You're only allowed one question!

[achris]

You're trapped in a room with 2 doors and no windows, manholes or secret passages (I know what you lot are like!!!). One door leads to freedom, the other to a hideously painful death. Each door has a guard. Neither guard can be bribed or otherwise coerced into giving any extra information or allowing you to 'peek'. You are told that one guard always lies, the other always tells the truth. You don't know which is the liar and which is truthful. You are allow to ask one question, to a guard of your choice. What is your question? Remember that once you have the answer you must pass through one of the doors.... do you live or die?

Chris...........

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

What color is a black and white cow?

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Point to a door and ask either guard, "If I ask the other guard, will he say this is the correct or incorrect door?"

If he says "incorrect door" take the door, and if he says "correct door" take the other door.

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

What color is a black and white cow?

Brown on the outside and red on the inside... I like my cow medium rare.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Pick a guard. Ask him if he will scream in agony if you kick him swiftly in the .... um ... not shins. Kick him in the .... um .... not shins. If his reaction is as he said it would be, ask him which door to use. If it is not, ask the other guard which door to use.

Before you leave, be a nice fellow and give guard number 1 an ice pack to put on his .... um ..... not shins!

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Pick a guard. Ask him if he will scream in agony if you kick him swiftly in the .... um ... not shins. Kick him in the .... um .... not shins. If his reaction is as he said it would be, ask him which door to use. If it is not, ask the other guard which door to use.

Before you leave, be a nice fellow and give guard number 1 an ice pack to put on his .... um ..... not shins!

That would be two questions. Don't ask before you kick. The lieing guard won't scream anyway, he'll smile as though it were pleasant.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

LOL ... I know .. I cheated. There's no way I'm jumpin out the door into certain death.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

OK, ok ..... ask either guard which door to use ... it doesn't matter which one. Open the door that you are told to open but push the guard that you asked out first to see what happens. You'll then know which door to use!

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Kill both the guards and exit through the door that I think leads to certain death. Because Marines don't fear death, death fears the Marines!

 

[achris]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

All very entertaining answers with SgtMaj being the closest, but still with a 50% chance of suffering a 'hideously painful death'.

I like my cow still moo-ing... thanks SBN....

Chris............

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Actually, my first answer would guarantee safety...

Because as long as you're asking what the other would say, if it's the wrong door you are pointing to, and you ask the truth telling guard, he will know the other guard will say it's the right door, and will tell the truth and say it's the right door, meanwhile you take the other door because you do the opposite of whatever he tells you so you end up taking the right door. If you're pointing at the wrong door and you ask the lieing guard, he knows the other guard will tell you it's the wrong door, so he'll still tell you it's the right door, meanwhile you take the other door as previously mentioned.

If you're pointing to the right door and you ask the truth telling guard, he will tell you that the other guard will say it's the wrong door since the other guard is the lieing guard, since you're doing the opposite of what they tell you, you take that door. If you're pointing at the right door and you ask the lieing guard, he knows the truth telling guard will tell you it's the right door, and therefore will lie and say the other guard would tell you it's the wrong door, and so you would take that door as previously mentioned.

100% chance of taking the right door... so you see, I was right the first time in asking one guard what the other guard would say about a door I was pointing to.

 

[achris]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Quite right sir... My apologies... I have never heard it answered quite that way before...

The way I saw it done (on a TV show back in the late 60's) was that you didn't need to point at a door, just ask either guard which door the other guard would tell you to take, then take the other door to freedom....

Chris.............

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Quite right sir... My apologies... I have never heard it answered quite that way before...

The way I saw it done (on a TV show back in the late 60's) was that you didn't need to point at a door, just ask either guard which door the other guard would tell you to take, then take the other door to freedom....

Chris.............

Ah, yeah you could do that, although, would the truth telling guard necessarily tell you to take the door to freedom? Maybe he doesn't like you after you kicked him in the... um... shins.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Yea, how do you know he is the truth telling guard, maybe he is the liar.

 

[BoatBuoy]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

If you ask either guard "What will the other guard tell me is the safe door?", the return answer will always be a lie.

 

[Nandy]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

What about if the guards dont know and you ask the liar guard?

 

[Bass Man Bruce]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Ask the Guard "would you let your wife go through this door?", if he says yes, TAKE THE OTHER DOOR!
(I know the logic is a little flawed but you get the point!)

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Just ask them where the beer is both gards will run out the same door. Just follow them and have a cool one.

 

[orion25]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

Just ask either guard to go through his door. Not would you go through this door but GO through this door. If he dies take the other one.

 

[muskyone]

Re: You're only allowed one question!

i'm just waiting sooner or later one will have to pee then i'm fallowing him out