Brain Teasers
Paper Plate Challenge
Your father has given you a challenge: you and he will take turns placing paper plates on your own half of a table. Whoever is the last one able to place a plate is the winner. Assuming your father goes first, how can you guarantee you will win? You better be able to do it; it's double or nothing on your allowance!
Hint
Going second is a key part to this plan.Answer
Mirror all of your father's moves. As long he can place a plate, you can place a plate.Hide Hint Show Hint Hide Answer Show Answer
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ausgetzeichnet!
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I think you have this backwards. What if your father places his first plate such that the center of the table is somewhere under the plate? You can't mirror this move.
The winning strategy is for the first player: place the first plate in the exact center of the table. From then on, each play echos the second player's previous play, but rotated through 180 degrees.
The winning strategy is for the first player: place the first plate in the exact center of the table. From then on, each play echos the second player's previous play, but rotated through 180 degrees.
The teaser states "on your own half of the table"
GOOD ONE
GOOD ONE
Great teaser. I'll have to challenge my son to this one!
norcekriA, you've misunderstood. The question included that you had to place a plate on YOUR OWN HALF. The middle would be a boundary instead of a suitable placing spot. Without that rule, your method would have worked.
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