Engaging your brain with puzzles and brain teasers is a fantastic way to improve your cognitive abilities and enhance problem-solving skills. Whether you're looking to sharpen your mind, take a break from your daily routine, or simply have some fun, these brain teasers offer the perfect mental workout. They challenge your logical thinking, creativity, and attention to detail, making them great for people of all ages.

Ready to put your brain to the test? Dive into these two thought-provoking puzzles and see how quickly you can crack them!

Brain Teaser 1

I am a number that, when multiplied by 5, gives the same result as when 9 is added to me. What number am I?

Brain Teaser 2

What is the missing number in this sequence?

2, 4, 8, 16, ___, 64

Answers:

1) The number is 3. If you multiply 3 by 5, you get 15. If you add 9 to 3, you also get 12.

2) 32. The sequence doubles each time (2 × 2 = 4, 4 × 2 = 8, 8 × 2 = 16, 16 × 2 = 32, 32 × 2 = 64).

In 1997, at 28, Kevin Kelly was an involved basketball coach in Philadelphia. He wasn’t a coach who ‘played around’ he was known for his win-at-all-costs mentality, he explained that he treated every game as a ‘life or death’ matter.

Being able to handle high stress situations like this, feeling sick once or twice didn’t change much for him. However, after several days of feeling sick and finally experiencing severe flu-like illness at a basketball game led to the emergency room. The tests revealed an unusually high white blood cell count, eventually leading to a diagnosis of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML).

What is Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia?

Leukemia is a cancer originating in the bone marrow's blood-forming cells. In CML, these abnormal cells don't mature correctly and fail to perform their functions, such as fighting infection. They also have a longer lifespan, accumulating and crowding out healthy cells in the bone marrow. As a chronic leukemia, CML progresses slower than acute forms, often presenting no symptoms for months or even years before diagnosis, as was the case for Kevin.

Treatment and Its Obstacles

At the time of the diagnosis, doctors had considered a bone marrow or stem cell transplant as the most effective treatment for CML.

Fortunately, Kevin's brother was a match, and the transplant proceeded. However, his recovery was far from smooth. What was expected to be a 30-day in-hospital recovery stretched to 54 days due to complications, many of which were spent in isolation. This challenging period consumed the first year of their marriage. "That was the scariest part for me," Kevin recalled, "That it wasn’t just me this was affecting, now it was my wife, too."

Kevin channelled his coaching mindset into his battle with cancer. He took up the challenge and decided he would teach cancer a lesson. With his analytical skills, working closely with his cancer care team to understand lab results, participate in treatment decisions, and strategize his recovery. "I attacked cancer like a coach," he explained. "Whatever they throw at me, I’m going to figure out how to beat it, how to dodge it, and I’m going to work hard."

Advocating and Inspiring Others

Having faced over two decades of cancer treatments and setbacks, Kevin understands the overwhelming nature of a cancer diagnosis. He remains meticulous about his care, stating, "I’m very strict. I make sure I don’t miss appointments or doses. I’m working the playbook." He strongly advises others facing cancer to actively learn and understand their condition to make informed decisions about their treatment.

Kevin and his family are committed to giving back. For years, he has been an active supporter of the American Cancer Society’s Coaches vs. Cancer program, organizing fundraising events and hosting toy drives for children battling cancer. "It’s important for me to give back, and I want to do that by educating my students about cancer and the importance of research," he stated. "We can work together as a team to create a future free from cancer when we raise awareness and fund cancer research."

It is conventionally believed that life satisfaction is relatively high when people are younger, it then dips in midlife, only to rise again as people grow older. This is the pattern people have noted for many years, largely from 2005-2010. As surveys from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System also suggest.

However, there has been a new finding that reveals that life satisfaction at a young age may be on the lower side, while it continues to grow as one ages. This has been a trend from 2022. This means that young people are not as happy as they used to be.

The latest evidence comes from a survey that studied over 200,000 people in more than 20 countries. This study was published in the journal Nature on April 20, 2025, called the Global Flourishing Study.

The scientists found that on average, young adults between the ages of 18 and 29 were struggling not just with happiness, but also with their physical and mental health, their perception of their own character, finding meaning in life, the quality of their relationships, and their financial security.

What Does It Mean To Be Flourished?

The researchers combined the survey findings to determine to what extent those surveyed were flourishing.

To Flourish: As per the researchers means to live in a state where all aspects of life are good. The idea that young people are struggling is nothing new, however, this research reveals a global problem. The flattening of the curve, if one looks at the happiness and satisfaction index by age and the levels on a ten-point scale, it is clear that the curve of younger people is flattening. This is happening in many countries, including Brazil, Japan, Australia, and Sweden. However, in the United States, the difference between how the old and the young flourish was the most pronounced.

Why?

A separate 2023 report, under the Making Caring Common Project, found that young adults between the ages of 18 to 25 in the US have been reported to experience roughly twice the rates of anxiety and depression as teens. The report has also cited a number of factors, including:

• Financial worries
• Achievement pressure
• Lacking direction
• Things falling apart
• Lacking in skills or talents
• Family stressors
• School gun violence
• Work stressors
• Choice overload
• Friend or social stressors
• Crime rates

Researchers have also pointed to larger issues like climate change, the rise in the screen time of phone use, economic uncertainty and political polarization. Researchers believe that some of these issues were also exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This is because young people missed out on crucial moments in their development, particularly when it came to forming relationships and participating in the community. However, there is still a lot more research that needs to be done.

What must compel people to think that countries where young people are satisfied, how are they able to achieve it? Whereas the countries where younger ones are suffering, it is high time we look at the "why".

Cognitive decline is one of the most common diseases that people experience with age. Dementia is an umbrella term used to define symptoms of decline in brain function, whether it is memory, thinking skills or other mental abilities. While the risk factors, causes and treatment options are known, researchers explain that they are still being studied, and every new study brings an interesting perspective about the disease. As there is no proper cure for the disease, people have to rely on medication that slows the disease down.

A new study may have found not just a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease but also a way to lower the potential of developing the cognitive decline.

Risk Factors for the Disease

A new study done by researchers from pharmaceutical firm Gilead Sciences and the University of Washington in Seattle, suggested that people who get cold sores might be nearly twice as likely to develop Alzheimer's disease. US researchers discovered that individuals carrying the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), which causes cold sores, had an 80% higher chance of developing this brain-wasting condition.

Other risk factors include age, family history, genetics, certain medication or injuries. Whie most of these are irrefutable things, research has shown that that can be tackled with things like learning a new skill, exercising daily, quitting smoking, eating healthy as well as maintaining a healthy weight.

What Are Cold Sores And Causes

Cold sores are small blisters around one’s mouth, also known as fever blisters. They are caused by a virus known as herpes simplex, and the most common strain of it is herpes simplex virus 1. This is a communicable infection that can spread through kissing or sharing utensils or even towels.

John Hopkins Medicine explained that if the virus transfers to you, it will cause a breakout of cold sores. These sores can be triggered by sunlight, cold wind or other illnesses that can weaken your immune system like hormone levels and even stress.

Antiviral Treatment Shows Promise

However, the study also offered a ray of hope: those who received antiviral medicines for HSV-1 had a 17% lower risk of Alzheimer's compared to those who didn't. This finding is significant because the virus has been linked to changes in the brain similar to those seen in dementia patients, such as plaque-like formations and inflammation.

The study, a collaboration between pharmaceutical firm Gilead Sciences and the University of Washington in Seattle, analyzed data from over 344,000 individuals with Alzheimer's and an equal number without the disease. It found that 1,507 (0.44%) of Alzheimer's patients had a history of HSV-1 diagnosis, compared to just 823 (0.24%) of those without the disease. These findings were published in the journal BMJ Open.

Things To Keep In Mind

Experts emphasized that HSV-1 infection, which is very common, does not guarantee someone will develop Alzheimer's. The exact reason why viral infections might increase dementia risk isn't fully understood, but it's likely due to infections causing more inflammation in the body, contributing to age-related brain inflammation.

They also explained that there isn't enough evidence yet to add infections to the list of 14 established risk factors for dementia. The researchers pointed out that the research relied solely on health records, meaning some HSV-1 infections might not have been recorded since many people don't show symptoms. Additionally, information about infections predating the records wasn't available, and diagnosing Alzheimer's, especially early on, remains a challenge.