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Author
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Topic: answer the riddle and win a prize
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nuentoter
Hey look at me I got arrested for selling warez......... SIKE!! I'm a sneaky fuck
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posted 04-03-2001 22:34
   
first of all here's how it goes.... if you are the first person to get the correct answer to this riddle, i will then have you email me your address and i will mail you a cool secret prize (not something stupid either, an actual prize, you will choose between prize A B and C) i will have 2 more of these to put up and send prizes for.
well here it goes:
On a small island in the middle of the ocean, there lives a tribe of people. The number of people does not matter - let's say fifty. Each person in the tribe has either blue eyes or green eyes. However, there are no mirrors on this island and the ocean is too murky so the tribesmen have NO way of knowing what color their eyes are. Furthermore, the capricious god the islanders worship has forbidden them to reveal to each other what color eyes they have. The islanders are devout and thus far have obeyed their god's command, so none of them know what color eyes they have.
One day their god tells them that all blue eyed people must kill themselves and if they do, all the islanders will go to heaven. However, if a blue-eyed person doesn't commit suicide, or if any green eyed person commits suicide or is harmed in any way, or if, during the process, any islanders communicate in any way, all the islanders will go to hell. The islanders believe their god, and after a time, they succeed in carrying out his command. Keeping in mind that the exact number of islanders is irrelevant, how do they do it? Hints: 1) No, this is not a trick question. 2) The answer does not rely on a play on words 3) The answer has nothing to do with genetics or reproduction 4) No, they can't just gouge out their eyes and look (green-eyes can't come to harm) 5) No, there is not just one blue-eyed islander (that would be a trick question)
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Jimbo
1 dr3w j00 4 p1ggy!
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posted 04-04-2001 00:39
1. Two islanders get sharp pointy sticks.
2. They each hold their sticks in front of them, pointy end out, and gaze soulfully into each others' eyes.
3. They each attempt to ram themselves onto each other's sticks. The one holding the stick, however, jerks the stick out of the way if the other islander is green-eyed. If the other islander is blue-eyed, the islander holding the stick lets 'em spit themselves.
4. If neither of these two islanders survives the process, two more random islanders pick up the sticks and do the same. Repeat until at least one islander is saved by his "seppuku buddy."
5. This islander is now aware of his green eye color. The process can be speeded up considerably now, as he just holds the stick while the rest line up in a single file line and attempt to spear themselves on his stick. He prevents the green-eyed ones, and lets the blue-eyed ones die.Resharpening of the stick will, at some point, most likely be necessary. Also, Senor Green Eyes is probably going to need counseling when this is all over with...
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Bitchgoddess
battin' .500
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posted 04-04-2001 01:29
Are we aware of the ratio of blue eyed to green eyed islanders?IP: Logged |
fenomas
argument nazi
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posted 04-04-2001 02:23
I spose that "no communication" includes non-verbal communication? Does one islander preventing another from comitting suicide count as communication? Can they communicate about other things? Could they walk around, and whenever they see a green-eyed fellow, say something like, "Weather's bad, huh? Hardly worth living, doncha think?"-fen IP: Logged |
Jimbo
1 dr3w j00 4 p1ggy!
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posted 04-04-2001 02:30
Dude, don't fuck it up for my solution. You have to appreciate the concept of getting a "seppuku buddy."  IP: Logged |
Slug
Uber PenIs
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posted 04-04-2001 02:38
It says the islanders are devout and thus far have obeyed their god's command about not revealing what color eyes they have...so they just ignore the earlier edict of their god in light of his new desire and look at what color eyes each other have. Or would that solution make it a trick question ?IP: Logged |
fenomas
argument nazi
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posted 04-04-2001 03:31
That sounds mighty trick question-ish.. We haven't precluded a foreigner washing up on shore and telling everyone what color eyes they have, but I'm ruling that out too....fen IP: Logged |
nuentoter
Hey look at me I got arrested for selling warez......... SIKE!! I'm a sneaky fuck
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posted 04-04-2001 08:17
no its not a "trick question" so none of those things like they disobey their god and just look at each other.it has nothing to do with a buddy or sharp sticks. and no communication means no body language or anything.
sorry fen although that is a hilarious solution. IP: Logged |
nuentoter
Hey look at me I got arrested for selling warez......... SIKE!! I'm a sneaky fuck
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posted 04-04-2001 08:18
oh yeah and the ratio of green to blue is irrelevant.
keep trying
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Bex
Delicate Flower
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posted 04-04-2001 09:50
Since nothing can live by drinking salt water, they must have a source of freshwater somewhere on the island. They each fill a coconut shell with clean water, look at their reflection and decide if they need to die or not.Or, alternate theory #2. Some members decide they must have blue eyes. So they commit suicide. Some of the survivors believe they have green eyes so they don't. No one knows for sure and it just depends on whether they feel like suicide is a good idea or not. Since god doesn't exist and the living members have no idea if they're going to heaven or hell until it's too late, it's really just a complicated way to thin out the population. I just have to say, since I have green eyes, I like the way this question is worded. -Bex IP: Logged |
StickyLoad
Great Gobs of Cream
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posted 04-04-2001 14:23
The islanders make a huge fire. I mean so big and so hot. They begin to melt the sand into a large sheet of glass. Now they can look into the glass and determine their own eye color. If their eye color is blue, the person must proceed and committ suicide. If the eye color is green, they can live and eventually get to heaven.IP: Logged |
Demon-of-Elru
TFC Bitch
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posted 04-04-2001 14:50
Green eyes own. I have hazel eyes, they change color sometimes, and my iris' have 2 parts to them. ( Like an O inside an O ).
I've always wanted green eyes, but grey eyes I would love to have even more. IP: Logged |
nuentoter
Hey look at me I got arrested for selling warez......... SIKE!! I'm a sneaky fuck
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posted 04-04-2001 16:48
BEX:"Since nothing can live by drinking salt water, they must have a source of freshwater somewhere on the island. They each fill a coconut shell with clean water, look at their reflection and decide if they need to die or not." ding ding ding we have a winner!!!!!!! so Bex email me at loco@nci2.net with your mailing address and i will send out your gift by sunday (whenever i get off my ass and get stamps) very very resourcefull gal IP: Logged |
fenomas
argument nazi
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posted 04-04-2001 20:07
quote:
Originally posted by nuentoter:
However, there are no mirrors on this island and the ocean is too murky so the tribesmen have NO way of knowing what color their eyes are.
In future retellings of this, you may want to remove the hint about "this is not a trick question". The way you said this, it strongly implied that there were no reflective surface on the island ( I had condidered, and rejected, saying they wait for rain). Indeed, if they have clear water they can see their reflections in, it's pretty hard
to believe that they wouldn't already know their own eye color, or that their god would bother to forbid them from revealing what was obvious to anyone. I'm just bitter because I gave this a lot of thought, and was looking forward to an ingenious solution... fen IP: Logged |
nuentoter
Hey look at me I got arrested for selling warez......... SIKE!! I'm a sneaky fuck
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posted 04-04-2001 21:18
sorry fen
but thing is i didnt make up the riddle hehe i just copied it exactly how it was.
i didnt even make up the last 4 "hint" things
oh well
hey 2 more chances anyways
and the next one will be a game of "what game is this screenshot from?"
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Jimbo
1 dr3w j00 4 p1ggy!
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posted 04-06-2001 10:45
I agree with fen - I discarded ideas of collecting rainwater, distilling seawater, etc for the same reasons.While it is true that humans cannot survive by drinking seawater, it is EQUALLY true that gods don't descend personally and instruct people not to tell each other what color their fucking eyes are.  Here's another alternate answer that ABSOLUTELY does not require communication of eye color, even by "noticing that guy moved his sharp stick out of the way": There's gotta be SOMETHING poisonous on the island. Each islander - OUT OF SIGHT OF THE OTHERS - takes two food items. Could be fruits, chunks of meat, whatever. They poison one, and only one, leaving the other untainted. Every islander now goes up to another islander - ANY islander - and waits for food. The islander who gives him the food gives him either the poisoned food or the good food depending on the color of the guy's eyes. The islander GETTING the food has no way of knowing what he got until he keels over, since he didn't see the food being prepared. So there. Incidentally, this god is a real asshole... those guys (well, the survivors) are all gonna have ulcers from the stress associated with this. IP: Logged |
nuentoter
Hey look at me I got arrested for selling warez......... SIKE!! I'm a sneaky fuck
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posted 04-06-2001 12:30
"Furthermore, the capricious god the islanders worship has forbidden them to reveal to each other what color eyes they have"they guy dealin out the fruit or stabbin the others wouldnt work cuz he would have to look at their eyes, which is forbidden for the other person to reveal to him.
also his eyes could be blue and he would have to find out so would have to have someone else look at his, also it would be homicide not suicide the way you guys are thinkin. bex's answer is very common sense not tricky.
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Jimbo
1 dr3w j00 4 p1ggy!
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posted 04-06-2001 19:46
Ah, that's true - the poisoned fruit would be homicide. The falling on the sharp stick wouldn't be, though...And I think that "forbidden to reveal to each other what color eyes they have" doesn't mean they can't see OTHER people's eyes, it just means you can't say "Hey Oomfufu, you got eyes much purty green. Want fuck?" IP: Logged |
Bex
Delicate Flower
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posted 04-07-2001 01:48
I think everyone is forgetting too, if these guys are primitive and on an island without mirrors, eye color probably never made an impression on them. Until they learned that they would live or die based on eye color, who would think to look? And everyone quit yer bitching about my answer. You've pretty well sucked all the fun out of winning a prize for it. I thought like the biologist that I am, spit out an answer and it was right. So thppt.  -Bex IP: Logged |
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