S&T 2nd round Brainteaser most people screw up!

Came across this MM S&T brainteaser and wanted to share it with you guys:

You have three pancakes. One pancake is burnt on one of it's two sides. Another is burnt on both of its sides. The last one is not burnt on either of its sides.

If we were to stack these three pancakes on top of each other and you can see that the top pancake is burnt on its top side, what is the probability that the top pancake is the pancake that is burnt on both sides?

Apparently, nearly everybody who interviews answers 1/2 but the correct answer is actually 2/3.

12 Comments
 

How anyone manages to get this brainteaser incorrect is beyond me :(

Currently: future neurologist, current psychotherapist Previously: investor relations (top consulting firm), M&A consulting (Big 4), M&A banking (MM)
 
Best Response

It's actually fairly simple to understand how someone could get this incorrect..

'2 of the pancakes have burnt sides and I see that the top one has a burnt side, therefore it is a 50% chance that the top one is burnt on both sides'

Your inability to consider someone else's thought processes is actually more dumbfounding to me.

This to all my hatin' folks seeing me getting guac right now..
 
Cruncharoo

It's actually fairly simple to understand how someone could get this incorrect..

'2 of the pancakes have burnt sides and I see that the top one has a burnt side, therefore it is a 50% chance that the top one is burnt on both sides'

Your inability to consider someone else's thought processes is actually more dumbfounding to me.

I actually had no idea how the 1/2 answer came about, haha. Thanks for explaining. Sometimes it's the simple things that befuddle and not the complex.....
Currently: future neurologist, current psychotherapist Previously: investor relations (top consulting firm), M&A consulting (Big 4), M&A banking (MM)
 

Pretty simple conditional probability, the trick is go by the number of sides not pancakes

P(Burnt both sides | Burnt) = P(Burnt both & Burnt) / P(burnt) = (2/6) / (3/6) = 2/3

 

Nemo et dolorem culpa nihil. Repudiandae esse a voluptatum atque voluptas. Dignissimos in qui in consequatur velit.

Array

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (66) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”