What Was the Mathematician's Solution for the Princes' Dilemma?

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    Boat Row
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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around a mathematical puzzle involving a king's dilemma in selecting an heir between two princes who must race across a lake. The focus is on the solution provided by a mathematician to resolve the princes' quandary, with participants speculating on the nature of this solution.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Debate/contested, Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant suggests that the princes might be rowing each other's boats, implying a potential solution to the dilemma.
  • Another participant humorously comments that being the first to answer correctly results in losing, indicating a playful approach to the puzzle.
  • A suggestion is made regarding the method of sharing solutions privately to avoid spoilers for others, highlighting a concern about fairness in the discussion.
  • One participant challenges the difficulty of the puzzle, implying that it could be made more complex for future discussions.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not appear to reach a consensus on the solution to the puzzle, with multiple interpretations and suggestions being presented. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the mathematician's actual advice.

Contextual Notes

There is an implicit assumption that the princes' motivations and the nature of the race are understood, but the exact mathematical reasoning behind the proposed solutions is not detailed. The discussion also reflects varying levels of engagement with the puzzle's complexity.

Gokul43201
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A King wants to pick his heir from among his 2 sons. They are to row their boats across the royal lake to the boathouse on the other side. The prince whose boat enters the boathouse first loses. Obviously, this puts the princes into a quandary, for they would gain by delaying for as long as practically possible. To resolve this dilemma, they seek the counsel of the court mathematician...who gives them sound advise.

Minutes later, the princes are seen rowing furiously across the lake. What solution did the number cruncher provide ?
 
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They're rowing each others boats?
 
Ha ha...too easy eh ?

Being the first person with the correct answer... YOU LOSE ! :smile:
 
On such puzzles, wouldn't it make sense to PM solutions to the thread starter ? That way, others would get a crack at it too...and your relative time zone isn't a spoiler.

But there's that finite size of the mailbox...
 
next time try giving something harder