Day 1 - First Team Immunity

[MrBlarney]

The riddle:

What is it?
Five in a row
Four make noise
The one that does not
Is the one that is heard

[MrBlarney]

I suppose it's worth reminding that all team members get to make a guess, so make some sort of guess before the puzzle period closes just to have a chance.

And about that Exile Island, who wants to go?

[skid]

I'm going to be guessing it's bowling pins- 5 pin bowling where you knock down 4 pins, the 5th one is the one everyone cares about.

[maximus]

There aren't 5 in a row though

[skid]

They're lined up straight enough to look at them from down the lane. Hmm.

[skid]

Definitely not giving someone the finger- the other 4 aren't making noise. I'm pretty sure the key is the "5 in a row" thing- what comes in 5s other than fingers and bowling pins?

[maximus]

maybe it's fingers, and the sound is snapping.

[maximus]

Nevermind

[fembot]

I am thinking so hard. What things are generally in rows? What if it's one of the other definitions of row, such as street, argument/fight, or rowing a boat?

What if I'm going insane?

[skid]

True, it could be a more Great Britain-y version of row. But generally the last one standing in a fight still makes noise.

Unless it's some sort of weird competition where the last one to make noise wins and gets to deliver a speech.

Okay, now *I* feel like I'm going insane

[psychocucumber]

What if, rather then referring to five things physically in a row, it's referring to five consecutive events?

[psychocucumber]

Babies in a maternity ward? The fifth one doesn't cry, so it's paid attention to?

Or maybe, what I'm trying to say is, I have no idea?

[rend]

So what else comes in 5s?

[rend]

Alternately, the one that does not make noise is the one who is heard.

Does this mean noise is not akin to being heard? Or possibly are we talking a play-on-words of making noise vs being audible?

[rend]

On that train of thought, is there anything that makes noise that you cannot hear for any reason?

[skid]

If we aren't hearing noise, what does the last one getting "heard" mean?

In my bowling analogy, it would have been a sort of metaphysical "being noticed" type thing.

Since it's not making noise, that's something else to consider.

[rend]

It's worth noting that noise doesn't mean coherency if that's what we're talking about, but I think the riddle is being more literal, though heard as in noticed is a definite possibility.

[psychocucumber]

I'm taking it as meaning that the quiet one, the one that isn't heard, is conspicuous because of it's silence.

[rend]

What if 'makes noise' is literal?
like it "Makes" it?
what if the last one is the one that plays noise, or reflects it maybe?

[rend]

So when does silence speak?

[psychocucumber]

Well, when something is supposed to make noise, and doesn't, the silence would be notable

[rend]

Vowels come in 5, and they're spoken,

e is often silent, but is the most prolific letter in the alphabet. But are they ever in a row?

[rend]

A couple interpretations:
1) 5 in a row means 5 characters in "A_ROW"
2) 5 in a row means 5 is in _the_ row.

[psychocucumber]

I had a thought, which is probably dumb, but could the five in the riddle somehow refer to our five senses?

[psychocucumber]

Not sure how sight makes a sound, but, you know, just throwing stuff out there.