John shows up to his nephew’s sports game without much information. He was given
ID: 3145652 • Letter: J
Question
John shows up to his nephew’s sports game without much information. He was given a list of possible team and field combinations for the game without knowing the name of the team his nephew plays for or the field that the team is playing on. The list John was given is below:
o Golden Eagles on Field 2
o Golden Eagles on Field 3
o Golden Eagles on Field 6
o Gophers on Field 4
o Gophers on Field 5
o Colonials on Field 1
o Colonials on Field 3
o Minutemen on Field 1
o Minutemen on Field 2
o Minutemen on Field 4
John approaches two fans at the complex and inquires for help. He shares the list that he was given. Fan A only knows the team that the nephew plays for. Fan B only knows the field that he is playing on.
Fan A says: I don’t know the team/field combination that you need, but I know that Fan B doesn’t know either.
Fan B replies: I didn’t know the combination, but now after listening to Fan A, I do.
Fan A: Now I know, too!
What is the name of the nephew's team, and what field are they playing on? Explain how you arrived at your answer.
Explanation / Answer
Answer: Minutemen on Field 4
Fan A: Knows the Team
Fan B: Knows the Field
Fan A says that he knows that Fan B doesn't know the combination which means that it can't be Field 5 or 6 because these are unique fields and knowing them would also lead to knwoing the team as well.
Now, if it would have been Gophers on Field 4, Fan A would have known the combination because he knows the team and in case of Gophers he wouldn't have been sure between Field 4 or Field 5 but since Fan B couldn't say the unique combination of Field 5 and Gophers therefore it is understood that the team isn't Gophers.
Hearing Fan A's first statement Fan B was able to decipher the combination. Knowing that the Field is 4, he didn't know whether the team was Gophers or Minutemen but as soon as Fan A said that he didn't kow the combination he came to know that it wasn't Gophers therefore it was Minutemen. And because Fan B was able to analyze the combination through Fan A's statement, Fan A also knew that the only possible answer was Minutemen on Field 4
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