Einstein's Riddle

[David Murphy]

This reminds me of a test my class was given WAY back in grade 6.  It was
two sheets of paper long, and at the very top, it was clearly stated that
the student should 'Read the entire test carefully before beginning'.

The point was, at the bottom of the second page, the student was told
something to the effect of: 'After reading through the test, place your
pencil on you desk and wait for further instructions'.

Well, 90%+ of the class immediately went to work on this test.  There were a
couple of questions where students had to get up and do things, and it was
rather amusing to watch them run around.  About 30 minutes later, they
started to get to the end, and they realized that they had been running
around and scribbling down answers for nothing.  It was a rather profound
lesson, at least for me.

*IF* Einstein was just talking about people's ability to deal with just the
facts, and not to make assumptions, I think 2% +/- 5% is probably a good
estimate.   Take a look at the first draft of the next project specification
you get *grin*

dave

"Gregory Jorgensen" <gregj at pobox.com> wrote in message
news:uP%q6.2375$54.2207 at www.newsranger.com...
> Assuming the unknown pet is the fish, solving the puzzle doesn't take any
great
> skill with logic or math; certainly more than 2% of the population can
figure it
> out. I think the riddle demonstrates the fallacy of unwarranted
assumptions.
> It's a trick question; you work out the solution only to be told "I never
said
> anyone had fish." The more literal-minded the reader, the more likely they
will
> be taken in.
>
>
> In article <984380185.768920 at news.aei.ca>, sulfugor says...
> >But the fish is mentionned in the question before the clues are given. We
> >are able to find who owns each of the 4 pets mentionned in the hint list.
is
> >it so unreasonable to assume then that the last pet is a fish, since we
were
> >asked about it ? The question IMplied that one of the 5 people owned a
fish.
> >
> >sulfugor
> >
> >ps = by the way, how long is this supposed to take ( solving the riddle)
?
>
> Greg Jorgensen
> Deschooling Society
> Portland, Oregon, USA
> gregj at pobox.com