee hee hee hee. What can fill up a room without taking up any space?
MOLLY BLOOM: Fill up a room without taking up any space? A fart?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh, a fart. [CHUCKLES] I think that clears a room, actually. I don't know if it fills it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, right, OK. Um, fills up a room without taking up any space?
SANDEN TOTTEN: But you're on the right track, something intangible.
MOLLY BLOOM: OK. A great dance song brings everyone to the dance floor.
SANDEN TOTTEN: I mean, technically, you're right with all of these. OK, the answer was light, but I'm going to give it to you, Molly, because a good song would also fill up the room. I've seen it happen many times when I put on Loudly With a Chance of Scream Balls, Sanden's new band available now. Hear a hit song in the AI episode of Brains On. Thank you.
MOLLY BLOOM: They rock so hard.
SANDEN TOTTEN: OK, Molly, are you ready for riddle number three? Hee hee hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: [CHUCKLES]
SANDEN TOTTEN: What is tall when it's young but short when it's old?
MOLLY BLOOM: Tall when it's young but short when it's old? Hmm, not me. I get taller and taller every day.
SANDEN TOTTEN: You're, like, 60 feet by now, Molly. It's pretty astounding.
MOLLY BLOOM: I know, it's pretty impressive. Uh, taller and taller, short when it's old? Ooh. Um, em, a popsicle? That gets shorter, the longer it's in my mouth.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Hmm, up until a point. But then there's the stick. So it's not really getting shorter. But you're on the right track. Something that over time will be used up.
MOLLY BLOOM: An eraser? Pencil?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh, all of these are good answers and, again, I would say, perfectly valid. I was looking for a candle.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, a candle.
SANDEN TOTTEN: But I will give you the point for the pencil and anyone else who guessed something like a pencil, an eraser. Those also work.
MOLLY BLOOM: Ooh, Sanden, those were some brain busters. Very excellent riddle, Sanden, my friend.
SANDEN TOTTEN: Thank you, Molly. Hopefully, they're good enough to beat Marc. He is hard to stump.
[DOOR OPENS]
MARC SANCHEZ: Did someone say my name?
MOLLY AND SANDEN: Marc Sanchez?
SANDEN TOTTEN: Uh, hey, Marc. I've got a riddle for you. Who has terrible dance moves and enjoys my baking?
MARC SANCHEZ: That would be you.
SANDEN TOTTEN: What? No, no, my dance moves are great. I was talking about you, Marc. [SCOFFS] We'll settle this once and for all. See you on the disco floor, mon frere.
MOLLY BLOOM: To the dance floor!
[MUSIC PLAYING]
That's it for this Smarty Pass episode. It was made by Aron Woldeslassie and Anna Goldfield. Our executive producer is Beth Perlman and the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati, Joanne Griffith, and Alex Schaffert. Brains On is a non-profit public radio program. Thanks Smarty Pass friends. We appreciate you!
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh hoo hee hee hee hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: [CHUCKLES]
SANDEN TOTTEN: Ooh ooh hee hee hee. Riddles ah ha hee hee.
MOLLY BLOOM: I enjoyed that.
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