2
$\begingroup$

Story

I love doing stuff with my friends on Buzzing Shark Exchange. This time my friend finally decided to create an account on this site.
We wanted to have fun, so I created a cryptogram:

What is this sequence of numbers about?
$953562951413$

I promised to give a bounty of 50 reputation to the one who found the answer. I gave this to my friend before I posted it, so he would be able to find the solution and have the bounty. He got ninja'd, and he lost the opportunity to answer correctly.

Next day, this friend sent me an SMS (a normal one): 

Hey buddy, i posted an enigm on the site. If you answer it correctly i'll give you a bounty.

I searched his post on the site. His only activity was a question posted yesterday:

I have a list of letters... what comes next?
O S A J J M ???

Easy, huh?
I luckily answered it first and, as he promised, he gave me a bounty. However, my reputation didn't go up!

Question

  • Why didn't my reputation go up?
  • Bonus: What are the answers to the numbers and the letter sequence?

Clarifications

  • Buzzing Shark Exchange works exactly as Puzzling Stack Exchange. The only difference is that it is allowed for sharks.
  • This site works correctly. There are no bugs (sharks know how to code!)
| improve this question | |
$\endgroup$
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ I cleaned up the grammar/punctuation a bit. If I ruined the puzzle, feel free to roll it back. :) I didn't touch anything in the SMS message, since I didn't know if it was important or not - is 'enigm' purposeful? $\endgroup$ – Bailey M Aug 19 '15 at 14:05
  • 3
    $\begingroup$ Who says the bounty is a bounty on Shark Exchange? It could be a chocolate bar he gave you ;) $\endgroup$ – user14478 Aug 19 '15 at 14:06
  • $\begingroup$ Thank you @BaileyM, I definely have a problem with english D: $\endgroup$ – The random guy Aug 19 '15 at 14:09
  • $\begingroup$ No problem at all. It's certainly good enough to make a solid puzzle! I just cleaned up a few spots. There have been posts on here that I skipped completely because they were just unreadable (and yours are not among them)! $\endgroup$ – Bailey M Aug 19 '15 at 14:10
7
$\begingroup$

For the main question:

If his only activity was a single question, your friend did not have the reputation to offer a bounty. I can only assume he gave you a coconut-filled chocolate instead. Or perhaps there are numerous people closing in on you, even now, attempting to take you, alive or dead, to your (presumably former) friend
EDIT: If you were given a bounty, you would have been told about someone else to go capture and bring to the authorities/the bounty giver. I got my old west knowledge backwards, sorry.

| improve this answer | |
$\endgroup$
  • 2
    $\begingroup$ (+1) Now I also know why TheRandomGuy didn't answer my unserious comment :D $\endgroup$ – user14478 Aug 19 '15 at 14:26
  • $\begingroup$ @LuxxMiner unserious but valid .. You got it, gg ! EDIT : i will valid this answer tomorrow, i wanna see some other lateral thinking answer :D $\endgroup$ – The random guy Aug 19 '15 at 14:27
  • $\begingroup$ Sorry, @LuxxMiner! I didn't see your comment before I posted, or I would have suggested you post it as an answer! $\endgroup$ – LogicianWithAHat Aug 19 '15 at 14:30
  • $\begingroup$ @LogicianWithAHat No problem! I'm just a bit angry at myself and at noone else, no need for an apology, I'm sure you wouldn't have exploit my comment for your own answer! $\endgroup$ – user14478 Aug 19 '15 at 14:32
7
$\begingroup$

The sequence of numbers is the first 12 digits of pi (π) in reverse. (The last digit (or first digit in the sequence) is rounded off, thanks Vašek Potoček.)

There's another bonus question cracked!

| improve this answer | |
$\endgroup$
  • $\begingroup$ Not quite, is it? Isn't there an extra 5 floating around in there? EDIT: Never mind, he fixed it. :D $\endgroup$ – Bailey M Aug 19 '15 at 14:10
  • $\begingroup$ Yes you are right, i corrected that. +1 for this bonus answer ! $\endgroup$ – The random guy Aug 19 '15 at 14:11
  • $\begingroup$ That, and the last (or first) digit 9 is wrong, unless that's a decimal approximation of π rounded at that point. $\endgroup$ – The Vee Aug 19 '15 at 14:12
  • $\begingroup$ @VašekPotoček this is rounded :D $\endgroup$ – The random guy Aug 19 '15 at 14:13
  • $\begingroup$ I think it would be harder if the digits were separated by commas. $\endgroup$ – Rohcana Aug 19 '15 at 14:18
5
$\begingroup$

The letter sequence is first letter of the months starting from October going backwards. So the next letter in the sequence should be A for April.

That's one bonus question out of the way.

| improve this answer | |
$\endgroup$
4
$\begingroup$

Well since you and your friend are clearly sharks, the bounty he gave you might have been the

H.M.S. Bounty, full of tasty tasty sailors.

Alas, such a bounty will not award you reputation.

| improve this answer | |
$\endgroup$
  • $\begingroup$ cannibalism !! D: $\endgroup$ – The random guy Aug 19 '15 at 14:29
  • 3
    $\begingroup$ No, because the sailors aren't sharks. $\endgroup$ – Kingrames Aug 19 '15 at 14:30
  • $\begingroup$ @Kingrames are you sure about that? $\endgroup$ – Faraz Masroor Aug 19 '15 at 15:17
  • $\begingroup$ @FarazMasroor well, not site reputation, I'm sure. Being the shark that ate up a famous ship would make you quite infamous, however. $\endgroup$ – Kingrames Aug 19 '15 at 15:31
  • $\begingroup$ @Kingrames I was wondering about sailor sharks. I'm pretty sure there are such things $\endgroup$ – Faraz Masroor Aug 19 '15 at 16:13
3
$\begingroup$

If you have been busy on Buzzing Shark Exchange you may have already hit the daily +200 rep limit, so it cannot increase any further.

| improve this answer | |
$\endgroup$
  • $\begingroup$ Interessing answer, i didn't know you are limited on reputation every day ... EDIT : what about 250 rep bounties ? $\endgroup$ – The random guy Aug 19 '15 at 14:32
  • 4
    $\begingroup$ Bounties are exempt from the daily rep cap $\endgroup$ – CodeNewbie Aug 19 '15 at 14:32

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.