One of my favorite questions to ask candidates goes like this: "What's your favorite programming language?" "Describe three things you would change about that

One of my favorite questions to ask candidates goes like this: "What's your favorite programming language?" "Describe three things you would change about that language." And as a bonus question if they aren't faltering, for each improvement they list, I'll ask: "Can you think of a programming language that does that thing correctly?" I find that programmers I respect/admire can all answer these questions enthusiastically and without hesitation. As with all interview questions though, you do need to worry about false positives and negatives.