[GalFisk] NO!!

[GalFisk]

"Your husband just went insane!" began a frantic call from his employer to his wife.

[markobr]

Do both "his" refer to the same person? To the husband? Husband: HAM? Wife: HAF? Employer: HA? Employer's sex/gtender relevant? Is there any other relation between employer and husband than, well that of employer and employee? Any relation between employer and wife?

Did the husband go insane? Does the employer really think so?

Call: telephone call?

[GalFisk]

Do both "his" refer to the same person? To the husband? Husband: HAM? Wife: HAF? Employer: HA? Yes to all. Employer's sex/gtender relevant? No. Is there any other relation between employer and husband than, well that of employer and employee? No. Any relation between employer and wife? No.

Did the husband go insane? No. Does the employer really think so? Yes.

Call: telephone call? Yes.

[Doriana]

Did the husband do something that made the employer think he was insane? say something? write something?

Is the husband's job relevant?

Does the husband have relevant information that the employer doesn't have, which makes him seem insane? E.g. the husband has already heard/read about a terrorist attack / natural disaster, mentions it to his blissfully unaware employer, and the employer thinks he's insane?

[GalFisk]

Did the husband do something that made the employer think he was insane? Yes. say something? write something? No to both.

Is the husband's job relevant? Yes.

Does the husband have relevant information that the employer doesn't have, which makes him seem insane? Yes. E.g. the husband has already heard/read about a terrorist attack / natural disaster, mentions it to his blissfully unaware employer, and the employer thinks he's insane? No.

[markobr]

Does the husband work in an office? A factory? Workshop? Shop? Restaurant? School? Hospital? On/in a means of transport? Outdoors?

[GalFisk]

Does the husband work in an office? A factory? Workshop? Shop? Restaurant? School? Hospital? On/in a means of transport? No to all. Outdoors? Yes.

[markobr]

When the husband (let's call him Tom) did what makes his employer think he's insane, is the employer present? Sees/hears Tom doing it by telecommunication? Doesn't see/hear Tom but notices the result of Tom's action later? Is told about Tom's action?

Does the employer think Tom's action is dangerous? Harmful? Illegal? Just plain silly? If the employer knew what Tom knows, would he approve of Tom's action?

Does Tom intend to make the employer believe he's gone mad? Make someone else believe this?

[GalFisk]

When the husband (let's call him Tom) did what makes his employer think he's insane, is the employer present? Yes. Sees/hears Tom doing it by telecommunication? Doesn't see/hear Tom but notices the result of Tom's action later? Is told about Tom's action?

Does the employer think Tom's action is dangerous? Harmful? Yes to both. Illegal? Probably. Just plain silly? No. If the employer knew what Tom knows, would he approve of Tom's action? He would at least understand it.

Does Tom intend to make the employer believe he's gone mad? Make someone else believe this? No to both.

[Balin]

Does Tom's action involve any equipment? The lack of any equipment?

[GalFisk]

Does Tom's action involve any equipment? Yes. The lack of any equipment? No.

[Doriana]

Weather relevant?

Is the equipment something that Tom regularly uses on the job?

Does the employer think the action is harmful to Tom? to him (the employer)? to other people?

Are customers/clients relevantly involved? Other employees?

[GalFisk]

Weather relevant? Noish, assume nice.

Is the equipment something that Tom regularly uses on the job? Yes.

Does the employer think the action is harmful to Tom? Mainly this. to him (the employer)? to other people? But both of these as well.

Are customers/clients relevantly involved? OTRT, but neither is the word I'd use. Other employees? No.

[Balin]

Is Tom's work always at the same location?

[GalFisk]

Is Tom's work always at the same location? Yes.

[Doriana]

Does Tom work in an urban area? suburban? rural? remote?
Does he work in construction? agriculture? forestry? hospitality? tourism? sports? entertainment?

Not-customers/clients = guests? visitors? spectators? patrons? students?

Is the relevant information that Tom has related to the job? Does he have the information because he saw something? heard something? smelled something? read something? felt something?

[GalFisk]

Does Tom work in an urban area? suburban? rural? remote? I'm not sure, actually, but we can assume a rural area close to an urban one.
Does he work in construction? agriculture? forestry? hospitality? tourism? sports? entertainment? Tourism and entertainment are relevant.

Not-customers/clients = guests? visitors? spectators? patrons? students? Spectators is closest, but visitors or guests would work, too.

Is the relevant information that Tom has related to the job? Yes. Does he have the information because he saw something? Yope. heard something? smelled something? read something? felt something? No to the rest.

[Doriana]

Does he work at an amusement/theme park?

[GalFisk]

Does he work at an amusement/theme park? No.

[Doriana]

Does he work at a circus? at a fair?

[GalFisk]

Does he work at a circus? at a fair? No to both, though it conceivably could be a fair.

[trebor]

Is Tom an entertainer? Is he a musician? Actor? Comedian? Performance artist? This may be a stupid question, given that none of the street performers I know have employers, but is he a street performer? Is his employer more like an agent/manager? Does the employer make money off of Tom making money?

Does Tom have co-workers? Does Tom appear to have lost his mind to the general spectators?

Does Tom work: above a crowd? Below one? At crowd level? Does he work with equipment that is inherently dangerous? (ie, pianos are likely to kill you if they fall on you, but people are rationally more afraid of chainsaws)

[GalFisk]

Is Tom an entertainer? Is he a musician? Actor? Comedian? Performance artist? No to all (though he fancies himself as a bit of an entertainer).This may be a stupid question, given that none of the street performers I know have employers, but is he a street performer? Is his employer more like an agent/manager? Does the employer make money off of Tom making money? No to all.

Does Tom have co-workers? No. Does Tom appear to have lost his mind to the general spectators? Yes.

Does Tom work: above a crowd? This. Below one? At crowd level? Does he work with equipment that is inherently dangerous? (ie, pianos are likely to kill you if they fall on you, but people are rationally more afraid of chainsaws) Yes.

[trebor]

Does Tom's work involve repairing something? Maintaining something? Cleaning something? Climbing trees? Is he a technician of some sort?

Tom's workplace is in a rural area near an urban one...does he work at an airport? At a utility company? Does his work involve agriculture?

Is Tom's boss (Jerry?) worried that Tom will: fall? Get electrocuted? Cut himself? Hang himself? Be hit by an object?

Does Tom's wife have the same prior knowledge that Tom has? Does she get worried when Jerry tells her Tom's gone insane? Is it relevant what her profession is? Where she is when she receives the call? What her response is?

[Earnest]

Sorry for numping in

So was Tom presebt when his employer called his wife? Did he know?
Has the employer been informed about tom's behavior? Does he was outside glasses odlf skyscreapers?

Does he himself entertain the crowd? Someone else? Does he work on deadly heights (i e. Heights from which if you fall you can die/kill someone)? Does he work on stilts? On a plane? Writings on sky relevant? Is he a magician? Escaping from chains relevant? Does Tom drive something?

Were the spectators worried? Concerned for Tom's life? For their lives? Is sport relevant?

He got insane = he risks to kill himself? To die? To kill someone?

The manager did not know something that Tom knew right? Did he discover soon after Tom made something? Soon after the call? Secobds after Tom made something?
Did he fall from an height and knew that under himself there was an hidden pillow so he did not use the parachute? Did something fall down? Lights relevant?

Did the crowd see Tom directly?

[GalFisk]

Does Tom's work involve repairing something? No. Maintaining something? Cleaning something? Yes to both. Climbing trees? Is he a technician of some sort? No to both.

Tom's workplace is in a rural area near an urban one...does he work at an airport? At a utility company? Does his work involve agriculture? No to all.

Is Tom's boss (Jerry?) worried that Tom will: fall? Get electrocuted? Cut himself? Hang himself? Be hit by an object? This, no to the rest.

Does Tom's wife have the same prior knowledge that Tom has? No. Does she get worried when Jerry tells her Tom's gone insane? Yes. Is it relevant what her profession is? Where she is when she receives the call? What her response is? No to all.

Sorry for numping in No worries.

So was Tom presebt when his employer called his wife? No. Did he know? No, see below.
Has the employer been informed about tom's behavior? He saw it. Does he was outside glasses odlf skyscreapers? No.

Does he himself entertain the crowd? This. Someone else? Does he work on deadly heights (i e. Heights from which if you fall you can die/kill someone)? Does he work on stilts? On a plane? Writings on sky relevant? Is he a magician? Escaping from chains relevant? Does Tom drive something? No to all.

Were the spectators worried? Concerned for Tom's life? Yes to both. For their lives? Is sport relevant? No to both.

He got insane = he risks to kill himself? To die? He did kill himself. To kill someone? Yes, but...

The manager did not know something that Tom knew right? Correct. Did he discover soon after Tom made something? Soon after the call? Secobds after Tom made something? No, but he did eventually find out.
Did he fall from an height and knew that under himself there was an hidden pillow so he did not use the parachute? Did something fall down? Lights relevant? No to all.

Did the crowd see Tom directly? Yes.

[trebor]

Always question your assumptions about a protagonist surviving a puzzle.

Okay. Did Tom intend to kill himself? If so, when he started his work that day? Was he working when this happened? Did he decide to kill himself while at work? Does he want to make his death seem accidental or work-related so that someone (his wife?) can collect on his life insurance? Is his prior knowledge related to: his insurance? A medical diagnosis? A financial downfall? A mental health issue? Information about him coming to light that he wanted to keep private? Pending criminal investigation/charges/jail time? Someone close to him dying? Something bad relating to his wife? Or to another person in his life? Something bad happening to the crowd watching him?

Is Tom being blackmailed? Does working at a height enable him to see something that poses a danger to people? Is his death a sacrifice to save the lives of others?

[GalFisk]

Always question your assumptions about a protagonist surviving a puzzle. A good rule.

Okay. Did Tom intend to kill himself? Yope. If so, when he started his work that day? No. Was he working when this happened? Yes. Did he decide to kill himself while at work? Yes (but see the yope above). Does he want to make his death seem accidental or work-related so that someone (his wife?) can collect on his life insurance? No/irr. Is his prior knowledge related to: his insurance? A medical diagnosis? A financial downfall? A mental health issue? Information about him coming to light that he wanted to keep private? Pending criminal investigation/charges/jail time? Someone close to him dying? Something bad relating to his wife? Or to another person in his life? No to all.Something bad happening to the crowd watching him? Yesish.

Is Tom being blackmailed? No. Does working at a height enable him to see something that poses a danger to people? No, but see next. Is his death a sacrifice to save the lives of others? YES.

[trebor]

Jerry was worried that Tom would be hit by an object. Was Tom hit by an object? A living object? A meteor? Hail? A piece of a building? An icicle? Something falling from a plane? Something that came loose from whatever Tom was working on? Something that he used as part of his job? Something that struck him from above? Straight on? Below? Did Tom put himself in the path of the object deliberately? Try to catch the object? Would the object have struck something else resulting in a chain reaction that would've killed spectators? Would the object itself have killed spectators?

[GalFisk]

Jerry was worried that Tom would be hit by an object. Was Tom hit by an object? Yes. A living object? A meteor? Hail? A piece of a building? An icicle? Something falling from a plane? Something that came loose from whatever Tom was working on? No to all. Something that he used as part of his job? Yes. Something that struck him from above? Straight on? This. Below? Did Tom put himself in the path of the object deliberately? Yes. Try to catch the object? In a manner of speaking. Would the object have struck something else resulting in a chain reaction that would've killed spectators? Would the object itself have killed spectators? This.

[trebor]

Had Tom committed an error that resulted in him having to do this? Did he notice something wrong with his equipment? With what he was working on?

Height above the crowd: more than ten feet? Fifty? A hundred? Is he standing on anything as he does his job? Such as a ladder? Or sitting? Kneeling? Suspended mid-air? Does he wear a tool belt? Since cleaning is part of his job, is what he cleans made of wood? Glass? Stone? Brick? Metal? Plastic? Rubber? Synthetic material? Is the thing itself an attraction? Does Tom interact with the spectators while he works?

Do you have to work at this place (or similar places) to have this job?

[Earnest]

Did he want to save the crowd? (Maybe already asked but not sure)

Was an object meant to fall down? Did it fall down accidentally? Did Tom throw it? Would the object have killed someone because: it was big but falling from a relatively low height? It was small but falling from that height it would have killed someone (e.g. coins)? It was big and falling from an high height? It was big and geavy? It was small and heavy?

Was Tom using the object? Was someone else? Would it have killed someone on the crowd? Did the someone see the object falling down? Would he/she have been killed even if the he/she had seen the object falling? Because he/she would have seen it too late (e.g. they were at a concert not hearing what surrounded them)? Or maybe the someone was in a place where he was not supposed to be? Or maybe he volunteered under Tom's request?

Are skyscreaper relevant? Theater? Musical instruments?

Since the manager thought he became insane, I would ask: did the manager see the object falling? If so, did he think it was part of the show? Did other objects fall down? Did Tom die because the object fell (not sure about the past of falling) above him? Because he fall from an height trying to save the someone? Relevant?

Amousement parks relevant? Was the object part of a structure? A tool for the show? Was it meant to be above something? Was it part of a costume? Was it simply a weight to be cut? Was it meant to be above the crowd? Or maybe on the other hand they were disassembling a stage/structure?

[GalFisk]

Had Tom committed an error that resulted in him having to do this? Did he notice something wrong with his equipment? With what he was working on? Yes to all (for svv of "notice").

Height above the crowd: more than ten feet? Maybe ten. Fifty? A hundred? Is he standing on anything as he does his job? Yes, the ground. Such as a ladder? Or sitting? Kneeling? Suspended mid-air? Does he wear a tool belt? Since cleaning is part of his job, is what he cleans made of wood? Glass? Stone? Brick? Metal? This. Plastic? Rubber? Synthetic material? Is the thing itself an attraction? DOYD of attraction. People come to see it. Does Tom interact with the spectators while he works? Yes.

Do you have to work at this place (or similar places) to have this job? Not necessarily, but it helps.


Did he want to save the crowd? (Maybe already asked but not sure) Yes.

Was an object meant to fall down? Did it fall down accidentally? Did Tom throw it? Would the object have killed someone because: it was big but falling from a relatively low height? It was small but falling from that height it would have killed someone (e.g. coins)? It was big and falling from an high height? It was big and geavy? It was small and heavy? No to all.

Was Tom using the object? Yes. Was someone else? No. Would it have killed someone on the crowd? Ye. Did the someone see the object falling down? Would he/she have been killed even if the he/she had seen the object falling? Because he/she would have seen it too late (e.g. they were at a concert not hearing what surrounded them)? Or maybe the someone was in a place where he was not supposed to be? Or maybe he volunteered under Tom's request? No to all - nothing fell.

Are skyscreaper relevant? Theater? Musical instruments? No to all.

Since the manager thought he became insane, I would ask: did the manager see the object falling? If so, did he think it was part of the show? Did other objects fall down? Did Tom die because the object fell (not sure about the past of falling) above him? Because he fall from an height trying to save the someone? Relevant? Nothing fell - see above. The manager relevantlty did not see the object that Tom saved the audience from.

Amousement parks relevant? Was the object part of a structure? No to both. A tool for the show? No, but related. Was it meant to be above something? No. Was it part of a costume? Was it simply a weight to be cut? No to both. Was it meant to be above the crowd? It was not meant to be in the place that made it dangerous.Or maybe on the other hand they were disassembling a stage/structure? No.

[trebor]

Is the metal thing a blade? A cannonball? Does it have moving parts? Is it a moving part in something else? Is it bigger than a tennis ball? Bigger than a loaf of bread? Bigger than Tom?

Are the spectators human? Are they seated? Would it be fair to say they are below ground?

Is Tom a tour guide? Interpreter? Could he do his job without spectators? Would they be there if he weren't?

[GalFisk]

Is the metal thing a blade? No. A cannonball? No, but... Does it have moving parts? Yope. Is it a moving part in something else? No. Is it bigger than a tennis ball? Bigger than a loaf of bread? Yes to both. Bigger than Tom? No.

Are the spectators human? Yes.Are they seated? Some may be; unknown. Would it be fair to say they are below ground? No.

Is Tom a tour guide? Assume yes, but there's more to it. Interpreter? No. Could he do his job without spectators? The relevant bit could be done, but there wouldn't be a point. Would they be there if he weren't? Possibly, irr.

[trebor]

A cannon? Another weapon? Something to do with fireworks? Gunpowder? A trebuchet?

[GalFisk]

A cannon? This. Another weapon? Something to do with fireworks? Gunpowder? So this. A trebuchet?

[markobr]

Historic reenactment relevant? Does he show the crowd how cannons were handled or used in the past?

[trebor]

Was there not supposed to be gunpowder in the cannon? Or no cannonball in the cannon? Was the cannon not supposed to be there? Was it the 22nd cannon in a 21-gun salute?

[GalFisk]

Historic reenactment relevant? No, but irr. Does he show the crowd how cannons were handled or used in the past? No.

Was there not supposed to be gunpowder in the cannon? There was supposed to be gunpowder in it.Or no cannonball in the cannon? There was no cannonball, but...Was the cannon not supposed to be there? It was. Was it the 22nd cannon in a 21-gun salute? No.

[trebor]

I’m thinking that if an cannon is lit with no projectile in it, the gunpowder would pose a significant danger. Is this the case? Did Tom throw himself in front of the cannon to prevent this? And spectators and his boss didn’t know the cannon was empty?

[GalFisk]

I’m thinking that if an cannon is lit with no projectile in it, the gunpowder would pose a significant danger. Is this the case? Not such a danger that he would've felt the need to do what he did. Did Tom throw himself in front of the cannon to prevent this? He did it to save the spectators, but not from a pure gunpowder charge And spectators and his boss didn’t know the cannon was empty? No, they thought it was only charged with gunpowder.
So what was in the cannon?

[trebor]

Is there a cannonball equivalent of a blank? If so, was one in there? Was there a living creature that had gotten in? A hefty item? Just a rock? Something from the surrounding area? Something someone (Tom?) accidentally dropped in there?

[GalFisk]

Is there a cannonball equivalent of a blank? If so, was one in there? Was there a living creature that had gotten in? A hefty item? Just a rock? Something from the surrounding area? No to all. Something someone (Tom? Yes.) accidentally Noish, but... dropped No. in there? Yes.

[trebor]

So Tom put something inside the cannon on purpose? Something he used to clean it? The tampion? The rammer? The wadding? A powder horn? Worm? Linstock? A ladle?

[Earnest]

Did Tom shoot with the cannon? Did he put there the object I order to show how the cannon was supposed to shoot? Or maybe it was not his intention to shoot with the something inside?

Was the object that he put inside considered a projectile? A potential projectile? Did he put in there a part of his body?Did he want to show something to the spectators? How the cannon shoot? How deep was the cannon? If so, did something fall in the cannon when he was showing it to the spectators? Diid he light up a fuse? Or maybe he had a lighter and wanted to show what was inside the cannon?
Is glass relevant? a phone? cigarettes? something involving fire?
Did he want to direct the fire somewhere else? (so maybe he throw himself toward the cannon in order to direct it away from the crowd)

Relevant where the cannon was? On a boat? on the land? Was the cannon used? Used by the army? Relevant?

[GalFisk]

So Tom put something inside the cannon on purpose? Something he used to clean it? Yes to both. The tampion? The rammer? The wadding? A powder horn? Worm? Linstock? A ladle? It was a metallic brush, according to the short story I based the puzzle on, but if the writer had known more about cannons, it'd probably have been parts of the worm or rammer that had broken off.
id Tom shoot with the cannon? Yes. Did he put there the object I order to show how the cannon was supposed to shoot? No. Or maybe it was not his intention to shoot with the something inside? Correct.

Was the object that he put inside considered a projectile? A potential projectile? This. Did he put in there a part of his body? No. Did he want to show something to the spectators? Yes. How the cannon shoot? Yesish, he wanted to fire a blank. How deep was the cannon? If so, did something fall in the cannon when he was showing it to the spectators? No to both. Diid he light up a fuse? Yes. Or maybe he had a lighter and wanted to show what was inside the cannon? No.
Is glass relevant? a phone? cigarettes? No to all. something involving fire? The firing of the cannon involved fire, but no other fire or accidental firing is relevant.
Did he want to direct the fire somewhere else? (so maybe he throw himself toward the cannon in order to direct it away from the crowd) He threw himself in front of the cannon to keep the crowd form being hit by the cleaning implement he'd accidentally left inside.

Relevant where the cannon was? On a boat? on the land? This; an old fortification. Was the cannon used? Used by the army? Relevant?

SPOILER:
At the last second, when it was too late to try and yank out the fuse, the operator realized to his horror that he had left some cleaning equipment inside the barrel. He threw himself in front of the cannon in order to save the spectators from being hit by shrapnel. I don't remember the short story that well, but I think either his boss or his wife caused the distraction that made him leave the object in the barrel.

[Earnest]

Jesus...no words. Puzzle very nicely posed however!