Puzzling Genius?...

I had a go at a puzzle the other day. It was one of those 3D wooden block puzzles. The were just 6 wooden blocks with shapes cut out, and you're supposed to put them all together to make a shape where you have 2 of the blocks next to each other on each axis, and they all intersect in the middle.

Simple enough you'd think. A puzzle with only 6 pieces. On the piece of card that accompanied the puzzle, were words to the effect that if you can solve it in less an hour you were a genius. Less a day was very clever, Less a week was good, and Never was most people. I had to give it a go.

On a couple of occasions I managed to get 5 pieces into the configuration, but the sixth wouldn't go. An hour came and went, and I was still trying to fit the pieces together. After another 10 minutes I got bored, and looked at the solution on the back of the card. I've no doubt that I would've completed the puzzle within a day, but I quite honestly I didn't have the patience for it on this particular day.

OK, so I was unable to complete the puzzle in the allotted time on this occasion, so the puzzle can't prove that I am a genius, but nor does it prove conclusively that I am not a genius.

There will be other puzzles.