20 Questions: An Intelligence-Testing Game of Yes/No Questions

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the game "20 Questions," where players ask Yes/No questions to identify a hidden object. Participants explore the mechanics of the game, share experiences, and engage in a live game session, while also discussing strategies and challenges encountered during play.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses difficulty in formulating effective questions during the game.
  • Another participant mentions a variation of the game with only three questions, questioning its feasibility.
  • Several participants engage in a live game, asking questions to narrow down the identity of the object.
  • There is a discussion about the importance of narrowing the field rather than making random guesses.
  • Participants propose various questions to clarify the object's characteristics, such as whether it is man-made, its size, and its use in transportation.
  • Some participants express predictions about the object based on the questions asked, suggesting possibilities like a car or bicycle.
  • There are discussions about the relevance of previous questions and whether they should be counted in the total.
  • One participant introduces an AI that plays 20 Questions, sharing their experience with its performance.
  • Confusion arises over certain questions, indicating varying levels of understanding among participants.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the mechanics of the game and the need for strategic questioning, but there are differing opinions on the effectiveness of various approaches and the feasibility of identifying the object with limited questions. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the identity of the object being guessed.

Contextual Notes

Some participants express uncertainty about the appropriateness of certain questions and their relevance to the game, indicating a lack of consensus on how to effectively narrow down the possibilities.

  • #61
Traz 0 said:
I have several guesses here, except all weigh less than 10 kg and/or are not uncommon, i.e. bicycle, unicycle, 3 wheeled baby carriage, pogo-stick, stilts, rickshaw ... uh, a wheelbarrow at a dive bar used to carry out drunks? Is a jet pack used for land transport?

I thought of an elephant but I don't think government would let us make one if even we could...
 
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  • #62
Enigman said:
I thought of an elephant but I don't think government would let us make one if even we could...

Well, maybe the Republicans would.
 
  • #63
Okay we have spent 14 questions ...I think...so unless anyone has any better questions--- is it pulled by an animal? i.e. except humans.
 
  • #64
Enigman said:
Okay we have spent 14 questions ...I think...so unless anyone has any better questions--- is it pulled by an animal? i.e. except humans.

Ah, I dunno. I can't think of any items that would exist in the overlapping section of our Venn ...

I was going to ask if it has any wheels. Just because, maybe we're going down a blind alley.
 
  • #65
Traz 0 said:
Ah, I dunno. I can't think of any items that would exist in the overlapping section of our Venn ...

I was going to ask if it has any wheels. Just because, maybe we're going down a blind alley.

The wheels question has been asked and answered. It has fewer than four wheels. Hand pulled rickshaws was mentioned but never asked as a question.
 
  • #66
edward said:
The wheels question has been asked and answered. It has fewer than four wheels. Hand pulled rickshaws was mentioned but never asked as a question.

Zero wheels are fewer than four wheels, too, which why I would ask that question.
 
  • #67
lisab said:
Does it have wheels?

I_am_learning said:
Yes.

Traz 0 said:
Zero wheels are fewer than four wheels, too, which why I would ask that question.

:sly::sly::sly::sly:
 
  • #68
Uh, yes. I didn't actually re-read all of the posts, so, oops. :o
 
  • #69
Enigman said:
Okay we have spent 14 questions ...I think...so unless anyone has any better questions--- is it pulled by an animal? i.e. except humans.

Yes.
 
  • #70
Five questions left! So... any guesses? The vehicle is a two wheeled thingy [as it has less than four wheels; three and one seem a bit implausible..] pulled or pushed by an animal...used almost exclusively by humans and not goods...am going to google this one.:D
[Edit:google didn't help :mad:]
 
Last edited:
  • #71
I get the impression we're heading towards a trap.
 
  • #72
Hmmm. Chariots were used for war, sulkies for racing ... Neither is really a transportation device, though I suppose that might be an over-strict interpretation ...

What else?
 
  • #73
Horse carraiges
 
  • #74
Horse drawn plow?

TomBean-Pix-0505.jpg


The guy can still get from one point to another you know. :biggrin:
 
  • #75
Enigman said:
Horse carraiges

Perhaps, though all the ones I've ever seen have four wheels, and they're quite common in the French Quarter. Also NYC.
 
  • #76
Gad said:
Horse drawn plow?

TomBean-Pix-0505.jpg

That's not really about transportation, though nicely outside-the-box lol!
 
  • #77
Traz 0 said:
That's not really about transportation, though nicely outside-the-box lol!

Getting from point A to B *is* transportation. Nevermind if you mess up the dirt along the way :biggrin:.
 
  • #78
lisab said:
Getting from point A to B *is* transportation. Nevermind if you mess up the dirt along the way :biggrin:.

Point taken. But, agriculture is an industry, right? (HA!)
 
  • #79
Traz 0 said:
Point taken. But, agriculture is an industry, right? (HA!)

Is it drawn by a horse? Unless anyone has a better idea...
 
  • #80
Traz 0 said:
Point taken. But, agriculture is an industry, right? (HA!)

:biggrin: Point taken here as well.

I like the chariot idea.
 
  • #81
Enigman said:
Is it drawn by a horse? Unless anyone has a better idea...

That would eliminate the ox-cart lol. And maybe the sulky, since, and who knew, they are sometimes pulled by dogs (is there anything that dogs can't do? I mean, aside from advanced math?)

BTW, in regard to agriculture being an industry, no one said "not when you do it with a horse!" I'm ashamed of all of you. :(
 
  • #82
lisab said:
:biggrin: Point taken here as well.

I like the chariot idea.

But, and this is an absurd objection, chariots were used for both racing (gambling) and warfare, two of the top three industries in ancient times. If someone used a chariot to transport prostitutes back then, it would be a trifecta.

I'm pretty sure I might definitely be over thinking this ...

I agree, Lisa. :thumbup:
 
  • #83
lisab said:
:biggrin: Point taken here as well.

I like the chariot idea.

Yes, that's it.
When you people talked about chariots few posts back, and rejected the possibility, I quite feared if I messed things up. Sorry if I did.
chariot-race-04.jpg
 
  • #84
I_am_learning said:
Yes, that's it.
When you people talked about chariots few posts back, and rejected the possibility, I quite feared if I messed things up. Sorry if I did.

No, I think you played it very fairly. 16 questions FTW!

Uh, do we start again? And, no "velvet lice" (looking at you, MisterX :mad: )
 
  • #85
Ah, I thought it might be a trap, as in "pony and trap". Not far out.
 
  • #86
So, and I know this from reading the 20 questions wiki, the winner gets to be the next answerer. Is that you, Lisa?
 
  • #87
I_am_learning said:
Yes, that's it.
When you people talked about chariots few posts back, and rejected the possibility, I quite feared if I messed things up. Sorry if I did.
chariot-race-04.jpg

That's too tame.
Now THIS IS A CHARIOT!
ali167590.jpg


Da Vinci does it best!
 
  • #88
Start the game milady!

[Lisa...hmmm...etymology from Elizabeth: my deity is an oath. Famous namesake: Mona Lisa-literally milady Lisa-conspiracy theory anagram of Amon L'Isa signifying male and female balance.]
 
  • #89
Enigman said:
[Lisa...hmmm...etymology from Elizabeth: my deity is an oath. Famous namesake: Mona Lisa-literally milady Lisa-conspiracy theory anagram of Amon L'Isa signifying male and female balance.]

That's just crazy talk!
 
  • #90
Traz...hmmm...musical instrument...star wars...return of jedi

Traz.jpg


Alternative derivations: from Alcatraz...from TRAZ- Transformable Arcade Zone...P.C. platform...late 80s
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/09/TRAZ_gameplay.png

Unlikely definition from urban dictionary: A douchebag who has little or no integrity and mainly like to hang with the opposite sex at a much younger age (mostly because they are naive). Best places to fine somebody like this would be Oklahoma or Southeast Alaska.
 

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