(Image credit: Flickr user Daniel Oines)

In this week's Whodunit, author Hy Conrad introduces a new sleuth, Jonah Bixby. Here's what you need to know about him.

Jonah Bixby was not your average twelve year-old. He spent more time in police stations than most career criminals. And although he had just started middle school, Jonah was single-handedly responsible for bringing more than a few of those career criminals to justice. But let's start at the beginning....

Jonah's mother and his father had both been police detectives in the city's Major Crimes Division, solving murders and assaults and high-profile robberies. It was while working there that they met and fell in love, then got married and had a son.

When Jonah was only five, his father was killed in the line of duty. At that point, Carol Bixby could have retired from the force. But she didn't. She stayed busy with the most important job she knew, law enforcement. And that's how young Jonah became the unofficial mascot of the Beaverton Police Department.

From the first grade on, Jonah would get out of school each day, walk across the street to the Fifth Precinct, and wait until his mother got off her shift. Carol's fellow officers took turns keeping an eye on him. Detective Massey from the Fraud Squad helped young Jonah with his math homework while Sergeant Gonzales tutored him in Spanish.

Jonah was blessed with an inquisitive mind and an eye for detail. And his love for police work
 came naturally.  Before long, he was making deductions even 
the best officers on the force couldn't come up with and whispering them to his 
mother. Little did the other detectives know that many of
 Detective Bixby's toughest crimes were 
being solved by her preteen son.

And now for Bixby's first Whodunit, the case of the After-School Homicide. Can you solve the crime?

Detective Peter Pauling glanced up from his paperwork and was surprised to see a boy with a backpack standing in front of his desk. "Jonah! Hi." He checked a nearby wall clock. "Is it six o'clock already? How was band practice?"

"Pretty good," said Jonah. "Is my mom around?"

Jonah Bixby's school was directly across from the Beaverton Police Station, and nearly every day Jonah waved hello to the desk sergeant and made his way back to the Major Crimes Division bullpen to wait for his mother.

"Carol's at a crime scene," the middle-aged detective told him. "I have to get over there myself. You want to come?"

A few minutes later, Jonah was in the passenger seat of a police cruiser as they pulled up in front of Clawson & Wolfe Jewelry, an expensive shop in the downtown district. The seventh-grader expected to be told to wait in the car, but Detective Pauling didn't say a word, and Jonah wound up following him past the yellow crime tape, through the jewelry showroom, and into a rear storage room. The first thing he noticed was the blood.

W00t! It's time for another collaboration with the ever-excellent What Is It? Blog. Can you guess what this odd item is? This week, we are looking for funny and clever answers, not the correct one, but if you guess correctly, you'll win our undying respect. If you have one of the two funniest answers, you'll win a T-Shirt from the NeatoShop!

Place your guess in the comment section. One guess per comment, though you can enter as many guesses as you'd like. Please do not post any web link or URL - doing so will void your entry. You have until the answer is revealed on the What Is It? Blog tomorrow.

IMPORTANT: Please write your prize selection alongside your guess, so visit the NeatoShop and take a look around. If you don't write your prize selection, then you don't get the prize. I think you'll like the selection of funny t-shirts and science t-shirts -or even t-shirts of your favorite blogs and websites.

Update: the mystery item is a dental tooth key for use by a dentist to remove a tooth. Just the thought of that makes my mouth hurt. But we were looking for funny answers! Arcadian Grace had a good one:

Before the Heimlich Maneuver was perfected, this was one of many failed attempts to stop choking. You had to shove it down someone's throat to extract the object. It was especially popular during Thanksgiving because it could double as a flowerholder in a centerpiece when not in use.

Trish Schroeder also had an answer that wins a t-shirt:

That is a pig tail screw. See, pigs are born with long tails. This is undesirable, as it will tangle with other pigs, which will lead to them communicating with each other to untangle. This will lead to a great pig uprising. That will lead to no bacon. No one wants that. So, the farmers take this curler and curl the pig's tails so that they are no longer a danger of tangling with others.

Thanks to everyone who played this week! See the answers to all the mystery objects at the What Is It? blog.

Neatorama presents our collaboration with Pzzlr, a site where you can always find a riddle to exercise your brain. Can you solve this one?

Mr White, Mr English, Mr Pritchard, and Mr Hanlon are each allergic to two dietary substances. Additional info:

3 of them are allergic to dairy
Only 1 of them is allergic to nuts
2 of them are allergic to wheat
2 of them, Simon and Mr English are allergic to seafood
Graeme is not allergic to dairy
Matthew is allergic to wheat
Any allergy of Noel or Mr Pritchard is not suffered by Mr White.

What is each man’s first and last name and what are they each allergic to?

Do you know the answer? The solution is at Pzzlr!

Look for a new puzzle here at Neatorama every Wednesday, and check out Pzzlr for a puzzle anytime!

(Image credit: Flickr user Lou Murrey)

Our weekly collaboration with Conceptis Puzzles is back! This week, we get to play Hashi Light(vol 2).

The object is to connect all islands according to the number of bridges so that there are no more than two bridges in the same direction and there is a continuous path connecting all islands together. Bridges can only be vertical or horizontal and are not allowed to cross islands or other bridges. There is only one unique solution for each puzzle.

Game Instructions: Point mouse on an island, move arrow in the direction of the bridge you want to connect and click when only one bridge area remains highlighted. First click connects one bridge, second click connects a second bridges and the third click removes all bridges.

So go ahead and check it out! Then visit Conceptis Puzzles for more neat puzzles.

The following is a Whodunit by Hy Conrad featuring Sherman Oliver Holmes, a mysterious crime solver and great-great-grandson of Sherlock Holmes. Can you solve the crime?

Sherman felt honored. He'd had no idea the police commissioner even knew he existed. And now, not only was he at headquarters actually meeting the head man, but Commissioner Lowry was asking him for advice.

"Sergeant Wilson says you've helped him on one or two cases. Perhaps you can give us a fresh viewpoint on this one."

"I'll try," Sherman said, doing his best to look modest.

"Good." Lowry consulted the notes on his desk. "Yesterday at three p.m., a jogger on County Lane Road heard a gunshot. He pulled out his cell phone and called 911. A few minutes later, a patrol car made a pass through the area and found a murder victim, Andy Patano, a mobster we were leaning on to get information on some bigger fish. He'd been shot in the head, execution-style. Under the body, our boys found a cigarette lighter — gold, with the initials B.F."

Sherman didn't have to think hard. "The mob boss, Bruno Friendly."

"Exactly. And Bruno's prints were on the lighter. We finally thought we had the mob boss dead to rights, except for one thing."

"Bruno has an alibi for three p.m.?"

Lowry nodded. "From two P.M. to three. Bruno is always alone at that hour, taking an afternoon nap. A pair of my detectives had decided that would be a good time to pay him a visit and put on some pressure about his gambling operations. They were with him at his house when Patano was killed."

Sherman appreciated the irony. "So, the police graciously supplied Bruno with an ironclad alibi. How did Bruno explain his cigarette lighter being under the victim?"

"Bruno says he used the lighter that morning during a breakfast meeting with his three lieutenants. When my detectives were there, Bruno made a point of not being able to find it. We're being played for fools, Sherman, and I don't like it."

It's once again time for our collaboration with the wonderfully entertaining What Is It? Blog. Do you know what the pictured item is? Can you make up something wonderfully wacky? That's what we're looking for: the funniest and most creative guesses. We will award t-shirts from the NeatoShop to two commenters who post the cleverest, funniest, or most outlandish uses for this thing!

Place your guess in the comment section below. One guess per comment, please, though you can enter as many guesses as you'd like in separate comments. You have until Friday evening to come up with great guesses.

Please write your T-shirt selection alongside your guess. If you don't include a selection, you forfeit the prize, see? May we suggest the Science T-Shirt, Funny T-Shirt and Artist-Designed T-Shirts?

See, you don't have to know the answer to win! And remember, there are more mystery items to figure out at the What Is It? Blog. Good luck!

Update: the unknown object was actually tool is for cutting off the top of the shell of a soft boiled egg. As for your funny and clever answers, it seems most readers had the same first impression (shame on you). The first to bring it up, so to speak, and the funniest, was Matthew Hubbard, who had this funny answer: "It is a "tool" used by Fathers to insure their daughters are safe when a young man came to call. The Father would sit in the living room destroying zucchini with the tool while discussing the "date plans" the young man had for his daughter. While technically illegal, most fathers will support other fathers in the community with an alibi, should the need arise." Sadly, he did not select a t-shirt. The other funniest answer was from Lucas Gentry, who had a reason for this tool's minimalist appearance: "It's a medieval orange-juicer. It did the same job as modern juicers, but the modern juicers looked too wimpy next to the iron maiden, so they used this bad boy." That's certainly worth a t-shirt from the NeatoShop! Thanks to everyone for playing this week. See the answers to all the mystery objects of the week at the What Is It? blog.

Neatorama presents our collaboration with Pzzlr, a site where you can always find a riddle to exercise your brain. Can you solve this one?

Dr Anne T. Bacterial, a cognitive-behavioural therapist, holds weekly therapy sessions for a group of eight mysophobics. This week the doctor insists that each of the eight group members must shake hands with each of the other members before anyone may wash their hands. Prior to the stampede to the wash-basin, how many hand shakes will there be?

We never told you there would be no math. Do you know the answer? The solution is at Pzzlr!

Look for a new puzzle here at Neatorama every Wednesday, and check out Pzzlr for a puzzle anytime!

Our weekly collaboration with Conceptis Puzzles returns with this neat-o puzzle: Basic Logic Fill-a-Pix, where you get to find which neighboring squares must be painted to create a picture.

The object is to reveal a hidden picture by painting the squares around each clue so that the number of painted squares, including the square with the clue, matches the value of the clue. There is only one unique solution for each puzzle.

Game Instructions: First click fills a square, second click displays an X to indicate the square is blank and third click brings the square back to its original state. Multiple squares may be filled or blanked by dragging the mouse. To finish the game, all squares must be either filled or blanked according to the rules. When the last square of the puzzle is filled or blanked correctly, a congratulations message together with a thumbnail of the puzzle will pop up.

So go ahead and check it out! Then visit Conceptis Puzzles for more neat puzzles.

The following is a Whodunit by Hy Conrad featuring Sherman Oliver Holmes, a mysterious crime solver and great-great-grandson of Sherlock Holmes. Can you solve the crime?

Meet Sherman Holmes

(Image credit: Flickr user Anne Worner)

"This is a first," Wilson said with a bemused smile. "A guy with a bathroom in his office."

"This new office came with Mr. Seaver's recent promotion," explained Lisa, the dead man's secretary. She was young and tall and solidly built, in a modest skirt and blouse. "The workmen just finished putting in the bathroom over the weekend."

"I wonder if he ever got to use it?" Sherman mused. "Other than to die in, I mean."

It was Monday morning. Sherman and the sergeant were on the eighteenth floor of the Krall Building, in the private bathroom of the private office of Archie Seaver, newly appointed president of Krall Electronics. Seaver, a large, thin man, lay on the floor, strangled from behind, presumably with the necktie lying beside him. He was dressed for work, although his suit jacket was hung on a hook and his white shirt was unbuttoned and untucked.

"Why would a man who just arrived at work have his shirt half off?" Sherman muttered to himself.

"What are you looking for?" asked Wilson.

Sherman was bent over, inspecting the floor. "The other cufflink." It was only then that Wilson noticed it. The deceased was wearing one gold cufflink, while the other cuff spilled open over his other hand.

"There it is." Wilson donned a pair of plastic gloves, then tried to reach behind the toilet where the cufflink was tightly lodged. There was no way he could reach it.

“Forensics will find a way to get it," he said with a shrug, then turned to Lisa. "You discovered the body, Miss?"

Lisa nodded. "Mr. Seaver was always the first one in, usually around 7:30. I got in at 8:15. I put on a pot of coffee and then came straight here. I screamed and the others came running."

"Others?"

It seemed that two other Krall employees had been on the eighteenth floor at the time. Lisa escorted Sergeant Wilson and Holmes to their offices.

Today we reach a milestone. This is the 300th time Neatorama has collaborated with the What Is It? blog to bring you the What Is It? game! A big thanks to the What is It? blog for providing such great pictures every week, and filling us in on so many objects we've learned about.

Do you know what the object in this picture is? It doesn't really matter if you do, because we are looking for the funniest guesses. You can win a t-shirt from the NeatoShop! But first, read the rules:

Place your guess in the comment section below. One guess per comment, please, though you can enter as many as you'd like. Post no URLs or weblinks, as doing so will forfeit your entry. Two winners who submit funny and/or clever (albeit ultimately wrong) answers will each win a T-shirt from the NeatoShop.

Please write your T-shirt selection alongside your guess. If you don't include a selection, you forfeit the prize, okay? May we suggest the Science T-Shirt, Funny T-Shirt and Artist-Designed T-Shirts?

There is another picture of the whatisit item at the What Is It? Blog. Good luck!

Update: the mystery object is an 1801 rounding plane; it was used for preparing the ends of wooden axles. But that's not nearly as funny as our comments! Colshorts said "That's a "Pirate Pete's Leg Pointer". Used exclusively at Pirate Pete's custom shops. Remember mateys..."Come to Pirate Pete's, where the prices can't be beat, and you don't have to have two feets".....Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr" Yeah, that's worth a t-shirt! The other winning answer came from tarnation, who said "It's a Reverence Shaver 1. Insert arm 2. Have a friend grasp the handles and turn 3. Hang your head while your (now former) friend teases you for agreeing to something so ridiculous." Ha! You really should read all the comments, because they're all good! See the answers to all the mystery items this week at the What Is It? blog.

(Image credit: Flickr usser Christina B Castro)

Neatorama presents our collaboration with Pzzlr, a site where you can always find a riddle to exercise your brain. Can you solve this one?

Louise has invited some very important business associates over for dinner and is cooking a soufflé. The soufflé requires exactly 29 minutes in the oven in order to be perfectly cooked. As her guests are sipping cocktails Louise remembers that the oven timer is broken, her watch is at the jewellers being repaired and her only other clock fell off the wall the day before and smashed to pieces (why do things always happen in threes!).

Too embarrassed to ask her guests for help, Louise remembers that she has two hourglasses in the cupboard. The first times exactly 13 minutes and the second exactly 21 minutes.
How can Louise cook her soufflé using only the two hourglasses for timing?

Can you figure this out? The answer is at Pzzlr!

Look for a new puzzle here at Neatorama every Wednesday, and check out Pzzlr for a puzzle anytime!

Our weekly collaboration with Conceptis Puzzles returns with this neat-o puzzle: Tic-Tac-Logic, where you fill remaining squares so there are no more than two adjacent X or O in a row or column. Sounds easy right?

Full Description: Each puzzle consists of a grid containing X's and O's in various places. The object is to place X or O in remaining squares so there are no more than two consecutive X's or O's in a row or a column, the number of X's is the same as the number of O's in each row and column, and all rows and columns are unique. There is only one unique solution for each puzzle.

Game Instructions: Tic-Tac-Logic is played by placing X and O symbols in a grid. First click on a square places an X, second click places an O and third click brings the square back to its original state.

So go ahead and check it out! Then visit Conceptis Puzzles for more neat puzzles.

The following is a Whodunit by Hy Conrad featuring Sherman Oliver Holmes, a mysterious crime solver and great-great-grandson of Sherlock Holmes. Can you solve the crime?

(Image credit: Flickr user sunshinecity)

"We had an abandoned quarry like this back home." Despite the tragic scene, Sherman couldn't repress a smile. "The local swimming hole. I remember being a kid and swinging on a rope, Tarzan-style, just like this poor fellow."

His wistful tone contrasted sharply with the bloody, broken body just in front of him. The deceased was a youth of about twenty, wearing swim trunks and lying on a granite slab a dozen feet from the edge of a deep, clear pool. Wreathing the body was a thirty-foot length of rope.

Sergeant Wilson lifted the corpse to reveal the rope's freshly severed end. "See? The rope was cut halfway through, then torn the rest of the way." He held the body up as Sherman inspected the rope, then settled the body back down on top of it. "This was murder."

Both men turned and looked up the sheer rock face. Sixty feet above them was the cliff on which Bobby Fixx had stood. Even from here, Sherman could see the other end of the rope, tied to the branch of a towering pine. The ten-foot section swayed gently in the summer breeze.

"Looks pretty obvious," Wilson said. "Our Mr. Fixx swings out on the rope, just like he's done a hundred times before. Only this time, someone's cut through it. Instead of swinging into the water, he falls straight down, taking this useless piece of rope with him."

"Isn't this area private property?" asked Sherman.

"Yep," said Wilson. "Owned by Midlands Granite. Fixx and his college buddies rent an off-campus house just over the ridge. Let's go pay them a visit."

Now it's time for our collaboration with the awesome What Is It? Blog! What is this thing? You don't have to know to win!

Place your guess in the comment section below. One guess per comment, please, though you can enter as many as you'd like. You might know the true answer, but we're going to select two winners who come up with the funniest, most outlandish guesses to win a T-shirt from the NeatoShop. However...

Please write your T-shirt selection alongside your guess. If you don't include a selection, you forfeit the prize, okay? May we suggest the Science T-Shirt, Funny T-Shirt and Artist-Designed T-Shirts?

There are more clues at the What Is It? Blog. Good luck!

Update: the pictured item is a J. M. Fox Iron Works valve grinder, used to ensure that automotive valves are properly seated. A perfectly respectable task, but we were looking for more imaginative uses for this object. Death Dodgers wins a t-shirt for his explanation:

A prototype Newton Meter - you know, the weight meters that you put an object on, and it drags it down a certain number of Newtons?
First, you take off the (removable) side sticking out, and put the thing you're measuring on a rope/string that is hooked in, replacing the part you took off to clamp it in place. Then, you drag the wheel like part to the zipper-end, and grab the zipper, and lift it up, so that gravity pulls down the wheel a certain number of grooves. That's the weight.

That's going around the world just to say it's a scale! The other winner is Zarf, who declared it to be "an 1873 Zip tie. bit of a bugger to get the end back through the eye but dammit men were men in those days." That's worth a t-shirt, too! Thanks to everyone who played this week. See the real answers to all the mystery objects at the What Is It? blog.

Neatorama presents our collaboration with Pzzlr, a site where you can always find a riddle to exercise your brain. Can you solve this one?

Barry took his sister, Maureen, to his end-of-year work picnic. While there they had an animated discussion about what to buy their mother for her forthcoming birthday. The discussion ended when they were joined by Barry’s work colleague, Brian. Barry introduced his sister to Brian who commented politely, “How lovely to meet you. And you must be younger than Barry by several years, surely?”

“Oh, no”, replied Maureen. “Barry and I were born on the same day, of the same month of the same year”.

“Twins then.” stated Brian.

Brian looked most perplexed when Maureen told him they were not twins.

Can you help him out?

Think you know the answer? Find out at Pzzlr!

Look for a new puzzle here at Neatorama every Wednesday, and check out Pzzlr for a puzzle anytime!