Riddle Me This

[A face]

You are driving in a car at a constant speed. On your left side is a 'drop off', (The ground is 18-20 inches below the level you are traveling on), and on your right side is a fire engine traveling at the same speed as you. In front of you is a galloping horse, which is the same size as your car and you cannot overtake it. Behind you is a galloping zebra. Both the horse and zebra are also traveling at the same speed as you.

What must you do to safely get out of this highly dangerous situation?

[Lim till i die]

Maintain your speed??

Alternatively, knock down the horse :p

[endabob1]

Get off the merry-go-round your too old and too pi$$ed and there's a queue of kids wanting to use it :)

[Bluebeard]

Just take slow deep breaths and eventually the drugs will wear off.

[gilberto_eire]

signal with your hand for the zebra to overtake you because you are about to break...if he fails when then its his own fault if he rams up the back of you!!;)

[galwayhoop]

Get off the merry-go-round your too old and too pi$$ed and there's a queue of kids wanting to use it :)

;):cool:

[John83]

You are driving in a car at a constant speed. On your left side is a 'drop off', (The ground is 18-20 inches below the level you are traveling on), and on your right side is a fire engine traveling at the same speed as you. In front of you is a galloping horse, which is the same size as your car and you cannot overtake it. Behind you is a galloping zebra. Both the horse and zebra are also traveling at the same speed as you.

What must you do to safely get out of this highly dangerous situation?
Ram the horse.

Seriously, A Face, you're not allowed use mobile internet when operating a vehicle. Put the laptop down, and concentrate on the road.

(Can I assume endabob1 got the right answer?)

[pineapple stu]

Click on New Posts.

Bye!

[Risteard]

Endabobs answer is clever and surely what Aface was looking for. ?????

However, the fire engine would not be travelling at the same speed as it is either a. rotating slower on a smaller radius or
b. rotating quicker on a larger radius.

[sligoman]

I've heard this as a joke before and endabob's answer is correct.

[A face]

Get off the merry-go-round your too old and too pi$$ed and there's a queue of kids wanting to use it :)

The winner of the cheque book and pen is .... endabob1


However, the fire engine would not be travelling at the same speed as it is either a. rotating slower on a smaller radius or
b. rotating quicker on a larger radius.

Lets not get all technical now shall we :p

[Risteard]

Lets not get all technical now shall we :p
Technical, pedantic, correct, call it what you want.:p

[the 12 th man]

3 men went into a shop to buy a Printer, the manager was out and the assistant sold the men the printer for £30. Shortly afterwards the manager returned and asked where the printer was, "i sold it to 3 men for £30" said the assistant, but it's on special offer today, it's only £25 and gave the assistant £5 to return to the 3 men.
The assistant caught up with them but couldn't divide the £5 between them, so he gave each of the 3 men £1 and kept £2 for himself.
So each of the 3 men paid £10 and had £1 returned = 3 x 9= £27 and the assistant had £2 =£29 in total, where did the other £1 go!

[gilberto_eire]

3 men went into a shop to buy a Printer, the manager was out and the assistant sold the men the printer for £30. Shortly afterwards the manager returned and asked where the printer was, "i sold it to 3 men for £30" said the assistant, but it's on special offer today, it's only £25 and gave the assistant £5 to return to the 3 men.
The assistant caught up with them but couldn't divide the £5 between them, so he gave each of the 3 men £1 and kept £2 for himself.
So each of the 3 men paid £10 and had £1 returned = 3 x 9= £27 and the assistant had £2 =£29 in total, where did the other £1 go!

ya i remember a differant version of that.... it came to my head the last day but i couldnt remember how it went.... i dont get that...its weird!!

[John83]

Technical, pedantic, correct, call it what you want.:p
There was no mention of any curvature of the road, so you are making an unsupported assumption.

/pedant

[John83]

3 men went into a shop to buy a Printer, the manager was out and the assistant sold the men the printer for £30. Shortly afterwards the manager returned and asked where the printer was, "i sold it to 3 men for £30" said the assistant, but it's on special offer today, it's only £25 and gave the assistant £5 to return to the 3 men.
The assistant caught up with them but couldn't divide the £5 between them, so he gave each of the 3 men £1 and kept £2 for himself.
So each of the 3 men paid £10 and had £1 returned = 3 x 9= £27 and the assistant had £2 =£29 in total, where did the other £1 go!
You don't add the £2, you take it away to get £25, the price of the printer.

[holidaysong]

However, the fire engine would not be travelling at the same speed as it is either a. rotating slower on a smaller radius or
b. rotating quicker on a larger radius.

If the fire engine is opposite to the car on the merry go round then there is no reason to assume that it is on a smaller or larger radius. The OP didn't specify which direction the fire engine was travelling in so it is obviously possible that it is travelling at the same speed.

[Schumi]

If we're getting really pedantic, the horse and zebra couldn't be 'galloping' if it's a merry-go-round as their legs wouldn't be moving. :rolleyes:

[soccerc]

What colour is the car?

[Risteard]

There was no mention of any curvature of the road, so you are making an unsupported assumption.

/pedant
endabobs answer was deemed correct. Merry-go-ROUND.


If the fire engine is opposite to the car on the merry go round . . . . . . . . . . . . It isn't. Its on your right.


If we're getting really pedantic, the horse and zebra couldn't be 'galloping' if it's a merry-go-round as their legs wouldn't be moving. :rolleyes:
Touche.
I'm liking this.

[Schumi]

It isn't. Its on your right.It could be further to your right, on the other side of the central pole of the merry-go-round, so he's technically right.
Touche.
I'm liking this.Can I direct you here (http://foot.ie/forumdisplay.php?f=21). i think you'd feel at home. :D


Is this place usually this busy at 2 in the morning BTW?

[Bluebeard]

3 men went into a shop to buy a Printer, the manager was out and the assistant sold the men the printer for £30. Shortly afterwards the manager returned and asked where the printer was, "i sold it to 3 men for £30" said the assistant, but it's on special offer today, it's only £25 and gave the assistant £5 to return to the 3 men.
The assistant caught up with them but couldn't divide the £5 between them, so he gave each of the 3 men £1 and kept £2 for himself.
So each of the 3 men paid £10 and had £1 returned = 3 x 9= £27 and the assistant had £2 =£29 in total, where did the other £1 go!

Inflation.

[galwayhoop]

You are in a room with two doors. One door leads to eternal life and the other to certain death. There is a man standing outside each door. One man ALWAYS lies when asked a question and the other ALWAYS tells the truth. You do not know which man is which. You are allowed to ask ONLY one question in order to establish which door you will choose. What is that question???

[gustavo]

You are in a room with two doors. One door leads to eternal life and the other to certain death. There is a man standing outside each door. One man ALWAYS lies when asked a question and the other ALWAYS tells the truth. You do not know which man is which. You are allowed to ask ONLY one question in order to establish which door you will choose. What is that question???

What door would the other guy point at if i asked him which door leads to certain death ?

[galwayhoop]

What door would the other guy point at if i asked him which door leads to certain death ?

but you don't know if you are talking to the lying man or the truth teller

[gustavo]

yea but if it was the liar he would point to the eternal life door cos he's a liar and if it was the honest guy he would point to the eternal life door also cos he knows the liar will lie

[galwayhoop]

yea but if it was the liar he would point to the eternal life door cos he's a liar and if it was the honest guy he would point to the eternal life door also cos he knows the liar will lie

thats it alright you just didn't explain which door you would take after your question was answered. basically you ask which is the door to freedom and go to the opposite one to which they point.

i knew you had it with your first answer but i expected to get more than 3 bl00dy minutes out of it!!!

[the 12 th man]

A US TV Quiz game .

Three boxes, and YOU have a choice, one contains the keys to a Ferrari, and the other two boxes each something worthless. YOU choose one, BUT before opening YOUR box, the question-master opens one of the other boxes to show a worthless item, and offers you the chance to change your choice.

Do you change or do you stick with your original choice? (and does it matter)

[DmanDmythDledge]

A US TV Quiz game .

Three boxes, and YOU have a choice, one contains the keys to a Ferrari, and the other two boxes each something worthless. YOU choose one, BUT before opening YOUR box, the question-master opens one of the other boxes to show a worthless item, and offers you the chance to change your choice.

Do you change or do you stick with your original choice? (and does it matter)
Do you change because there was a 1 in 3 chance of being right the first time and a 1 in 2 chance to be right this time?

[gustavo]

Why would you change ?
Changing would only move you from one 50/50 chance to another

[Schumi]

You should change because it doubles your chance of winning. There's a 1 in 3 chance that the box you chose first has the prize. If the host has opened a losing box, there's then a 2 in 3 chance that the prize is in the other box.

[gustavo]

no its still 1 in 2 , because one of them does have the prize and the other doesnt

[Schumi]

no its still 1 in 2 , because one of them does have the prize and the other doesntSay at the start you pick box A. If the prize is in box A, the host shows you an empty box and you'd be better off sticking with box A.

If the prize is in box B, the host shows you the empty box C and you'd be better off changing to box B.

If the prize is in box C, the host shows you the empty box B and you'd be better off changing to box C.

Therefore, two thirds of the time, you will win by changing your box.

[sligoman]

Don't argue with a UCD man gus, you should know that by now;)

[pineapple stu]

You change.

Flies in the face of all logic, but it's correct.

[galwayhoop]

i ain't changing.... whats in the box ... did i win????

[pineapple stu]

No, you lost.

Told you to change!

[the 12 th man]

A US TV Quiz game .

Three boxes, and YOU have a choice, one contains the keys to a Ferrari, and the other two boxes each something worthless. YOU choose one, BUT before opening YOUR box, the question-master opens one of the other boxes to show a worthless item, and offers you the chance to change your choice.

Do you change or do you stick with your original choice? (and does it matter)



The reason why you should change.


http://math.ucsd.edu/~crypto/Monty/monty.html

[pineapple stu]

I switched. I won. :cool:

[the 12 th man]

I switched. I won. :cool:


Virtual Ferrari on its way:D

[galwayhoop]

Say at the start you pick box A. If the prize is in box A, the host shows you an empty box and you'd be better off sticking with box A. .
makes sence

If the prize is in box B, the host shows you the empty box C and you'd be better off changing to box B. .
still makes sence


If the prize is in box C, the host shows you the empty box B and you'd be better off changing to box C. .
what you on about willis. there are only 2 boxes remaining and therefore it can't be in box c (we are assuming that is the empty at the start).


Therefore, two thirds of the time, you will win by changing your box.
you will not because in your example you kept moving the bl0ody prize!

assume all along that the prize is in box A. The host eliminates box C (empty).
if you orininally chose Box A and you change then you lose.
if you originally chose box B and you change then you win.
so you are right half of the time.

you move from a 33.33% chance to a 50% chance automatically when the empty box is removed. half of the time you are right to move and half you are not. you gain no actual advantage from moving. you are mixing up you theoretical odds when there were 3 boxes with the actual odds of there being 2 boxes - one with and one without.


The reason why you should change.


http://math.ucsd.edu/~crypto/Monty/monty.html

i didn't and i won too!

[Schumi]

what you on about willis. there are only 2 boxes remaining and therefore it can't be in box c (we are assuming that is the empty at the start).You've misunderstood. The three scenarios listed cover all the outcomes after you've chosen box A. If the prize is in box B, the host opens box C and vice versa so if the prize is in either of these, the box you can change to holds the prize.
you move from a 33.33% chance to a 50% chance automatically when the empty box is removed.This is the fundamental misconception that people have in this riddle. This is not true. We're all agreed that you have a 33.33% chance of picking the right box at the start. The host then opens an empty box. There is guaranteed to be an empty box for him to open so showing you that doesn't change the probability that the prize is in your box. The opening of the box is not a random choice, he'll never show you the prize in a box.

I did the website 6 times, changed 3 times and won twice, didn't change 3 times and won once. :cool:

[galwayhoop]

This is the fundamental misconception that people have in this riddle. This is not true. We're all agreed that you have a 33.33% chance of picking the right box at the start. The host then opens an empty box. There is guaranteed to be an empty box for him to open so showing you that doesn't change the probability that the prize is in your box. The opening of the box is not a random choice, he'll never show you the prize in a box.

this was not stated in the riddle. we were going on the assumption that there was an equal chance. and by that token then your odds are the same if you switch or if you don't. however from that quiz show on the link i get your drift. going on the assumption that the 3 boxes are random (like say on deal or no deal) then there is no advantage to switching.

[Schumi]

going on the assumption that the 3 boxes are random (like say on deal or no deal) then there is no advantage to switching.Agreed, it would be a shorter gameshow then though!

[Aberdonian Stu]

Incidentally the problem Schumi explained is called The Monty Hall paradox in honour of the game show host who's show inspired it.

[John83]

you will not because in your example you kept moving the bl0ody prize!

assume all along that the prize is in box A. The host eliminates box C (empty).
if you orininally chose Box A and you change then you lose.
if you originally chose box B and you change then you win.
so you are right half of the time.

you move from a 33.33% chance to a 50% chance automatically when the empty box is removed. half of the time you are right to move and half you are not. you gain no actual advantage from moving. you are mixing up you theoretical odds when there were 3 boxes with the actual odds of there being 2 boxes - one with and one without.
Three possible places for the prize, three possible selections:

Prize is in:


you pick \ prize A B C
A Don't change Change Change
B Change Don't Change Change
C Change Change Don't change


6 times in 9, the right choice is to change.

[Bluebeard]

This is all rather like Blaise Pascals simple grid of why to believe in God - life isn't mathematical odds - either it is or isn't the box you picked. Odds may be in your favour, but in a one off situation, odds don't actually matter a damn when it comes down to it - it either is or it isn't.

[John83]

This is all rather like Blaise Pascals simple grid of why to believe in God - life isn't mathematical odds - either it is or isn't the box you picked. Odds may be in your favour, but in a one off situation, odds don't actually matter a damn when it comes down to it - it either is or it isn't.
I hope you don't gamble.

[Bluebeard]

I hope you don't gamble.

Compulsively.

I also no longer have the vast fortune I inheirited from my dear Grandfather.

Got the lend of €20? I swear I'll get it back to you after the 3.15 tomorrow.

[galwayhoop]

6 times in 9, the right choice is to change.

if the box opened first is done so because the host knows that it doesn't contain the prize then yes but if all choices are random then there is no difference.

hence if it is a random choice between the 3 boxes, where no-one including the 'host' knows what is inside then there is no advantage to changing, if however the 'host' knows all along where the prize is then you should change.