Riddle

Oops, yeah, I was assuming regular time intervals (so they would know who is first) In that case all non-collectors do it twice and when the collector recieves 24 he knows all (to account for the fact the first switch may be on or off). And I do believe that you're correct as to this being the optimal solutions. The assumption of regular time intervals is important for the others.
 
With 2 switches, it would be even faster to treat them like binary counters in computers. When a prisoner (other than the counter) enters and has not flipped a switch, he does the following:
If both swithces are off, flip the first one on.
If the first one is on, flip the second one on.
If both are on, flip the fist one off.
If only the second switch is on, do nothing.
That way, up to 3 prisoners can flip switches between the counter's visits. Since statiscally, most of the prisoners should visit between the counter's visits, this would reduce the number of wasted visits.
 
Weasel Op said:
Ah, I didn't notice that part. So that's the difference from the1-switch version.
Yeah, otherwise they are equivalent.
 
Perfection said:
Oops, yeah, I was assuming regular time intervals (so they would know who is first) In that case all non-collectors do it twice and when the collector recieves 24 he knows all (to account for the fact the first switch may be on or off). And I do believe that you're correct as to this being the optimal solutions. The assumption of regular time intervals is important for the others.
Still wrong. Your closer, but still not quite there.

Re-read this responce, becouse what you said does not make sence. And it's not That I don't get it, I do.
 
I must say that I'm amazed this thread is still going on 2 1/2 years after i started it...and that some of the same people (Souron, Perfection) are still posting in it.

lol who coulda seen that coming
 
It's not all that uncommon for such things to occur. Numerous threads are added to minutely in stages over time. My "Perfection KOs Creationism Thread" is IIRC over a year old now, and it gets bumped periodically.

That reminds me. I have to bump the astronomy picture thread again.
 
Perfection said:
I meant 46
:lol:

46 would not work either.

I'm laughing at you becouse you have figured out the principles of how to solve it, but in your haste failed to provide a proper solution. This has happend twice now, and if you don't think it over carefully, it's going to be three times.
 
My turn! My sister just told me this one. Apologies for interuption, etc.
Two policemen have to replace a speed camera. One says, "you look up the road and I'll look down the road". A bit later,
"Jim."
"Yeah?"
"Why are you smiling?"

How did he know Jim was smiling?
 
Yep. BTW, has anyone answered this one yet?

Turner_727 said:
Ann swerved as she skidded over the broken glass, blowing out two of her tires. She stopped the car and suddenly her door was yanked open and a maksed man demanded her cash. After taking her money he ran off into the woods. Seeing a gas station in the distance, she began to walk.

She arrived to find Clyde asleep. She woke him up and said, "Excuse me, but I've just been robbed and I have a couple of flat tires. Can you help me?"

Clyde yawned and replied "Lady, I just sell gas. My brother up the road owns a sevice station, and he can help you." He got up and shuffled to the phone returning moments later to say his brother was on his way with the new tire. They arrived at the car just as the brother was installing the new tire Clyde had requested.

Ann paid him with a credit card, and drove to the police station to have somoene arrested for robbery. Who and why?
 
Clyde's brother? He set up the glass, and he knew Ann would come to his brother's station, so he had a tyre prepaired to install it, so he would have an alibi.

But he didn't expect Ann would blow two tyres.
 
Souron said:
Prison Riddle:

There is a prison with 23 inmates. In the prision there is a room with two switches that don't do anythin. One is on the left and the other is on the right. These swiches may be set to either on or off.

The gaurds make a deal with the prisoners. They that they will send send prisoners into this room one at a time in no particular order, non-sequencially. The prisoners must then flip 1 switch before returning to their cell. At any point, a prisoner may guess whether or not all of the prisioners have visited the room at least once. If he guesses correctly, the gaurds will let all the prisoners go. If he guesses incorrectly, the gaurds will shoot all the prisoners. The prisoners are given time to discuss any stratagy they may want to use to make sure everybody has gone to the switch room, before one of them makes a guess.

The prisoners are to be placed in solitary confinement for the rest of there stay at the prison, so they will not have any way of knowing when or who is visiting the switch room. The gaurds do not touch the switches. A prisoner may be sent to the room multiple times, even if his fellow inmates have only been sent a once or not at all; there is no forclosed order to who is sent to the switch room and when. The initial position of the switches is unknown.

How should the prisoners ensure that the all of them have visited the switch room before one of them makes the "guess"?

Hmm. Lemme give this a shot. When they talk they decide:
-One person is the "collector."
-When it's someones turn, they flip the left switch (exception, read further)
-When someone goes and the right switch is up they flip it down.
-The collector flips the left switch always, unless the right switch is down, then he flips it up.
-Whenever an inmate sees the right switch up, he flips it down. Once he/she has flipped it down once though, they only flip the left switch from then on. Also, if the first person to go sees that the switch is down, he/she leaves it down and never touches the right one again.
-When the collector has flipped the switch up 22 times, he knows everyone has been in the room.

(prone to editing)
 
Dabomb18359 said:
Hmm. Lemme give this a shot. When they talk they decide:
-One person is the "collector."
-When it's someones turn, they flip the left switch (exception, read further)
-When someone goes and the right switch is up they flip it down.
-The collector flips the left switch always, unless the right switch is down, then he flips it up.
-Whenever an inmate sees the right switch up, he flips it down. Once he/she has flipped it down once though, they only flip the left switch from then on. Also, if the first person to go sees that the switch is down, he/she leaves it down and never touches the right one again.
-When the collector has flipped the switch up 22 times, he knows everyone has been in the room.

(prone to editing)
Nope. You forgot something. This is the same as Perfection's first guess.
 
Souron said:
The initial settings are indeed unknown. The statement is ment to underscore that you cannot put a swich half way up.
So you can pull a switch up part of the way then im assuming so anyways...
when a person goes there they pull a switch down and its always that switch, unless they have been there already in witch case they would pull the switch of the oposite wall, so when the switch that woudl be pulled to show hwo many guys has been there has been pulled 23 times one of the guys is chosen to ask the guards. and since it will have been pulled 23 times everyone woudl have been there and they would get it right and get out, or they could kill the guards and leave while being taken to the jail...or wait for a rescue:mischief:
 
Top Bottom