PUZZLE #40MONDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2026

The answers

Finished rounds

6

Average score

537

Best score

760

1. 01THE BODY

   How many times does a heart beat in an average lifetime?

   2.5 billion beats

   Roughly 2.5 billion. Curiously, most mammals get about the same number — a mouse just spends them faster.

   50% of players got it inside their bracket

2. 02FOOD

   How many coffee beans go into one shot of espresso?

   70 beans

   Roughly 70. Each one is the seed of a cherry picked by hand, because the good ones never ripen all at once.

   67% of players got it inside their bracket

3. 03PEOPLE

   What is the median age of the world’s population?

   31 years

   About 31. In Niger it is around 15; in Japan and Italy, over 48.

   17% of players got it inside their bracket

4. 04BUILDINGS

   How many bricks went into the Empire State Building?

   10 million bricks

   About 10 million — and at its fastest the frame went up at about four and a half storeys a week.

   0% of players got it inside their bracket

5. 05THE OCEAN

   How hot can the water get at a deep-sea hydrothermal vent?

   750 °F

   Up to about 750 °F. It stays liquid only because of the crushing pressure — and whole ecosystems live around it without sunlight.

   67% of players got it inside their bracket · 1 went for a Bullseye, none dead on