Help me Columbo

Question

I was watching a re-run of Columbo on TV and heard a word puzzle that I couldn’t answer.

Can you tell me which word doesn’t belong?

crawl
Curve
Oven
pat

And from the very same episode

There are 3 sacks of golden coins, but only one sack holds the real gold. You’re told that all the golden coins are identical to real gold in every superficial respect except that fools gold is heavier than real gold.

Can you find the real gold when all you have is one nickel and one opportunity to get a reading from the weighing machine?

I hope I told it properly. I couldn’t work it out for myself during the show.

Aileen · Accepted Answer

Here’s the answer for the first puzzle

Australian crawl (swimming)
French Curve (graphic arts)
Dutch Oven (cooking)
Pat?

Azz · Answer

crawl could be a verb
curve could be a verb
pat could be a verb

oven!

Aileen · Answer

$10 to you sir (or madam)! You’re right of course. My fault for not remembering the puzzle correctly. Please help me solve the puzzle of the coins too.

Migo · Answer

What kind of weighing machine?

I would say take 2 bags, put one on either side of the scale, if they're equal weight then it's the third one, otherwise it's the lighter bag.

Aileen · Answer

Well-done sir! Of course, that would work well. However, this weighing machine is a kind used in drug stores and malls. A person steps on to it, inserts a nickel, is weighed by the machine and receives a printed card stating her weight.

For an example, check coin operated penny scale.com
http://www.pennyscale.com

But weight is the key to solving the problem and here’s a clue. To arrive at the answer, Columbo needs to do some arithmetic

Azz · Answer

You take one coin from the first bag, two coins from the second bag and three coins from the third bag and weigh them all up together. If you know the difference between the weight of a "fools coin" and a real coin and the weight of a real coin, the trick is done.
a=the weight of a real coin
b=the weight of a fake coin

You have weighed 6 coins. You are supposed to have 6 times a; but you don't. You have c (the weight of your six coins).
According to you the fake coins are heavier (that is unlikely, but anyway), so c is greater than "six times a". Subtract the latter from the former. Divide by "b-a" (ie. the difference between a and b). You either have one, which means the fakies were in the first bag, or two, which points a condemning finger to the second bag or three, which means.... The butler did it!!

Would you correct any grammar mistakes I have made?

Aileen · Answer

Congratulations sir! You have solved Columbo’s puzzle and have joined the Peter Faulk hall of fame.

Azz · Answer

Thank you.

You might the bigger detective though (or not), because you finally came to the (right or wrong) conclusion that I was a man. Now why do you think that? Just because I solved a mathematical puzzle? Do you think (consciously or unconsciously) that men are better than women in maths?
Or maybe you just saw me as Peter Falk (I don't think it has a u)?

Just kidding. Just kidding (and trying to be smart).

The real reason is probably that you know that Migo is a guy and you started calling him "sir" and them it sort of became a habit and you dropped the "or madam", which made things simpler.
But is Migo a guy?

Take care.

Aileen · Answer

That puzzle was a toughie Azz, congratulations. About boys and girls? I’m not sure about that really. Boys are stronger in Math sometimes, there are more boy engineers than girl engineers where I come from but I’m sure that girls can be just as competent as boys at Math. And, special commendations for catching me out on the first puzzle too!!!

Azz · Answer

Cheers!

Help me Columbo

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