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The Stone’s Fractional Life

brainteaser
An old gravestone describes a man’s life in numbers rather than dates. He spent one sixth of his entire lifetime in childhood. After another one twelfth of his lifetime, his youth ended. A further one seventh of his lifetime passed before he married. His son was born five years after the wedding. The son lived for exactly half as many years as his father’s total lifespan, and the grieving father survived his son by four years. Assuming every fraction refers to the father’s complete lifetime, how old was the father when he died?

Hints

Hint 1
Hint 2
Hint 3

Solution

Commit an attempt to unseal the proof. Write your answer — right or wrong, thinking it through is the point.

How old was the father when he died?

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