- [Narrator] Being smart is
more than just an IQ score. Thinking logically,
trusting your instincts, and making the right decision
can be the difference between survival and death. So, to put your logic,
observation and knowledge to the test, let's see if you
can work out these riddles that only the smartest people can solve. (lighthearted music) Number 10, Animal Instincts. While on a heroic adventure, you've been poisoned by a wizard. He's made just enough
antidote to cure you, but it's in a screw-top metal bottle at the peak of a rock face. It's impossible for humans to climb, but, luckily, in front
of you are three potions. Each has the power to
transform you into an animal with skills that might
help tackle this challenge. Which animal do you become to retrieve and drink the antidote? A, An eagle B, A mountain goat or C, A monkey (soft music) Being an eagle, the rock
face is no longer a problem as you can simply fly up to the bottle. But how do you open it? You can't smash it
without losing the liquid, every drop of which is needed, and birds can't unscrew bottle
tops, so the eagle's out. How about the mountain goat? With climbing prowess far beyond humans, you'd be up the rock face in no time. But like the eagle, you'd have no way of opening the antidote
without wasting a drop. That leaves the monkey. A master climber, the
monkey could get to the top and, being the only one
with opposable thumbs, could open the bottle without breaking it. Behold the power of the primate. Number Nine, Sword Fight or Flight. Cured and back in human
form, you feel fantastic. The wizard realizes poison
isn't going to defeat you, so he initiates an
old-fashioned sword fight. Unfortunately, you don't
have any kind of weapon except for your fists. There's a knife on the
floor next to the wizard, and an exit behind you. What choice do you make to survive? A, Grab the knife B, Run or C, Use your fists (soft music) Unless you're a legendary
martial arts master, fists versus sword is a suicidal choice. As for picking up the knife, stepping towards the madman with a sword, or commando rolling, or
however you want to do it, just gives him an opportunity to attack. The safest way to ensure
you survive is to run. He might be faster than you, but you're closer to the
door and have a head start. Plus, locking the fire door behind you means he'll be held up for
a while at the very least. Number Eight, Lightning Fast Thinking. You've escaped into the open. But as you keep running
you start to notice a thunderstorm rumbling above you. There's no natural cover for miles and lightning has begun
striking the ground all around. What should you do to
give you the best chance of surviving a lightning strike? A, Lie flat on the ground B, Hide under a big tree C, Crouch into a ball (soft music) Lightning usually strikes
the tallest objects, as the electricity is trying to find the quickest route to the ground. So, hiding under a large tree hugely increases your
chances of getting fried, or at least crushed. Lying flat on the ground
is also not a great idea. With your entire body
contacting the ground, you've just made yourself a bigger target. But if you crouch down, you can balance on the small contact area of the balls of your feet
while halving your height. Even though you haven't completely eliminated the risk of being hit, you've certainly minimized it. Number Seven, Organic Panic. While you've avoided the lightning, staying still for so long has meant the wizard's
managed to catch up with you. He casts a spell and traps
you under a huge magical dome. There doesn't seem to be any way out, but there's enough space and
resources to build a fire and tools for cooking. Trapped, perhaps forever, the
wizard offers you a choice of one of three foods in infinite supply. That one food may be the
only food you can eat for the rest of your life, so which one would keep you alive and healthy for the longest? A, Potatoes B, Soybeans or C, Celery (soft music) While soybeans contain
high amounts of protein and are quite calorie dense, their main drawback is the
lack of essential vitamins. Humans require 13 essential vitamins to maintain their health,
and nine amino acids. Soybeans contain all
essential amino acids, but very few of the 13 vitamins. Without the vitamins to
fuel your immune system, you'd be far more susceptible to disease, as well as nerve and muscle damage. Then there's celery, which is mostly water and undigestible cellulose, making it an incredibly low-calorie food even in large quantities. Unable to get the calories you need, you'd eventually starve to death. Which leaves us with potatoes. A mix of white and sweet potatoes provides all the essential amino acids, vitamins such as A, E and
C, and plenty of calories. Obviously, only eating one food forever would run you into problems eventually, but potatoes give you the healthiest shot at long-term survival. Number Six, Water You Waiting For? As you wander about your dome, you're starting to feel thirsty. Luckily, you notice
there are three streams running through your little prison. One is blue, one is
brown, and one is pink. Without a crystal clear
water source available, which one of these streams would be safest to drink from? A, The blue B, The brown or C, The pink (soft music) The big one to avoid
here is the pink water. In nature, this coloring is associated to a certain type of wastewater containing trinitrotoluene, aka TNT. It's a highly toxic discharge that's considered hazardous waste. The blue water's similarly risky. But all water is blue right? Wrong. The stream isn't deep enough for this blue to be the result of the
standard absorption of light like in oceans and lakes. Instead, this blueness is likely from particles of copper or iron from worn-down limestone rocks, or toxic algae, which can
also give water a blue hue. Either way, it shouldn't be trusted. But brown water in nature
is usually just muddy. It might be unpleasant, but
it's least likely to kill you. So drink up. Number Five, Deep Trouble. After getting a drink, you
realize the brown stream runs just deep enough
for you to swim under it and escape the dome, but
the wizard is in pursuit, so you climb onto shore and run. You come to a huge ravine
that's several kilometers long in both directions,
and about 30 feet wide. The bottom's so deep
you can't even see it. Someone has attached a tightrope across, and there's a rickety-looking
tree branch nearby that's 6 foot long. Other than that, there's nothing around. Do you A, Use the tightrope B, Use the tree branch to vault across or C, Run up and jump across (soft music) The world record for the long
jump comes in at 29.36 foot, so unless you're better
than a world-class athlete, you wouldn't stand a
chance jumping unaided. What if you tried using the
tree branch to pole vault? Firstly, it's too short to
give you any kind of advantage, and secondly, judging by its thinness, it'd break or bend the minute
you put pressure on it. Which leaves you with the tightrope. But you don't have to
be an acrobat to use it. Crossing your legs over one another and using your arms to pull, you can shimmy your way over like a sloth. Slow and steady wins the race. Number Four, Adrena-Win. Once you're across,
you untie the tightrope so the wizard can't follow you. Finally, you're free. You head back to civilization,
where sell your story and become incredibly rich. But you've developed a taste for danger. To get your adrenaline fix, you decide to take up an extreme sport, but you don't want to die,
you've got too much living to do. So, out of these three
extreme sport options, which is the least likely to kill you? A, Grand Prix racing B, Hang Gliding or C, Boxing (soft music) According to a meta-analysis
of recreational sports data, your chances of dying whilst boxing are somewhere around 1 in 2,200. When you think about how
many people enjoy boxing, that's pretty high. But hang gliding is worse, with a likelihood of 1
in 560 gliders dying. So, the safe bet is Grand Prix racing? Nope, a Grand Prix racer's
likelihood of dying during a race is a terrifying 1 in 100. So, the sport least likely
to kill you would be boxing. Whether you'll have any teeth
left is a different question. Number Three, The Organ Trail. Unfortunately, you wind up
losing your first fight badly. You're taken to the
hospital to get stitched up, and while you're there,
you see several patients are on death's door,
desperate for treatment. You notice they all share your blood type, so you decide to donate
something to help save a life. But it's never that simple. Take a look at these people and decide who would you be able
to donate something to? A, A small child who needs a heart B, A lady who needs a liver C, A man who needs blood (soft music) The easiest donation to make
would be a blood donation, but the book the man's holding shows he's a Jehovah's Witness. As part of their faith, it isn't possible for
the vast majority of them to accept blood transfusions. Sadly, you can't help the child either, as children's bodies are
almost always too small to accept full-sized adult or teen organs. But the lady who needs a liver would be a perfect match to you, as you share the same blood type. Live liver donation involves
removing a lobe of your liver and transplanting it into someone else. Amazingly, within approximately 3 months, both the recipient and donor's livers will grow back to full size. Sharing really is caring. Number Two, A Real Drag. As you're recovering from
being such a good Samaritan, you decide to go and get some fresh air. But outside the front of the hospital are several people smoking. It's not good for their health, but can you tell which one of them is most likely to die
from their addiction? A, A man smoking a cigarette B, A woman Smoking a cigarette or C, A man Smoking a cigar (soft music) Let's look at the man smoking the cigar. His habit makes him four
to 10 times more likely to die from laryngeal, oral
and oesophageal cancers than non-smokers. But as most cigar smokers
don't fully inhale, they're not as likely
to develop lung cancer as cigarette smokers, which is cancer's deadliest form. Not that that makes cigars safe, mind you. But what about this lady? Well, women who smoke are
12 times more likely to die from lung cancer than non-smokers. But male smokers, like this
guy, are 22 times more likely to die from lung cancer than non-smokers, making him the most likely to die. With your uncomfortable and unasked-for death prediction made, hopefully they'll all quit. Number One, Savior's Choice. You're getting ready to leave when the President of the
United States shows up to open a new wing of the hospital. You are in America, after all, and this type of thing happens
all the time, probably. Your wife is helping
you pack up your things and points out that the
president is giving his blessing to the family of a newborn baby. But disaster strikes. the new wing of the hospital collapses. When you come to, you're
at the edge of a hole in the rubble. In the hole you can see
your wife, the president, and the parents holding
up their newborn baby. Rescue services are close by, and no one seems to be injured, but the hero within you is
overcome with the urge to help. But having just had surgery, you know you could only rescue one of them without causing serious
damage to yourself. In this scenario, who do
you have a duty to rescue? A, The president B, The baby C, Your wife (soft music) Now, the most moral thing to do here would be to get the baby to safety, and the most patriotic thing to do would be to help get the
president out of there. But according to the law of
the United States of America, you have a duty to your
spouse to rescue them if you're able to in an emergency. Your spouse even has a right to sue you if you reject the chance to rescue them. So, in this case, ladies first. With your wife by your side, I think it's time for a well-earned rest. Until next time. Did you prove your skills
as a born survivor? Which survival hurdle did you fail at? Let me know in the comments
below, and thanks for watching. (soft music)
