My Brain is Bashed

I'm addicted, and I can easily stay on it for hours. So, I intentionally stay away from this site for long periods of time. It's BrainBashers, and I guess I am writing this to share the addiction. When checking out the site, you will see games, puzzles, illusions, jokes, and many other features that will keep your mind a'movin'. Many will say that this site is a big waste of time, but I believe it helps me stay on my toes. The following are a few of my favorite features (all within the GAMES section of the site) - ones on which you also may get hooked.

Under the heading of Monthly Entry Contests, you will see "Common Answers." Unlike most exercises, your goal is not to think of the most brilliant or unique answer. Instead, your goal is to answer the question in the way that you think most other users of BrainBashers will answer the question. (Example: Name a color within the rainbow. You might like indigo best, but most folks - according to a common answer quiz in January 2003 - thought of red. If you think red will be most common, you'll want to enter red.) If you don't quite understand, be sure to check out the previous months' quizzes and answers - along with the names of the winners. You will need an email address to participate in the competition, but your email address will not be shared with anyone. It is used solely to send your entry to you so you can verify it. Check back every month for a new Common Answers questionnaire.

Another of my favorite Monthly Entry Contests is "Whosat?" A portion of a famous person's face will be pictured, and you are being asked to identify the person. You may also view the previous month's Whosat picture along with the name of the winner.

If you're constantly completing IQ tests, trying to use (or just plain remember) theorems you learned back in high school, or you love being challenged in new areas, be sure to look under the heading Play With Your Mind to find BrainBall. You may create an account in the system to compete against other geeky puzzle lovers each day or feel free to check out the demo game. Each day's test will include 10 rounds of fun and will be completely different from the day before so that all parts of the human intellect will be challenged. Frustrating to me? YES! Fun to me? YES!

Impress others with your typing skills? Then, take a try at Typo, also located under the Play With Your Mind heading. Type a sentence well, and you will receive bonus words to type for points. Type poorly, and you will soon be kicked out for your mistakes. (This is always a good humility check that no matter how fast I type, I rely way too much on the backspace key!)

If you love word games, check out Broken Words. Like Soduko? Sign up to receive a daily puzzle. Kakuro, Nonograms, Puzzle Loops... Name your poison. What about your favorite board, strategy, and arcade games from the past? They have it all..and something for all interests and abilities.

Have fun on the BrainBashers site. But, don't get addicted. (Don't say I didn't warn you!)