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What do you get if you add 1 to 1 three times?

Note the tags for this problem are mathematics and lateral thinking...hmm

Oh yeah, and btw, the question title is kinda misleading...

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    $\begingroup$ that new edit kinda changed the meaning of the last phrase $\endgroup$
    – lucidbrot
    Jan 8, 2018 at 7:27
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    $\begingroup$ This question is insane $\endgroup$
    – frarugi87
    Jan 8, 2018 at 11:06
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    $\begingroup$ @frarugi87 I like how the linked website states it twice $\endgroup$
    – lucidbrot
    Jan 8, 2018 at 14:53
  • $\begingroup$ --- removed --- $\endgroup$
    – Jennifer
    Jan 8, 2018 at 19:59

12 Answers 12

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As lateral thinking so:

Answer is: 2, doesn't matter how many times we add 1 to 1 result is always 2:P

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    $\begingroup$ Ack, you beat me by seconds! $\endgroup$
    – Phylyp
    Jan 8, 2018 at 4:16
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    $\begingroup$ That means we got same thinking:P lateral:) $\endgroup$
    – Preet
    Jan 8, 2018 at 4:17
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    $\begingroup$ @phylyp this has got to be the fastest question answered on record :P $\endgroup$
    – NL628
    Jan 8, 2018 at 4:18
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    $\begingroup$ @phylyp lowkey refreshed the page and got two new answers $\endgroup$
    – NL628
    Jan 8, 2018 at 4:24
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    $\begingroup$ I propose "2 2 2" as the answer. :-) $\endgroup$
    – Alex
    Jan 8, 2018 at 16:07
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That would be:

2, three times, wouldn't it?

Rationale:

The specific action is adding 1 to 1. Its not cumulatively adding 1.

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    $\begingroup$ I just looked through your profile and I realized that you got 250 points from my Troll Addition question and 160 points from my "Harrier Side of me one" wow :O $\endgroup$
    – NL628
    Jan 9, 2018 at 20:57
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I get...

... 7.

Could be...

... 1+1+1 = 3 (base 10) = 11 (base 2).

OR could be...

... 1+1+1+1 = 4 (base 10) = 100 (base 2).

And...

... 11 or 100 = 111 (base 2)
       = 7   (base 10)

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    $\begingroup$ the troller the answer the better :) have a look at the other answers for fun $\endgroup$
    – NL628
    Jan 8, 2018 at 4:59
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    $\begingroup$ Already had, just couldn't resist. Probably should've saved this solution for a puzzle of its own. $\endgroup$
    – humn
    Jan 8, 2018 at 5:01
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    $\begingroup$ [and another] Congratulations on being hot! My hottest was "Finger that bad digit" until I changed its title. I hope your suspension is short, @NL628, you'll be fun live. And thank for whiskering a place to not go. Bye for now. $\endgroup$
    – humn
    Jan 8, 2018 at 5:16
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    $\begingroup$ i like how Finger that bad digit is now a linked question ;) $\endgroup$
    – NL628
    Feb 14, 2018 at 2:01
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Come on guys, it's obviously

1111

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The other answers seem more reasonable, but the programmer in me just instantly thought of this:

"What do you get if you add 1 to 1 three times?"
Read aloud: "add 1 2 1 3 times"
That is a function that looks like this:
f = (+1213)*, i.e. a function that takes some input number n and returns a new function that would add n*1213 to its own input number. So that new function is what I get if I "add 1 to 1 three times"

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If you read it out phonetically...

...you can get 363

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I'm surprised this hasn't been said so far:

Answer is: 1 + 1×3 = 2

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    $\begingroup$ isn't that 4? idk $\endgroup$
    – hyper-neutrino
    Jan 8, 2018 at 15:03
  • $\begingroup$ @HyperNeutrino Read the title of the question again $\endgroup$
    – Pierre Arlaud
    Jan 8, 2018 at 15:11
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    $\begingroup$ no but 1+1*3 evaluates to 4. If you're doing 1+1 3 times, then sorry but that has been said already (see accepted answer). $\endgroup$
    – hyper-neutrino
    Jan 8, 2018 at 15:44
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    $\begingroup$ @HyperNeutrino Let me rephrase: troll question => troll answer :P $\endgroup$
    – Pierre Arlaud
    Jan 8, 2018 at 15:45
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This is my take:

The trolls of Terry Pratchett's discworld count "one, two, many". Then they continue with "many-one, many-two, many-many, many-many-one" and so on. So I'm going to say "many-one", as 1+1+1+1 is clearly the interpretation of "adding 1 to 1 three times".

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5
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Is it:

11, using concatenation

?

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  • $\begingroup$ > add 1 to 1 three times $\endgroup$
    – user10845
    Jan 8, 2018 at 12:27
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    $\begingroup$ you get 11 each time! $\endgroup$
    – JMP
    Jan 8, 2018 at 12:28
  • $\begingroup$ oh, I see now where you're coming from :) $\endgroup$
    – user10845
    Jan 8, 2018 at 12:35
  • $\begingroup$ String concatenation, funny. Happens so often. $\endgroup$
    – Thomas Weller
    Jan 8, 2018 at 15:12
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The answer is

5

because

given that the question was tagged with it is clearly referencing one of the most popular online mathematics references: The On-Line Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences® and as most mathematicians know the first three elements in the sequence with the index "1 to [sic] 1" (aka A000121) are 1, 2, and 2. Adding these up yields 5.

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I'm a little surprised no one mentioned:

112

because

1 added to (one three times) 111 = 112

Similarly, it could be

4

because

1 + (1 + 1 + 1) or 1 + (1 * 3), with each term in parentheses being "one three times"

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(Add one to one) three times so (1+1)x3=6

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