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I am a creator,
and can also destroy.
Sometimes you can feel me,
and at times you can't.

I help people stuck in the rat race
selflessly with panache and grace.

The novice get daunted by my mess,
but the knowledgeable admire it.

What am I?

Hint:-

You've discouraged my evolutionary process.

Hint 2 (Since people weren't getting close to the answer) :-

I am not precious (I'm very common) yet I have locks.

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  • $\begingroup$ Which God is that? Hint is contradicting :) $\endgroup$ – m4n0 Oct 15 '16 at 10:33
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    $\begingroup$ @ManojKumar Nope it's not. If I reply in detail, I would end up giving more more hints. Please take my word :) $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 15 '16 at 10:37
  • $\begingroup$ The hint seems to be referring to an animal that humans have domesticated-- domesticated animals are no longer subject to natural selection the way they were before. $\endgroup$ – Leafy Greens Oct 15 '16 at 20:33
  • $\begingroup$ @LeafyGreens The answer isn't an animal. $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 17 '16 at 8:40
  • $\begingroup$ By I am not valuable do you mean no value at all? $\endgroup$ – me_digvijay Oct 17 '16 at 9:14

12 Answers 12

Active Oldest Votes
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Are you...

Change

I am a creator, and can also destroy.

We create new things to keep up with ever changing time, needs, demographics or environment. The same reasons also destroy old cultures or perceptions.

Sometimes you can feel me, and at times you can't.

We can feel change that is abrupt but slowly changing dimensions are hard to identify in one life span

I help people stuck in the rat race selflessly with panache and grace.

A little shaky on this one but people change jobs and cars and clothes and stay stuck in the rats race.

The novice get daunted by my mess, but the knowledgeable admire it.

The unexperienced ones are dreaded by any kind of change but the wise ones understand this is the law of nature and appreciate it.

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I think the answer is

Instinct

I am a creator,
and can also destroy.

The natural instinct to have children, the natural instinct to exclude, remove or kill dangers and threats. Sometimes our instincts tell us to try something we find terrifying, or is dangerous, like hand gliding or parachuting, or jumping of cliff tops into the sea.

Sometimes you can feel me,
and at times you can't.

Sometimes you can clearly feel an instinct to run, or to change direction, but most times we just plod through life unaware of our instincts.

I help people stuck in the rat race
selflessly with panache and grace.

The rat race is life, and instinct works selflessly, it is always at work, never resting, even when we are asleep, which is why a strange noise can wake us suddenly at night. It usually kicks in very powerfully when we are in a situation where we are stuck, or faced with an emergency. Instinct never rests. Panache and grace - pushing it a bit here but instincts drive us to act in ways we never thought we could, like bravado, or during courtship. Grace gives us speed and adept reactions that afterwards we can hardly believed we managed it - "I just acted instinctively".

The novice get daunted by my mess,
but the knowledgeable admire it.

The novice is the young, who can be scared by their instincts, especially the instinct to confront, or fight, or to jump from a height. Instinct is a mess of sometimes confusing urges. But we usually admire those that follow their instincts. We call it following your dreams, but a doctor or a surgeon or a test-pilot have followed their instincts to care for others, or to do something exhilarating.

If the answer is not correct, it is a lovely way to describe it anyway.

The hint:

We have definitely all tried to discourage our instincts, especially instincts that tell us to take what we want, to hit out or to exclude others. The evolutionary process is intimately involved with killing of competitors, or mating with people against their will. These particular evolutionary processes are definitely discouraged.

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  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Nice try but not the answer :) $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 15 '16 at 12:09
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    $\begingroup$ Boo. :-) Good puzzle though. I cannot wait to see the actual answer to this! Will be thinking about this all day now! $\endgroup$ – PaulD Oct 15 '16 at 12:13
  • $\begingroup$ You won't have to. Puzzlers here solve most of my riddles in a matter of few hours. Your answer deserves an upvote :) $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 15 '16 at 12:16
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So this is most certainly not the answer.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7

I am a creator,

Samsung is the creator

and can also destroy.

Galaxy Note 7 is the destroyer

Sometimes you can feel me,

Referencing when the phone is not on fire

and at times you can't.

Referencing when the phone is on fire

I help people stuck in the rat race

Galaxy Note, like many other phones, can assist people at work - Unless you work at an airport.

selflessly with panache and grace.

The phone looks quite stylish and is user friendly. (This is opinion based)

The novice get daunted by my mess,

Someone switching form an iPhone to a Samsung may have a learning curve with the operating system

but the knowledgeable admire it.

Those with knowledge understand that the spec of the phone is superior to that of an iPhone

Hint1:- You've discouraged my evolutionary process.

No one wants a phone with a potentially dangerous lithium battery blowing up in their pocket.

Hint2: I am not valuable or precious (I'm very common) yet I have locks.

Samsung shares have decreased as a phone on fire isn't worth very much. The Galaxy Note 7 has several lock functions which can be activated.

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2
  • $\begingroup$ Nice one. Made me laugh :) $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 17 '16 at 9:03
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    $\begingroup$ Ditto. But I believe that your answers are backwards for "Sometimes you can feel me, / and at times you can't." $\endgroup$ – Peregrine Rook Oct 17 '16 at 17:41
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I am a creator,
and can also destroy.

I'm a keyboard. I can write as well as delete text.

Sometimes you can feel me,
and at times you can't.

You can feel physical keyboards, but not virtual keyboards.

I help people stuck in the rat race
selflessly with panache and grace.

People who are stuck trying to be better using the mouse (rat race). Keyboards are much faster and easier to handle. Thus it helps people become faster and more confident with computers.

The novice get daunted by my mess,
but the knowledgeable admire it.

People using a keyboard for the first time find it difficult to use it because the alphabets aren't in order. The experiences know that the arrangement facilitates ease of typing.

You've discouraged my evolutionary process.

There are a few designs that are better than QWERTY. (Eg:- a DVORAK keyboard) We don't encourage them because we are accustomed to the shortcuts and arrangements in QWERTY on all our devices.

I am not precious (I'm very common) yet I have locks.

Explanatory.

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  • $\begingroup$ Wow, great answer. "The novice get daunted by my mess, but the knowledgeable admire it." What a perfect description of a keyboard! $\endgroup$ – PaulD Oct 23 '16 at 9:40
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    $\begingroup$ @PaulD OP here. So my answer has to make sense :) $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 23 '16 at 10:04
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Are you

Opportunity

I am a creator, and can also destroy.

Opportunities can both constructive and destructive.

Sometimes you can feel me, and at times you can't.

Sometimes your instincts work, sometimes it's pure surprise.

I help people stuck in the rat race selflessly with panache and grace.

Good Opportunities do the above.

The novice get daunted by my mess, but the knowledgeable admire it.

As the novice is less experienced, he might get daunted. For the experienced person, he doesn't get fumbled.

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3
  • $\begingroup$ You can use >! at the beginning of a line to hide your answer. This means that you don't accidentally spoil it for other people who scroll down. $\endgroup$ – Leafy Greens Oct 15 '16 at 20:30
  • $\begingroup$ thanks....i was pretty confused, with how the fade-in fade-out works :) @LeafyGreens $\endgroup$ – ispostback Oct 16 '16 at 4:51
  • $\begingroup$ Nice try @Arka_Dev $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 16 '16 at 7:11
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Is it

DNA?

I am a creator, and can also destroy.

... life and death (genetic diseases) are both encoded in it ...

Sometimes you can feel me, and at times you can't.

... this may be a reference to the ol' Nature vs Nurture debate ...

I help people stuck in the rat race selflessly with panache and grace.

... encoded in the DNA strands are also a range of abilities that "help" humans to cope with the daily challenges ...

The novice get daunted by my mess, but the knowledgeable admire it.

... DNA intrinsic complexity can be difficult to grasp to some, but, also, beautiful to behold to those in the know ...

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  • $\begingroup$ Good one. It meets most of the hints :) $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 18 '16 at 3:00
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What am I?

Microsoft software (Windows and Office)

I am a creator,

This is a little weak, but

  • Microsoft software (and, in particular, Microsoft Office) has facilitated the creation of innumerable documents, and maybe a handful of works of art,
  • Microsoft Corporation has created thousands of jobs for developers and sysadmins (and computer security professionals!)
  • Microsoft software creates headaches and chaos.

and can also destroy.

Buggy Microsoft software has destroyed thousands of hours of work.

Sometimes you can feel me,

When you’re in the Command Prompt, the Control Panel (including the countless dialogs and options panels that descend from there), Windows Explorer, or Office, you are (sometimes painfully) aware that you are wrestling with a Microsoft product.

and at times you can’t.

When you’re in a browser, you can sometimes ignore the local computer environment and focus on the web site you’re visiting.  When you’re in a virtual machine, you can sometimes ignore the host operating system and focus on your VM.  (Likewise when you’re connected to a remote computer.)  Other applications (e.g., games) can similarly absorb your attention.

I help people stuck in the rat race selflessly with panache and grace.

Microsoft Office enables white-collar workers to produce the documents that their jobs require.  Earlier versions of Microsoft Office included an “office assistant” (by default, Clippy the paperclip, although other avatars were available) to help users do their jobs.

The novice get daunted by my mess,

Microsoft software comes with a steep learning curve.  People who had been using Microsoft Office for years took weeks to relearn it when Office 2007 (with the ribbon) was released.  And, speaking of “mess” — have you seen the registry?

but the knowledgeable admire it.

The argument has been made that the registry is preferable to having thousands of .INI files and other config files scattered all over the file system.  The standardization of the user interface (wherever you go, Ctrl+C is “copy” and Ctrl+V is “paste”, etc.) has drawn praise.  And people who’ve been brainwashed acclimatized and accustomed by long exposure begin to find it natural.

You’ve discouraged my evolutionary process.

People resist change.  Look at Super User to see the efforts people are going through to resist being upgraded to Windows 10.  When Windows 8 came out, people said, “Bring back the Windows 7 Start Menu.”  When Office 2007 came out, people said, “Bring back our File, Edit and View menus (like what Notepad, Windows Explorer and Internet Explorer still have).”

I am not precious (I’m very common) …

Microsoft seems to be the most pervasive software company around (especially after they’ve either acquired or destroyed so much of their competition).  Windows is pre-loaded on many computers, and it’s available around the world, in many languages.

                … yet I have locks.

  • Users can’t login without providing identification and authentication.
  • Once logged in, the user can lock the screen.
  • In Windows Explorer, protected directories are displayed with a padlock icon.
  • There are file locks and filesystem/drive locks, to prevent concurrent access:
    C:\Windows\system32> chkdsk /f
    The type of the file system is NTFS.
    Cannot lock current drive.

    Chkdsk cannot run because the volume is in use by another
    process. Would you like to schedule this volume to be
    checked the next time the system restarts? (Y/N)
  • Office documents can be locked against unauthorized editing.
  • etc.

What am I?

Microsoft software (Windows and Office)

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1
  • $\begingroup$ Good try but not the answer. $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 18 '16 at 2:53
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I think it is

Dream

I am a creator, and can also destroy.

Dream creates new ideas sometimes or you can dream about destruction

Sometimes you can feel me, and at times you can't.

At times, you know that it is a dream and sometimes you are too much taken in by your dreams and don't realise that it is fantasy

I help people stuck in the rat race selflessly with panache and grace.

A person's dreams and ambitions give them a direction in life.

The novice get daunted by my mess, but the knowledgeable admire it.

The young people are afraid of dangerous dreams, while the wiser one understand it is their intuition that is warning them through dreams about forthcoming calamity.

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1
  • $\begingroup$ Another good answer :) $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 16 '16 at 7:04
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Surprised that nobody posted that yet:

You are

Chaos

I am a creator,

All the stuff that exists now evolved from initial chaos

and can also destroy.

Chaos can also bring destruction

Sometimes you can feel me, and at times you can't.

Sometimes the events around you are chaotic and you feel it, sometimes it is ordered and peaceful.

I help people stuck in the rat race selflessly with panache and grace.

People in the rat race often use chaos and disorder as their weapon (to mislead their opponents)

The novice get daunted by my mess, but the knowledgeable admire it.

My mess is the chaos itself. People that have little knowledge get "daunted", but the more "knowledgable" ones know that the chaos is something beautiful and powerful.

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1
  • $\begingroup$ Good try. Deserves an upvote. $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 19 '16 at 4:27
2
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Is it a

Seat Belt?

I am a creator,

Seat belts create good drivers

and can also destroy.

Not wearing them can destroy drivers in case of fatal accidents

Sometimes you can feel me,

If used, we feel them wrapped around

and at times you can't.

If not used, we don't feel them

I help people stuck in the rat race selflessly with panache and grace.

Using them helps a driver during a driving race.

The novice get daunted by my mess,

For a novice, it gets messy to use them

but the knowledgeable admire it.

Self explainable

You've discouraged my evolutionary process.

There hasn't been any better seat belt mechanism in years.

I am not precious (I'm very common) yet I have locks.

Compared to the cars, where they are used, they do not have any value. And yes, they have seat belt locks.

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1
  • $\begingroup$ Good one. Goes with all the hints :) $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 17 '16 at 13:02
1
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The lines

The novice get daunted by my mess,
but the knowledgeable admire it.

is a dead giveaway.

You are Emacs.

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0
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It seems too obvious but...

God... is that you???

I am a creator,

....god

and can also destroy.

ever heard about Noah's story?

Sometimes you can feel me,

when believers get "lucky"

and at times you can't.

when believers don't feel lucky...

I help people stuck in the rat race

would be a shame if he didn't help after all that praying!

selflessly with panache and grace.

god is said to be selfless and graceful

The novice get daunted by my mess,

To non believers, all the facts about religion and god seems like completely a nonsensical mess.

but the knowledgeable admire it.

But to believers who studied the bible thoroughly everything seems to somehow magically make sense.

You've discouraged my evolutionary process.

Darwin did do something like that didn't he?

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1
  • $\begingroup$ Nope. God isn't the answer :) $\endgroup$ – Abhirath Mahipal Oct 16 '16 at 7:04

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