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This is a two part riddle (or it'd be too easy for the expert mode puzzlers), I'd only attempt the second one once you've done the first one to keep things coherent, but feel free to jump ahead.

Part one:
Without me you'd be ice, but I'm at the poles.
You'd meet your demise, but I'm not within you.
I'm mixed without mixing and caught without catching,
I'm here when they're hatching.
What am I?


Part two:

My sister hides, out of sight,
She can't be touched, but felt she might.
She'll go through you, and you won't know she's there,
Unless you are, indeed quite rare.
Who is my sister?



I'll accept the first to answer both, or the first to answer only the first one in 24 hours.

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3 Answers 3

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Answer to Part One

Light waves.

Without me you'd be ice, but I'm at the poles:

Without sunlight the Earth would just be a dead frozen ball of ice. Even though the poles are made of ice, the sun also shines here.

You'd meet your demise, but I'm not within you.

We need light to provide heat and energy to the Earth, so without light there can be no life. Light is essential to humans, but it is not an internal part of us.

I'm mixed without mixing and caught without catching,

White light is a "mix" of all the colors of the spectrum, although no "mixing" ever found place. An object can "catch" the light, although it doesn't actually catch it like you would catch a ball.

I'm here when they're hatching.

When eggs are hatching in an incubator, they are often put below a lamp emitting infra-red light.

Answer to Part Two

Radio waves.

My sister hides, out of sight,

Radio waves are related to light waves. They are two kinds of electromagnetic energy. Radio waves are not visible to the human eye.

She can't be touched, but felt she might.

It is not possible to reach out and touch radio waves, but some people are said to be hypersensitive to electromagnetic fields from cell phones, radios etc. (Furthermore you can feel the emotional effect of the data transmitted by the radio waves.)

She'll go through you, and you won't know she's there,

Radio waves can pass through our bodies without us noticing.

Unless you are, indeed quite rare.

As mentioned above, a few people are said to suffer from electro-hypersensitivity, but it is a rare condition.

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  • $\begingroup$ Nice work @Wolff, the original answer was 'EM radiation' and then Magnetism (with rare referring to rare earth), but this also fits nicely with answer two. $\endgroup$
    – Liam Daly
    May 17, 2017 at 21:33
  • $\begingroup$ Thanks for accepting even though i was not 100% spot on. Can rare earth be used to detect magnetism? $\endgroup$
    – Wolff
    May 17, 2017 at 21:38
  • $\begingroup$ Nah you fit the criteria exactly so that's 100% in my books (it's up to me to not have ambiguous criteria hahha). And yes, some rare earth metals are magnets, and others can detect magnetism. I actually like your explanation more though. $\endgroup$
    – Liam Daly
    May 17, 2017 at 21:41
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Part 1

Are you?

Feelings?

Ice referes to cold nature.
Mixed and catch refer to mixed feelings and catch feelings.

The rest I'm still unsure.

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  • $\begingroup$ Sorry Mordechai, but I'm not referring to feelings. Do you think I should add a hint? $\endgroup$
    – Liam Daly
    May 17, 2017 at 3:59
  • $\begingroup$ @Liam No, give it more time. People from other time zones may not have seen this post yet. $\endgroup$
    – Mordechai
    May 17, 2017 at 4:36
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Lets try Part 1. Are you...

heat?

Without me you'd be ice, but I'm at the poles.

Water is ice without heat, and since we are 70% made of water, me (you) would also be ice

You'd meet your demise, but I'm not within you.

if you get very cold, and you don't heat yourself, you can die

I'm mixed without mixing and caught without catching,

not sure about this one

I'm here when they're hatching.

eggs need heat in order to be hatched

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  • $\begingroup$ might need help with formating xD $\endgroup$
    – Mario Garcia
    May 17, 2017 at 7:00
  • $\begingroup$ You are very close @mario-garcia, but not quite. I'll add a hint tomorrow. $\endgroup$
    – Liam Daly
    May 17, 2017 at 9:36

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