What's Fresh
- Book Review -- Ender's Game
- 2006 Senate Races
- Cassini Finds Organic Material on Titan
- Exploding toads in Germany: Follow-up
- This Day in History: April 29th, 1945
- Good Environmental News
- Heterosexual HIV Transmission
- Hemibloggiversary
- Yahoo! News - Exploding Toads Puzzle German Scient...
- Syria Removes Last Troops fom Lebanon
In the Freezer
March 1990October 2004
November 2004
December 2004
January 2005
February 2005
March 2005
April 2005
May 2005
June 2005
July 2005
August 2005
September 2005
October 2005
November 2005
December 2005
January 2006
February 2006
March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
July 2006
August 2006
September 2006
October 2006
November 2006
December 2006
January 2007
March 2007
April 2007
May 2007
June 2007
July 2007
August 2007
October 2007
August 2008
September 2008
November 2008
August 2010
Other Tasty Places
Conservative Blogs- Captain's Quarters
- Cox & Forkum Editorial Cartoons
- Galley Slaves
- GayPatriot
- Hedgehog Report
- Hugh Hewitt
- James Lileks
- Little Green Footballs
- Neanderpundit
- NRO: The Corner
- NRO: Impromptus
- Polipundit
- Powerline
- Real Clear Politics
- Roger L. Simon
- Seraphic Secret
- Vodka Pundit
- Volokh
- The Western Word
- WSJ Opinion Journal: Best of the Web Today
Monday, May 02, 2005
Boolean Underpants
Those who don't like logic puzzles should read no further.
I was digging through archives of an old hard drive from an office I worked in a few years ago, and I found this puzzle I created.
(Yes, I sometimes make up logic puzzles. That's perfectly normal. Stop laughing.)
For those who enjoy this kind of thing it will be a pleasant waste of about 15 minutes. I'll put the solution as a comment in a couple of days. Come on, Godby. I know you can do it.
-------------------------------------
Larry, Moe and Curly are having a pleasant chat. One of the three always tells the truth. One of the three always lies. One of the three faithfully alternates true statements with false statements. A contiguous portion of their conversation is transcribed below.
Larry: I am wearing underwear.
Larry: Moe always lies.
Moe: Curly always lies.
Curly: Larry always lies.
Moe: I am wearing underwear.
Larry: Curly alternates true statements with lies.
Moe: Larry alternates true statements with lies.
Curly: Moe alternates true statements with lies.
Curly: I am wearing underwear.
Please determine who is the truth-teller, who is the liar, and who alternates. Also, who is wearing underwear? - served up by Doctor Bean @ 10:33 PM
Comments:
<< Home
What are you, Doctor Bean? A member of -- or a candidate for --MENSA?
I mean really, creating logic puzzles? Sometimes I can't even understand, much less solve logic puzzles!
I mean really, creating logic puzzles? Sometimes I can't even understand, much less solve logic puzzles!
I agree with the rabbi's kid! But who has the time to do this! NO MORE PUZZLES! I should be folding clothes or other wifely duties. Svenmom
# quipped 
: 1:15 PM, May 03, 2005
: 1:15 PM, May 03, 2005
The Rabbi's kid: Welcome. I see your comments all the time on Psychotoddler.
Good try, but no cigar. If Larry alternates and is wearing underwear, then his first statement ("I am wearing underwear") is true, so his second would be false, and his third ("Curly alternates true statements with lies") would be true. But that conflicts with your guess that Curly lies.
Please try again!
Torontopearl: I am an unabashed giant geek, and hope not to lose too much blog readership because of it. Oven and I, since high school, have been puzzle fanatics, and creating them is as fun as solving them. (Stop laughing, I said.)
As for MENSA, I think I read somewhere on treppenwitz that David is a member, which from his great writing, makes sense. Oven was a member a long time ago, but found the meetings and the other members quite dreary. He said it was basically full of smart people who wanted to hang out with other people knowing nothing about them but that they were smart. A fairly sorry crowd, if I remember his assessment. Oven, correct me if I'm wrong.
Good try, but no cigar. If Larry alternates and is wearing underwear, then his first statement ("I am wearing underwear") is true, so his second would be false, and his third ("Curly alternates true statements with lies") would be true. But that conflicts with your guess that Curly lies.
Please try again!
Torontopearl: I am an unabashed giant geek, and hope not to lose too much blog readership because of it. Oven and I, since high school, have been puzzle fanatics, and creating them is as fun as solving them. (Stop laughing, I said.)
As for MENSA, I think I read somewhere on treppenwitz that David is a member, which from his great writing, makes sense. Oven was a member a long time ago, but found the meetings and the other members quite dreary. He said it was basically full of smart people who wanted to hang out with other people knowing nothing about them but that they were smart. A fairly sorry crowd, if I remember his assessment. Oven, correct me if I'm wrong.
Svenmom: We cross-posted. (1) we gotta get you a blogger account (2) sorry, no. See my response to TRKs. (3) Thanks for financing our vacation last week.
It seems the problem is not solvable. The person telling the truth obviously is wearing the underpants. Therefore the person who is alternating has to make two false statements,
1. that he is wearing underpants
2. that someone else is alternating
The only person who has those two statements in the appropriate alternating order is Larry. However, that would make Larry's second statement true, that Moe lies, and therefore Curly would be the truth teller. But that does not jive with the statements that Moe and Curly make, ie Curly saying that Larry is lying, etc.
Or maybe I am missing something obvious?
1. that he is wearing underpants
2. that someone else is alternating
The only person who has those two statements in the appropriate alternating order is Larry. However, that would make Larry's second statement true, that Moe lies, and therefore Curly would be the truth teller. But that does not jive with the statements that Moe and Curly make, ie Curly saying that Larry is lying, etc.
Or maybe I am missing something obvious?
Dilbert: clarification: any number of them, or none of them, may be wearing underpants. That is, you must tell me for each one whether or not he is wearing underpants. I hope that helps.
Answer: Larry lies and is not wearing underwear. Moe alternates true statements with lies and is wearing underwear. Curly tells the truth and is wearing underwear.
Hagrin basically got it, except that he missed that Moe is wearing underwear.
Welcome, Hagrin.
Good job, all.
Hagrin basically got it, except that he missed that Moe is wearing underwear.
Welcome, Hagrin.
Good job, all.
Only the habitual liar does not wear underwear. I guess if you go around lying about everything, it doesn't really matter, does it?
On the other hand, the truthteller wears underwear. This makes perfect sense since he cannot lie. He probably avoids gassy foods too.
I was in MENSA for less than a year. I think they (Mensans) are good folks, but I was hoping for brainy activities/conversations and my group was not really not into that. So I let it go. I got in, which was the cool thing.
On the other hand, the truthteller wears underwear. This makes perfect sense since he cannot lie. He probably avoids gassy foods too.
I was in MENSA for less than a year. I think they (Mensans) are good folks, but I was hoping for brainy activities/conversations and my group was not really not into that. So I let it go. I got in, which was the cool thing.
Oven: Good to see you back. I missed you. What have you been doing? Working? Spending time with your family? Stop that! Come on! Get your head in the game!
Post a Comment
<< Home
