The Grey Cells - Exercise !
Printed From: History Community ~ All Empires
Category: All Empires Community
Forum Name: AE Tavern
Forum Discription: Come here to introduce yourself and discuss almost anything under the sun! Or just to let your hair down...
URL: http://www.allempires.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=14335
Printed Date: 14-May-2024 at 15:34
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 9.56a - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: The Grey Cells - Exercise !
Posted By: Northman
Subject: The Grey Cells - Exercise !
Date Posted: 28-Aug-2006 at 17:49
|
Now its time for all you military experts to find a good strategy !
Ten of your troops has been taken prisoner and only YOU can save your POW's....
Your ten POW's are about to be executed. Although they don't like the idea, they are each selfless and want to do anything (even by sacrificing themselves) in order to help their fellow POW's.
They are told what will happen to them: They will each be lined up single file, so that they are each facing the POW in front of them. Each of them will be given a red or a white hat on their head. Knowing what is going to happen to them, they are allowed to deivse a strategy beforehand with your help. |
Replies:
Posted By: Paul
Date Posted: 28-Aug-2006 at 18:52
|
The guy at the back shouts the guy in front's hat colour. He has a 50/50 chance it will be his own too. The guy in front shouts what the guy behind said. They repeat this in pairs to the front of the line. 5 are guaranteed to live and 5 have a 50/50 chance. ------------- Light blue touch paper and stand well back http://www.maquahuitl.co.uk - http://www.maquahuitl.co.uk http://www.toltecitztli.co.uk - http://www.toltecitztli.co.uk |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 28-Aug-2006 at 18:57
|
It's possible to save 9 POWs guarenteed. The last guy in the line shouts out the color of all the hats in front of him. (or alternatively, send it through body message, etc.) |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 28-Aug-2006 at 19:48
|
Paul
Its possible to do better than that.
Invictus
Any POW may only state what he thinks is the color of his own hat. So he cant state the color of all hats.
------------- |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 28-Aug-2006 at 20:48
|
Assuming it isn't possible to communicate in any other way other than a binary "whte/red", then they're still guarenteed to save 9 POWs with the last guy in line at 50/50. Each guy behind states the color of the hat in front. |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 28-Aug-2006 at 21:56
|
You never said anything else about how they lined up other than, "single file, so that they are each facing the POW in front of them".
Alright then, Ten men. Lined up single file. If they are allowed to talk to eachother during the process: - each soldier tells the one in front the color of his hat. When asked by the captors what color each has on he would answer correctly except for the one at the very back. or If they are not allowed to talk during the process their plan could be to: - line up ten men. In pairs they would face eachother. By looking into eachother's eyes they could see the color of the hats in the reflection. Then bingo. or ... ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 02:25
|
Invictus
If the hats were placed red-white-red-white-red, and so on, they would all be wrong and executed.
Seko
Your first strategy seems good, but it doesnt work. Lets assume the guy backmost has a red hat in front of him, then he would state that color, red.
But if the guy with this guy with the red hat, has a white hat in front of him, he cant tell that without beeing doomed.
They are all facing the same direction, and can only see what is in front of them, and they are only allowed to state one word - the color of their own hat, red or white.
A hint - Invictus has the right answer, but as mentioned - the strategy doesnt work.
Its possible to save 9 plus one with a 50/50 chance - but how?
------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 09:02
|
Ok, so the guy(s) in the back can't whisper, "Hey dude, your hat is white!" Then the guy with the white hat isn't allowed to cheat and say 'white'. Plus he is not allowed to whisper the correct color of the next guy in front of him.
Well, without that and without any other nonverbal clues they might be screwed. I was thinking they could say the opposite but that leads to nowhere too. Now that you made my brain hurt, I hope you give us another clue to ease the pain. Unless... They are allowed to use a vocal inflection. For example: The poor guy piss'n his pants at the back of the line sees the color of the lucky fart directly in front of him. He could say the color in a particular slang (let's say north Amercian midwest English). White! That really means the guy in front has a white hat. Now when it comes to this next guys turn he has to say the correct color of his own hat in order to save his skin. Before he says it out loud, however, he notices the color of the next guy in front and gives him a clue too. If the other guy in front has a 'Red' hat then the guy behind says 'Wayt' with a southern twist. That is the preconcieved way of saying, "Dude, your hat is really Red but I'm saying it this way to give you a heads up and save my own hide in the process. The same formula could be used for mentioning the color of a Red hat. To something like 'Rad'. Meaning I got a red hat on but the next guy's hat is really white. Lastly if the next guy and the guy behind both have red hats then they just say 'Red' with no accent. ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 09:30
All right - now its almost a giveaway...
 :What is it exactly is it, the POW back in the line can see?
He can see his 9 fellow POW's with colored hats on.
Which information would be most useful for them, expressed in ONE word?
Bravo - I really think that could work Seko - good thinking
 However, its not the strategy I have in mind which is more based on simple math (yet a hint)
 ------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 09:47
Thanks for easing the pressure that had been building up between my temples. 
I thought that ingenious strategy of mine had a chance. Now back to your clues, - one word - it's mathematical I need to sort this one out. Partial answer - The guy in the back would say a number. I get that much. What number(s)? Hmm. Help! Invictus, it's your turn! ------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 10:00
|
I'm back from a brief hiatus to the men's room.
The guy at back counts the number of colored hats. The preconcieved trick discussed among the POW's is this: For every Red hat gets the number one. For every White hat, the number two. The guy in the back (who is a hero and will have a memorial built in his name) counts the red and white hats in front of him. Since there are nine altogether he says to himself, "1,1,2,1,2,2,1,2,2 for example. Then he loudly proclaims - Onehundred and twelve million, onehundred twenty two thousand and onehundred twenty two. The order of each didgit pertains to teh order of POW too. ------------- |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 10:44
Does that include hyphenated words, or made-up words? Does a long string of numbers count as a word? Can it be multi-syllable? How many letters longs can the words be? (for example, I can encode a white/red sequence by selecting a certain word with an alphabetical order that matches the sequence.) One example of the above is to use a word so that for the first two letters, vowels represent white and consonants represent red. That way, the guy behind can pass information for correct color of the next two hats. Looks like the POW camp needs better rules definitions.  |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 11:16
|
If the guy in the back wants a chance at saving his own hide in the process then a coded word would become necessary, as Imperator Invictus has alluded to.
I agree that the tormentors of those poor POW's need to provide a clearer set of guidelines. ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 11:41
|
Ha ha...
No need for a clearer set of rules - as mentioned in the original post - only one word allowed for each POW.
Red or White. ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 11:48
I never knew you could be that inventive...------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 11:57
|
Never underestimate the creative abilities of a prisoner in the Northman POW camp.
This place is a hell hole over here. You must be enjoying this! ------------- |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 12:27
What about the accent of the word or the length during which the word is spoken. Also, can they control how loud or soft the word is spoken? For example: Loud "white" = next two hats are White-Red soft "white" = next two hats are White-White loud "red" = next two hats are Red-White soft "red" = next two hats are Red-Red |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 12:40
LOL - good try Invictus ... but lets say they speak through a synthesizer - everyone sounds the same.
Last hint - after the first guy has said a color, the next guy knows exactly what HIS color is, and when he states that, the next in line also knows HIS color - and so on.
------------- |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 12:55
|
Lol You never said that the people in front knows whether or not a guy behind has been executed. For what we know, it's possible that the execution takes place after the process has been completed. |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 13:22
|
Let's say the guy in the back counts four Red hats and five White hats. He then, according to plan, says the color of either Red or White hats out loud. Red being even and White being odd. Prior to this the group is in on the method and know that they will be informed by the first guy. The trick is that guy only mentions the color of either even or odd number of hats. In this case he says 'Red' which he knows there are four of and the group knows they are, therefore, even numbered. Each POW looks infront of him and counts the number of 'Red' (even number) hats. The guy directly in front of the POW at the back of the line see's three Red hats. So he knows he has a red one too. Then he say's Red. The rest of the guys up also see the colors of various red and white hats and can figure out the rest from there.
------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 13:34
Excellent
Bingo Seko - thats it!!
The only one in jeopardy 50/50, is the first guy (longest back) - but as the original post stated - they are willing to sacrifice to save the others.
All 10 are applauding you at the top - Good Work!
Par tradition - you're next to let US use the grey cells....
------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 13:40
|
Oh man, that was hard work! Thanks again.
First I had it completley wrong, then I came up with a vocal accent (that can actually work) and eventually it came down to this. Give me a few days. I'll look into a few mind teasers and see what I could come up with. ------------- |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 13:59
| Point for you, seko! |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 29-Aug-2006 at 14:16
|
I'll take that point after a few hits and misses!
Before I dig up some teasers at home later, maybe someone could start up a new one. ------------- |
Posted By: poirot
Date Posted: 30-Aug-2006 at 06:01
Damn, I got here too late. I did something similiar to this a couple of years back. Good job coming up with it Northman! And kudos!!!! to..............SEKO!!!!!!!! You can solve this problem using a simple algorithm.  ------------- AAAAAAAAAA "The crisis of yesterday is the joke of tomorrow.� ~ HG Wells |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 31-Aug-2006 at 09:05
|
Northman and company,
I got one for you all. It's not as good as the POW camp thing but let's give it a go anyway. Sir Daggers, The Archer, and Mister Musket are in a deadly shoot out to the end. They each take turns firing at each other until only one person is left. Sir Daggers, who hits his target 1/3 of the time, gets to go first. The Archer, who hits his shot 2/3 of the time, gets to shoot next, assuming he is still alive. Mr. Musket, who hits his shot all the time, shoots next, assuming he is still alive too. The cycle repeats. If you are Sir Daggers, where should you aim first for the highest chance of survival? ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 31-Aug-2006 at 20:13
If I understand you correctly, they take ONE shot in turns, and if this is correct, then Sir Dagger should try to take Mr. Musket out.
If he instead kills The archer in first try, it will be Mr. Musket to shoot and since he hits 100% and he only has Sir Dagger left to shoot at, Sir Dagger will face certain death. So that wont work at all.
------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 31-Aug-2006 at 20:24
|
Just saw this post. How's it going Northman?
Take one shot in turns, starting with the poorest shooter. You have a strategy. Keep going. ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 01-Sep-2006 at 11:24
Well, what can I say - I'm not doing so well after a good nights sleep, since I realized my assumption from last night (2 am) was anything than flawless.
Morale... DONT follow your first assumption, and dont rush
 I made a chart, leading to a (at first glance) surprising conclusion and quite embarrasingly - the opposit from my first idea.
This Daggers guy would be best of shooting at the Archer first, but only if he makes sure not to hit anything...
Overall, he has a 10 of 27 probability to win if he start shooting at the Archer - but only if he is missing!!
If I was him, I would make my first shot straight into the air and hope the bullet wouldnt harm anyone on its way down.
 ------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 01-Sep-2006 at 13:20
|
I need to commend you on this chart. I looked it over during lunch. You seemed to have covered all of the possibilities.
Certainly taking the first shot at either one has it's consequences. Probability asides, when Sir Daggers misses on his first turn a varied chain of events unfold. 10/27 success by shooting at the Archer first and 5/27 if he tries to hit Mister Musket first. !!!CONGRATULATIONS!!! 
Since all we are looking for is the highest chance of survival, Sir Daggers missing leads to The Archer having his shot. He could choose Sir Daggers or Mister Musket as his target. He (probably) would shoot at the one who would kill him the easiest given the chance and that is Mister Musket. If he missed then Mister Musket takes his turn and goes after the best marksman. So he shoots at The Archer and kills him. This leaves a chance and imminent final turn for Sir Daggers to have a go at winning. In effect it was best that he let the other two go at it first and take his chances at the end. 
------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 01-Sep-2006 at 13:23
|
Your turn now Northman. Come up with a good one again.
I'll leave you with this parting teaser. It's a quicky and could be done in a few minutes. What number is spelled alphabetically (English)? ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 01-Sep-2006 at 13:56
|
Ok - I'll put my thinking cap on, but anyone can jump in if they have a good one.
Feel free to participate everyone.....
By any chance.... FORTY?
I couldnt find any number with that feature - untill I realised I always spelled fourty wrongly.....
Thanks - another learning experience. ------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 01-Sep-2006 at 14:02
|
Forty it is! Good going.
Once you count up to nine and notice that none of those numbers are possible you are left with numbers that do not have those digits in them. Since that eliminates a whole bunch, its good to start with ten, twenty, thirty, and eventually FORTY... I'll be away from the computer for most of today. But will check back to see the latest. ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 02-Sep-2006 at 03:36
|
AE's own famous explorer Pingo, once was researching and exploring the intersting probability of finding Penguins in Outer Tibet.
Sadly, he was taken prisoner by the Horrible Snowman, Yeti, and had to use all his skills to escape from his captivity. We know Pingo made it as he reported back not too long ago, that he had begun further studies at The University of Antarctica. Could you have made it - and how? The Yeti gave him a chance to go free, if he could chose correctly 2 times, under certain conditions. He was presented two doors and was told, that there was any combination of a Tiger and a Lady Penguin behind the doors. There could be Tigers or Lady Penguins behind both doors. On the other hand it was also possible, that there was a Tiger behind one door and a Lady Penguin behind the other. There was a sign on each door: "Are these statements true?", Pingo asked the Yeti. Which door would YOU chose, and why? (given the circumstance that you prefer Lady Penguins to tigers) Pingo made it, and got a new girlfriend, Penguina, and they fell madly in love. The Yeti lead them to two new doors, and these doors also had a sign each. Pingo asked again, whether the statements were true. Again - which door would you chose, and why? Please answer by PM - but post here when you do so. ------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 02-Sep-2006 at 19:42
|
Hey Northman, I printed you teaser and will put some thought into it tonight. Hopefully I will have a response soon enough. ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 04-Sep-2006 at 09:03
Seko is almost half way - is he the only logical thinker here? 
Come on - its really not that hard guys (and gals)!
------------- |
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 04-Sep-2006 at 10:01
|
Well, I give it a try also, please inform me if I was wrong or right.
-------------  Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 04-Sep-2006 at 11:38
I have answered your PM. Your answer is correct, but the deduction isnt quite clear. Express it a bit different please.
------------- |
Posted By: Omar al Hashim
Date Posted: 04-Sep-2006 at 18:40
|
I think I've got it. PMing you.
------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 04-Sep-2006 at 18:54
Congrats Omar - well done!!
I will post the answer tomorrow evening (GMT) when everyone have had a chance to answer again.
Your turn Omar
------------- |
Posted By: Omar al Hashim
Date Posted: 04-Sep-2006 at 20:08
|
Not so good at thinking these up. Lets try this one: There are three light switches to three different rooms. You don't know which switch belongs to which room. From where the switches are you can't tell if a light is on or off, nor from one room can you see into another room. As in, you have to travel to a room to determine if the light is on or off. How can you switch the light to one particular room on (while having the other two off) by only making one trip to one room? ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 05-Sep-2006 at 04:39
|
Seko solved the DOOR riddle - well done
Omar
You are asking how I can swith the light on in a particular room.
Should I understand that expression as ...
"How can you find out which switch is corrensponding to which room by only making one trip to one room"?
------------- |
Posted By: Omar al Hashim
Date Posted: 05-Sep-2006 at 05:28
Yes. You only need to find out which switch corresponds to the one particular room you wish to turn on. If you don't know the other two, it doesn't matter. My hint is that this is a real world situation. EDIT: Your allowed to come back after the trip. ie, turn any switches on and/or off, go to one room, come back, change any switches. - but thats it. ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 05-Sep-2006 at 05:46
OK... so the task is to find three different ways to create a uniqe situation in each room that you can observe entering any of the rooms.
For two of the switches - lets say A and B, we could swith A on, and leave B off. That would give the obvious result in two of the rooms - light or no light.
For C we need something different.
I would turn on switch C for 30 seconds - then off again.
- in the room corresponding to switch A, there would be light
- in the room corresponding to switch B, the light would be off - in the room corresponding to switch C, the light would be off, but the bulb would be warm.
That must be it...
------------- |
Posted By: Omar al Hashim
Date Posted: 05-Sep-2006 at 18:43
|
Very good That was almost too easy. ------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 05-Sep-2006 at 19:15
Thanks - yes. almost
Solutions to the Penguin/Tiger puzzle.
Part ONE....
DOOR I read:
IN THIS ROOM IS A LADY PENGUIN, AND IN THE OTHER ROOM IS A TIGER. DOOR II read: IN ONE OF THESE ROOMS IS A LADY PENGUIN AND IN ONE OF THESE ROOMS IS A TIGER "Are these statements true?", Pingo asked the Yeti.
The reply was, "One is true, and one is false" The right answer is Room II:
If we start assuming statement 1 is true, then statement 2 must also be true. This cannot be the case, since one is false and one is true. Subsequently, since statement 1 is false, then statement 2 must be true, so there IS a Penguin in one of the rooms, and since statement 1 is false, we can reverse that statement and conclude that the Penguin is in Room II.
Part TWO...
DOOR I read: THERE IS A LADY PENGUIN IN ONE OR BOTH OF THESE ROOMS DOOR II read: THERE IS A TIGER IN THE OTHER ROOM Pingo asked again, whether the statements were true.
"Both are true - or both are false" the Yeti said. The right answer is ROOM II:
If statement 2 is false, then there is a Pinguin in room I, but that makes statement 1 true. This cannot occur, since both statements are either true or false.
According to this, they both must be true, and statement 2 says the tiger is behind door 1. We must chose ROOM II again. NEW PUZZLE:
In the city where I live, the people in the Western part of town are always telling lies, whereas people living in the Eastern part is always telling the truth.
After a long night out, visiting every bar in both parts of the town, I found myself waking up on a bench in a park.
I didnt know where I was, but luckily enough, I spotted an older woman comming out her front door, entering the path leading to my bench and the question is....
What question (one question) could I ask her to find out in which part of town I was, well knowing she could be lying or telling the truth?
------------- |
Posted By: Omar al Hashim
Date Posted: 05-Sep-2006 at 23:28
|
That seems to easy, I'll PM you my idea.
------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 06-Sep-2006 at 02:25
|
You're right Omar.... I remembered it wrong - let me refrase... it should have been like this:
The city where I live is divided in two parts, a Western and a Eastern part.
The citizens living in one of those parts, Eastern or Western. are always telling lies, whereas people living in the other part is always telling the truth.
After a long night out, visiting every bar in both parts of the town, I found myself waking up on a bench in a park.
I didnt know where I was, but luckily enough, I spotted an older woman comming out her front door, entering the path leading to my bench and the question is....
What question (one question) could I ask her to find out in which part of town I was, well knowing she could be lying or telling the truth? ------------- |
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 06-Sep-2006 at 04:00
I just read the whole thread and I've got to say, you guys, apart from being smart, are funny also. I particularly liked those:
As for the last teaser North, let me think about it and I'll PM you if I come up with sth. edit: I PM'd you ------------- 
|
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 06-Sep-2006 at 05:30
|
ok, here is my answer. I would ask her: "Is your wife living in the Western part of the city?" If she says "YES", then she is lying, so I'm in the Eastern part [she's a woman so she can't have a wife; at least in my city ]If she says: "OMG, what are you talking about, can't you see that I'm a woman? Shame on you  Yes, this is the Western (Eastern) part you retard!", then I'm in the Western (Eastern) part [she's telling the truth]Now that I think about it again North, maybe my answer is not so complete. What if she get's pissed and, after swearing at me, she won't tell me in which part I am? 
-------------
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 06-Sep-2006 at 05:42
Since I made a mess of this question to begin with, your explanation is as good as anyone - I'll buy it.
Omar had the initial question right, so lets see which one of you guys comes up with the next puzzle first.
Come to think of it - why dont you both post, and maybe Seko has a good one as well. Seems like I'm getting too old anyways...
------------- |
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 06-Sep-2006 at 06:10
|
Here is mine: You are in a room with 2 doors leading out. Behind 1 door is a coffer overflowing with jewels and gold, along with an exit. Behind the other door is an enormous, hungry lion that will pounce on anyone opening the door. You do not know which door leads to the treasure and exit, and which door leads to the lion. In the room you are in are 2 individuals. The first is a knight, who always tells the truth, and a knave, who always lies. Both of these individuals know what is behind each door. You do not know which individual is the knight, or which one is the knave. You may ask one of the individuals exactly 1 question. What should you ask in order to be certain that you will open the door with the coffer behind it, instead of the hungry lion? -------------
|
Posted By: Aelfgifu
Date Posted: 06-Sep-2006 at 07:06
|
I know one too, but it is a bit corny perhaps, and very easy:
You are in a house. There is only one room in the house, and it is square. There is a window in each wall. There is a bed, a table and a chair in the room. There is an oillamp on the table, and a pillow on the bed. All windows in the house look south. Through one of the windows you can see a bear.
the question: What colour is the bear? ------------- 
Women hold their councils of war in kitchens: the knives are there, and the cups of coffee, and the towels to dry the tears. |
Posted By: Aelfgifu
Date Posted: 06-Sep-2006 at 07:13
Oeps, wrote my solution here... I deleted it, so now I dont spoil it, I pm-ed you my answer...  -------------
Women hold their councils of war in kitchens: the knives are there, and the cups of coffee, and the towels to dry the tears. |
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 06-Sep-2006 at 08:05
|
Aelfgifu PM'd me with the right answer Anybody else wants to give it a try? -------------
|
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 06-Sep-2006 at 09:12
|
Northman also answered correctly, so I will let him or Aelfgifu post the answer here. Gotta go now, see ya later! -------------
|
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 08-Sep-2006 at 10:59
|
I'll give you a nice riddle, that I've heard today.
An american spy tries to inflitrate a russian army camp, so he hinds near the entrance of the camp and he listens carefully. Finally, one soldier approaches the gate, the guard says 12 and the soldier replies 6 and he got in safely, after some time another soldier aprroaches, the guard says 6 and the soldier replies 3 and he also gets in the camp without any problems.
The spy thought that he figure it out, so he wears a russian uniform and went to the gate, the guard told him 4, our spy replied 2, but then the guard killed him. How did the guard ''uncovered'' the spy? ------------- Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 08-Sep-2006 at 13:01
Since Aelgifu is hibernating
 , I'll post the answer to Neo's puzzle:My question to either guy would be this:
"If I asked the other guy if the gold was behind door A, what would he answer?"
In case the gold really was behind door 1 - both guys would answer NO.
In case the gold was behind door 2 - both guys would answer YES. I answered to Aelgifu's question by PM - but perhaps she is indisposed - haven't got an answer.
Giannis
If the spy was George Bush, he probably answered in english...
------------- |
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 08-Sep-2006 at 13:22
|
I'll count your answer as half right North, because, I didn't give more details. Our spy speaks russian, and his as intelligent as the average peolple. ------------- Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Aelfgifu
Date Posted: 09-Sep-2006 at 06:11
|
Sorry Northman, I got a bit busy. You got it right, and so did neoptolemos.
The bear of course is white. As all windows look south, you are on the north pole. -------------
Women hold their councils of war in kitchens: the knives are there, and the cups of coffee, and the towels to dry the tears. |
Posted By: Aelfgifu
Date Posted: 11-Sep-2006 at 05:14
|
Ah, here is one, it looks simple...
How many F's are there in the following text?
FINISHED FILES ARE THE RE-
SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIF-
IC STUDY COMBINED WITH THE
XPERIENCE OF YEARS
-------------
Women hold their councils of war in kitchens: the knives are there, and the cups of coffee, and the towels to dry the tears. |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 12-Sep-2006 at 14:05
|
I believe there are 6, Aelfgifu....
After counting "F", please count the people in this group:
 ------------- |
Posted By: Aelfgifu
Date Posted: 12-Sep-2006 at 14:16
 , the legs of the guy on the right grow and shrink...
I should have known all the people here are nerdy geniuses who would get the F's right. However, most people find only three. Please print it and try on your lesser gifted friends and family....
The trick is that the brain does not register the word OF, so people tend to skip those F's. It worked on my housemates... Perhaps it does not work on the screen as well...dont know.
Anyway, I figured out Giannis' riddle with the spy, the answer should have been four. -------------
Women hold their councils of war in kitchens: the knives are there, and the cups of coffee, and the towels to dry the tears. |
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 13-Sep-2006 at 01:13
After trying a few algorithms I found one that seems to work; the spy should have answered 8! -------------
|
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 13-Sep-2006 at 02:55
The answer is much more simple, you don't need mathematics and algorithms, I'll give you a hint, try to write down the numbers. Untill now only Aelfgifu found the right answer. ------------- Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 13-Sep-2006 at 20:10
So I don't need math and algorithms, but simple logic right? That's my problem! My (dis)ability to logically process incoming information! Seriously now, I can't find the answer. Aelfgifu said four, is this correct and why?  -------------
|
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 14-Sep-2006 at 02:40
|
T - W- E-L-V-E (six letters)
S-I-X (three letters)
F-O-U-R (four letters)
So, the soldiers (and you), didn't have to know mathematics and algorithms, just to count and spell right!
------------- Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 14-Sep-2006 at 18:21
Clever
- I didnt catch it. Like Neo, I was looking for some logic, just not that kind of logic. Must be environmentally challenged. And we didnt even have to take our socks off.... bummer
3 pages back, Seko said he would think a teaser up
We are still waiting mr. newly appointed administrator, Seko - Seko - Seko !!
------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 14-Sep-2006 at 19:48
|
I hear you Man from the North. Even though I presented the Sir Daggers thing, it does seem like ages ago. I will ask you to give me some more time in order to get the rest of my brain cells in order. ------------- |
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 15-Sep-2006 at 02:19
Good one! I wasn't even remotely close  Do you have another one?  -------------
|
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 15-Sep-2006 at 02:50
|
Ok, here is an old one. In one chaliphate many years ago, there was a wise rouler, he was old and ill and he had to choose for his succesor, he had two sons, but he couldn't choose one. So, one day he called them to his palace and he gave them a task. They would go deep in the desert with their camels and they would race back to the palace, who ever's camel game second he would be the new ruler.
Next day the two princes went in the desert, the heat was horrific but none of them moved. A holy man watched them, he approached and he asked them why they are standing like this in the middle of nowhere. They told him their problem, he thought it for a while, then he said them something and they begun running wild. What did the holy man, told to the princes? ------------- Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 15-Sep-2006 at 22:38
|
Sorry but I didn't understand sth. At the end they begun running wild with or without the camels?
-------------
|
Posted By: Aelfgifu
Date Posted: 16-Sep-2006 at 03:23
|
Dinner is ready? -------------
Women hold their councils of war in kitchens: the knives are there, and the cups of coffee, and the towels to dry the tears. |
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 16-Sep-2006 at 03:24
With their camels, they are in the middle of the desert, they couldn't get far by running on foot.
And dinner would be over by the time they reached the palace.
Northman answered again right! And pretty fast too! ------------- Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 19-Sep-2006 at 17:51
|
We better get those two guys back to town in a hurry before they die from starvation or thirst. So the holy man had only to say two words to make them race back to the city with a speed of at least 300 cameljumps pr. minute - He simply said: Switch Camels! Another day, the same two guys was at the market and watching the construction of a new Mosque. They found the height to be very impressive. How can they measure the height of the building (approx. result)? ------------- |
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 20-Sep-2006 at 18:23
|
Let's see if we can help the two guys figure out the height of the Mosque: They should go next to the building (where they can see the sun) and put one yardstick on the ground in a vertical position. Then they should use the 2nd yardstick to measure the 1st yardstick's shadow. When the shadow measures 2 yards (= 1 yardstick) they will measure the building's shadow. If the shadow is x-yardsticks long then the mosque is 2x-yards high. One problem with this solution is that the timing must be right (i.e. a few minutes in the morning or evening). Another problem, as the wise teacher (see man from the North) pointed out, is what happens if it's too cloudy (=> no shadows)?? There must be at least one more way to solve this teaser. So here's the deal: help the guys measure the Mosque's height without making use of the sun (and without trigonometry!) and prove that you are smarter than Neo! 
-------------
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 21-Sep-2006 at 03:12
|
Giannis also found a way....
He wrote:
But like Neo said - let try to solve it on a day without the sun.
------------- |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 22-Sep-2006 at 18:16
|
Giannis has a severe headache from thinking about this teaser, so let me put him out of his misery
 Neo or Giannis (or whoever comes first) - your turn now...  ------------- |
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 27-Sep-2006 at 18:37
|
Ok, we have five greedy, barbarian pirates, who had just recovered a treasure of 100 golden coins.
The most easy way is to split it in five, 20 coin, shares, but the captain disagrees, after all he is the captain, and he suggests the following. Beginning from the lower rank, each man is going to suggest a way to split the booty, if the majority votes for his proposal, then that's the way to split the coins, if it doesn't he doesn't participate in the sharing anymore, and his superior is going to propose something else, and so on. The pirates agreed to this new democratic way.
Now, we all know that pirates are extremely greedy, they want to have the biggest share possible. They are also logical and they are not going to use guns, swords, etc. What should the lowest rank sailor propose so that he can have the biggest share possible and the majority of votes? ------------- Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 30-Sep-2006 at 05:25
|
Neoptolemos was 90% right, anyone else? ------------- Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 30-Sep-2006 at 06:17
|
You have a PM Giannis ! ------------- |
Posted By: Giannis
Date Posted: 01-Oct-2006 at 05:45
|
Ok, Northman found it as well as Neoptolemos the right answer is the following as Northman PM it to me:
answered by memory and realized my answer was only valid with 4 pirates left.
I looked for the notes I made previously - and with a few changes, here they are, and to explain the logic, I'll start with only A and B left. Left 2 pirates (A/B) = A gets 100 coins Left 3 pirates (A/B/C) = C can propose 99 to himself and 1 coin to B (B&C=majority) Left 4 pirates(A/B/C/D) = D can propose 98 coins to himself and 1 coin to each of A and B. A and B will have less if they dont accept - (Majority 3:1) Wirh all 5 pirates A/B/C/D/E the logic is... E can propose 2 coins for pirate A (or B), and 1 coin for C and have 97 for himself. He needs to spend an extra coin to one pirate to be sure that this pirate would prefer this proposal instead of what could be proposed with 4 pirates left. ------------- Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 01-Oct-2006 at 09:25
|
You were first Neo - your call!
------------- |
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 01-Oct-2006 at 20:42
|
The two barbarian pirates that walked away empty-handed, mister B and mister D, are very disappointed about the deal and upset with their fellow pirates. They appeal to the captain, but he tells them that he can't do anything. Our friends, blinded by their anger, decide to quit the pirate career and become (semi-barbarian) thiefs instead. Six months later they carry out a bank robbery, the security guard tries to chase them, so they shoot at him and manage to get away. Or so they thought... two days later the get arrested by the police! The police have insufficient evidence for a conviction, but they have enough evidence for their unlawful activity during the last six months. So the police interrogator does the following: He separates the two suspects, visits each of them and offers the same deal: if one confesses and testifies against the other and the other remains silent, the betrayer will go free and the silent will receive a 10-year prison sentence. If none of them confesses, they will be both sentenced to 1 year in jail for minor charges. If both of them confess, each will receive a 5-year sentence. Therefore the question is: what are Mr B and Mr D going to do, given that each one wants to minimize his jail term? PM! -------------
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 03-Oct-2006 at 11:49
|
Hmmm Neo - I believe there is more than one outcome here.
But I'll give it some more thoughts on my vacation 4.-27. october.
But I understand you right in saying - they have no chance to consult one another?
If they, on the other hand do, is it ok for them to cheat the other?
------------- |
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 03-Oct-2006 at 17:08
|
In such "games" you can never be sure about the outcome, because you can't get into the criminals brain. However, if both of them are rational, there is only one outcome. You understood right; they can't consult each other. But even if they could see each other for 5 mins, they would still have to return to their rooms to answer to the interrogator's questions and cheating could definately be one of their strategies. -------------
|
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 12-Oct-2006 at 01:21
|
Nobody found the solution yet??? C'mon it's not hard... -------------
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 22-Jan-2007 at 16:58
Obviously too hard Neo... I couldnt come up with anything sensible to that one in October - and not now either. 
Here is an easier one.... everyone can enjoy a little brainwork with this:
If 27 frogs can catch 27 flies in 27 minutes, how many frogs are needed to catch 81 flies in 81 minutes?
------------- |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 22-Jan-2007 at 18:10
That's an easy question relating to the Nash Equilibrium concept in game theory economics. The scenarios are as follows: If A confesses: --If B is silent, then A gets 0 years, B gets 10 years --If B confesses, then A gets 5 years, B gets 5 years If A is silent: -If B is silent, the A gets 1 year, B gets 1 year -If B confesses, A gets 10 years, B gets 0 years B will always confess because for any of the two possibilities that A will chose, B will be better off confessing. The same goes for A, who will also confess (you can see this by switching A and B in the chart). Therefore, the Nash Equilibrium is that both will confess, despite the fact that they would both be better off if they both remain silent. But since they cannot trust one another, the expected outcome is better for each person individually to confess. This is the same reason why two nations engage in arms races even though each know that they will be better off not building up weapons, provided that it is certain that the other does not. |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 22-Jan-2007 at 18:56
27 One approach is to rewrite the question as: 27 frogs are capable of catching 27 files / 27 minutes In the expression above 27 files / 27 minutes simplifies to 1 fly / 1 minute, Therefore, 27 frogs are capable of catching 1 fly / 1 minute The question asks you how many are needed to catch 81 flies in 81 minute, which is 81 flies / 81 minutes = 1 fly / 1 minute. Therefore, the answer is 27 flies because the flies per minute criteria is exactly the same. |
Posted By: Neoptolemos
Date Posted: 23-Jan-2007 at 01:12
The Grey Cells - resurrected! 
-------------
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 23-Jan-2007 at 04:58
|
Well done Invictus - your turn to ask now
------------- |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 23-Jan-2007 at 20:24
|
A fishing boat is lying in the harbor. There is a rope ladder hanging over the side with its end touching the water. The rungs of the ladder are 1 meter apart and the tide is rising at 50 centimeters an hour. At the end of 6 hours, how many of the rungs will be covered? |
Posted By: Timotheus
Date Posted: 23-Jan-2007 at 20:45
|
None of the rungs will be covered. The boat will rise with the tide.
------------- Opium is the religion of the masses. From each according to his need, to each according to his ability. |
Posted By: Imperator Invictus
Date Posted: 23-Jan-2007 at 23:04
|
That's right!
|
Posted By: Timotheus
Date Posted: 24-Jan-2007 at 00:57
|
Do I post something now? Gah, let's see if I can think of anything...
------------- Opium is the religion of the masses. From each according to his need, to each according to his ability. |
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 29-Jan-2007 at 19:08
Still thinking Timotheus? ------------- |
Posted By: Hugin
Date Posted: 30-Jan-2007 at 13:23
I think he is 
|
Posted By: Northman
Date Posted: 22-Jul-2008 at 15:08
|
Timotheus might keep himself some long vacations - so lets help him a bit with a story from the early days on All Empires...
In the first week we had less than a dozen members.
The next week we got three new members and every week since then, we got two members more than what we got the previous week.
At a certain time, we were 54 members and until then, no members left AE.
How many members did we have to start with?
------------- |
Posted By: Seko
Date Posted: 22-Jul-2008 at 15:22
|
Oh lordy? A grey cell test! Good idea to re-invigorate this thread. ------------- |