riddle me that

[iknowu99]

Guess an answer and follow up with a new riddle


Q: What goes around the world but stays in a corner?

 

[iknowu99]

A: a stamp


Q:
you are on a barbaric island: barbarians are either going to take you in or eat you! They give you 100 marbles: 50 white, 50 black. They give you two jars in which you must put all the marbles. Then they will randomly pick a jar and then one marble out of that jar – white ball and you are accepted. How to distribute the marbles to maximize chances of survival??

 

[Greg Truby]

1 white in jar #1 & the other 99 in jar #2?

 

[Joe4]

1 white in jar #1 & the other 99 in jar #2?

Of course!!! How clever. I don't know why that didn't occur to me.

If my calculations are correct, that gives you a 74.7% chance of survival.
=(.5 * 1) + (.5 * (49/99))

A lot better than 50/50...

 

[Smitty]

1 white in jar #1 & the other 99 in jar #2?

Of course!!! How clever. I don't know why that didn't occur to me.

If my calculations are correct, that gives you a 74.7% chance of survival.
=(.5 * 1) + (.5 * (49/99))

A lot better than 50/50...

What if all the black marbles are on the bottom?

Where do you find "barbarians" who make you answer math questions in order to live?

Smitty

 

[Joe4]

What if all the black marbles are on the bottom?

That doesn't necessarily help, unless you know for a fact that they will always pick from the top. If they always pick from the bottom, you're in big trouble...

(... but I'm guessing you really weren't serious!)

 

[Oaktree]

Or gnaw on the black marbles for a while until the black paint comes off. Then, distribute the all white marbles however you'd like

 

[Norie]

Or if you are a ninja use the marbles as deadly weapons, and make your escape.

PS I'm not a ninja so I don't actually know if you can use marbles as deadly weapons, but hey who knows - worth a shot don't you think.

 

[Greg Truby]

...What if all the black marbles are on the bottom?...
~Smitty

Actually, that thought crossed my mind too. If the jar was small enough that w/ 99 in it you can't shake/mix 'em too much and the opening of the jar was such that you can only just get your hand inside, then yes, I would definitely also put the black ones on the bottom of the jar too!

Where do you find "barbarians" who make you answer math questions in order to live?
~Smitty

Indeed -- an excellent question.

 

[iknowu99]

A: The ninja technique is correct. 100 marbles should be enough to establish order. Next get the barbarians to build a computer, then use the Excel that comes with barbarian windows(tm) and thanks to Excel's many functions prioritize a new world where only white marbles exist, black ones are thrown far into the sea

how about a simple "if then" puzzle

Q: A prisoner is told "If you tell a lie we will hang you; if you tell the truth we will shoot you." What can he say to save himself?