A so-called "impossible" riddle.

[En_Fuego]

Okay, so I was talking to my friend the other day and she said he had some "impossible riddle". It was the old Japanese Paradox about the 2 paths and the possible mis-leading direction givers. I suddenly remembered that I knew the answer because of an old Yugioh episode and she almost freaked out when I told her the answer.

So, do you think you can answer it?

After your death, lets say you are sent to some remote island. There is a path with a fork in the road. One of the forks leads to heaven and the other leads to hell. While you approach, 2 regular looking men, roughly the same age, height, weight, and hair styles await for you. The only difference is that one is of Asian ethnicity and the other is of white. When you approach, they both say that they are representatives from each faction (heaven, hell). They then go onto say that it's a moral test of fiber (wtf?) to see if you can get into heaven. You have to pick a path and if that leads to heaven you go to heaven, otherwise you go to hell. The rules are that you can ask both of them 1 question. The representative of heaven can not lie, while the representative of hell can lie.

How do you judge which path to take?

Actually, now that I think about there are 2 answers. The answer from Yugioh and the answer from the old Japanese Paradox. The answer is also a lot simpler than you could imagine.

 

[Japut3h]

You ask them: What would the other guy say?

Then you take the opposite road.

 

[Pizza1295]

you must ask, "if you were the other person, which one would you say is the right door?" They will tell u the answer then you must go through the OPPISITE door. the truth telling one would have to say the wrong one, because the lier would lie about the door. The lier would also say the wrong one, because he must lie about what the truth teller would have said

 

[Steel_Stallion]

I'd ask "wear to find narutu spelpax" and both of them would go like "Oh FFS" and point to hell. So I'd go the opposite way

 

[Captain Griffen]

Can the guy from hell lie, or MUST he lie? The second is trivial, the first is not.

 

[En_Fuego]

He must lie.

It's not as cool when you guys answer it now; most of you probably copied that first guy lol.

 

[Ghost765]

is this the one episode where theyre like fighting those lame twins underground?

 

[Captain Griffen]

If he must lie then it's incredibly simple and a well known puzzle. If he doesn't have to, then it is unsolveable I think (not sure).

 

[Gausslander]

What color is your skin?
What color is his skin?

 

[LordDz]

I'd follow the Asian.
Whites are made out of hell.

 

[En_Fuego]

Yeah, that's the answer I came up with.

"The Asian leads to Heaven, the white man leads to hell" cuz it's Japanese and stuff.

 

[jiffy_peanutbutter]

I would tell them my name, and then ask them what my name is to determine the liar.

My name is anderf.

Guy #1, what is my name: anderf/another guy

If he says anderf, that I ask the liar which way to go and go the opposite. If he says something else, then I ask the other guy and go his way.

 

[Steel_Stallion]

Nice job anderf. That's 4 questions and 1 informative comment.

The rules are that you can ask both of them 1 question.

 

[StasMaN]

I would tell them my name, and then ask them what my name is to determine the liar.

My name is anderf.

Guy #1, what is my name: anderf/another guy

If he says anderf, that I ask the liar which way to go and go the opposite. If he says something else, then I ask the other guy and go his way.

most awesome answer ever

 

[jiffy_peanutbutter]

Nice job anderf. That's 4 questions and 1 informative comment.

It's one question each silly. Lemme give a better example.

1. Hi, I'm anderf.

2. Guy #1, what is my name?

3. Your name is anderf.

4. Guy #2, what is the right way to go?

5. The left way.

I continue on the right way to heaven, and I live happily ever after.

 

[Restor]

no no, wrong, You can ask ONLY one question, not one ques for each of them

 

[jiffy_peanutbutter]

The rules are that you can ask both of them 1 question.

Sigh.

 

[StasMaN]

It's one question each silly. Lemme give a better example.

1. Hi, I'm anderf.

2. Guy #1, what is my name?

3. Your name is anderf.

4. Guy #2, what is the right way to go?

5. The left way.

I continue on the right way to heaven, and I live happily ever after.

but you don't know , which one tells the truth and which one lies, so this way Guy #2 could be the "non lieing" one , and you would go straight to hell muhahaha

 

[jiffy_peanutbutter]

Guy #1 is telling the truth, because he said what my name actually is.

 

[Elenai]

Ask one of them...if 1+1=2

And then ask the other...which road is the road to heaven.

Then proceed to my destination depending on his answer.

---

If one of them cannot lie, and the other 'can' lie, then I'll have to ask them both what 1+1 equals 2...whom ever lies, I will not take his road.

 

[Restor]

you nerds, that "hard riddle" is about asking ONE ques, not one for all of them

 

[Elenai]

The rules are that you can ask both of them 1 question.

I can ask both of them a question...a question for each.

If it is only one question...I'd just ask 'is it fair to determine the afterlife on a game of chance?'

 

[Teh_Ephy]

"Which way do you go back home?"
The person from heaven points to heaven because he is telling the truth.
The person from hell points to heaven because he is lying.
One question directed at both of them.

 

[AirHead]

I know this one

~SPOILERS~

you ask 'where are you from?' so the one from hell must lie and point to heaven and the one from heaven must tell the truth and point to heaven so you know where heaven is (even if you don't know who is lying)

the real impossible riddle is: given a time machine could you go back in time and kill your father? if you succeed you will not be born but if you are not born than you don't go back in time to kill your father, but if your father is not killed than you can go back in time and the loop continues.

 

[Japut3h]

given a time machine could you go back in time and kill your father? if you succeed you will not be born but if you are not born than you don't go back in time to kill your father, but if your father is not killed than you can go back in time and the loop continues.

The universe would collapse into itself.

 

[kewlthis]

I know this one

~SPOILERS~

you ask 'where are you from?' so the one from hell must lie and point to heaven and the one from heaven must tell the truth and point to heaven so you know where heaven is (even if you don't know who is lying)

the real impossible riddle is: given a time machine could you go back in time and kill your father? if you succeed you will not be born but if you are not born than you don't go back in time to kill your father, but if your father is not killed than you can go back in time and the loop continues.

hahaha airhead would be going to hell with that logic. There hasnt been mentioned that they would point the place. They just answer the question.

best way is to ask simple question.
Is sun bigger than earth?
Is there salt in death sea(or whatever is it called)
and you could even ask Does heaven exist (if you feeling lucky)

 

[Teh_Ephy]

hahaha airhead would be going to hell with that logic. There hasnt been mentioned that they would point the place. They just answer the question.

best way is to ask simple question.
Is sun bigger than earth?
Is there salt in death sea(or whatever is it called)
and you could even ask Does heaven exist (if you feeling lucky)

It's implied that pointing is the easiest way to answer the question, not to mention that pointing you in the proper direction without physically pointing their fingers (ie, just answering the question) has the same end result.

 

[Japut3h]

Plus you can only ask one question.

Hell, a lab rat could determine the way with an infinite number of questions.

 

[AirHead]

A lab rat couldn't ask questions they don't talk.

thank you Teh_Ephy for pointing out to Kewlthis what I was saying as I didn't account for the fact that not every member of The Hive Workshop is as smart as you.

 

[Captain Griffen]

the real impossible riddle is: given a time machine could you go back in time and kill your father? if you succeed you will not be born but if you are not born than you don't go back in time to kill your father, but if your father is not killed than you can go back in time and the loop continues.

Your understanding of causality is borked.

 

[DarkAngelAzazel]

The representative of hell CAN lie or MUST lie?

If he MUST ask:

Tell me your way.

 

[kewlthis]

A lab rat couldn't ask questions they don't talk.

thank you Teh_Ephy for pointing out to Kewlthis what I was saying as I didn't account for the fact that not every member of The Hive Workshop is as smart as you.

LOL. your answer has no logic then. If both answer heaven, how the hell you know where the heaven is.

If both would point point the finger to heaven then you would know where heaven is.

If both answer heaven, you cannot know where heaven is.

A lab rat couldn't ask questions they don't talk.

thank you Teh_Ephy for pointing out to Kewlthis what I was saying as I didn't account for the fact that not every member of The Hive Workshop is as smart as you.

I have to quote this again , You are indeed very smart.................................................not.

 

[Hakeem]

If he can lie, but doesn't have to:

"Where is heaven? If I don't find out soon, I think I'm going to shoot somebody. This machine gun isn't helping avoid the temptation either."

 

[Steel_Stallion]

"Which way do you go back home?"
The person from heaven points to heaven because he is telling the truth.
The person from hell points to heaven because he is lying.
One question directed at both of them.

You make the assumption that the lying one is an evil minion of hell and that the non lying one is an angel. The riddle just says 2 regular men, so you can't make that assumption.

the real impossible riddle is: given a time machine could you go back in time and kill your father? if you succeed you will not be born but if you are not born than you don't go back in time to kill your father, but if your father is not killed than you can go back in time and the loop continues.

How is that an impossible riddle? You just shorten the entire thing to "If you go back and kill your father you would never have been born to do it" so its a contradiction. So you cannot do it.

 

[kewlthis]

You make the assumption that the lying one is an evil minion of hell and that the non lying one is an angel. The riddle just says 2 regular men, so you can't make that assumption.





How is that an impossible riddle? You just shorten the entire thing to "If you go back and kill your father you would never have been born to do it" so its a contradiction. So you cannot do it.

It is said that that hell guy lies and heaven guy cannot lie. But as I said before they wont physically point the place. Which make that question wrong if you want to know where you are going.

 

[Japut3h]

You have no idea who the hell guy is, and who the heaven guy is.

Either way, you'd get separate answers, and since you wouldn't know who is who, you wouldn't know where heaven actually is.

 

[Eleandor]

Can't believe you guys have never heard of this all-classic riddle.

The actual riddle is:

There are 2 roads. One leads to heaven, one leads to hell. Each road is guarded by 1 guard. One always speaks the truth and one always lies.
You can only ask 1 question to 1 guard.

The Answer

The trick lies in asking a question where it doesn't matter which guard you ask it to. Thus, you must find a question where both guards will give the same answer, regardless of whether they must tell the truth or not.

The question you need to ask is: "What would the other brother answer if I would ask him where the left road leads to?"

Explanation:
There are 2 possibilities: The left road either leads to heaven or to hell.

- The left road leads to Heaven
==> Truth Guard will reply: "The other guard would say the left road leads to hell", because indeed, if you would ask the liar where it leads to, he would lie about it.
==> Lying Guard will reply: "The other guard would say the left road leads to hell". The other guard would actually say it leads to heaven, but he must lie about it.

- The left road leads to Hell
==> Truth Guard will reply: "The other guard would say the left road leads to Heaven"
==> Lying Guard will reply: "The other guard would say the left road leads to Heaven"
Indirectly, they thus say the other guard would say the right road leads to hell.

They will both answer the same to this question, whether they're lying or not. In other words: it doesn't matter what guard you ask it to, because they both answer the same thing to this question.
The way that's really leading to heaven is the road that's marked as "Hell". In the first case, it's the left road, which is said to lead to hell. In the second case, it's the right road, which is also said to lead to hell.

So basically, what you need to do is go to one guard, ask him the question and then take the road to hell.

 

[Razorbrain]

the timetravel riddle is just stupid

1. Who knows if we actually can change what has already happened, even if we got a timemachine?
2. Who knows what the consequenses would be if we changed the past? Would there even be a consequense in the timeline that we traveled from?

 

[kewlthis]

Can't believe you guys have never heard of this all-classic riddle.

The actual riddle is:

There are 2 roads. One leads to heaven, one leads to hell. Each road is guarded by 1 guard. One always speaks the truth and one always lies.
You can only ask 1 question to 1 guard.

The Answer

The trick lies in asking a question where it doesn't matter which guard you ask it to. Thus, you must find a question where both guards will give the same answer, regardless of whether they must tell the truth or not.

The question you need to ask is: "What would the other brother answer if I would ask him where the left road leads to?"

Explanation:
There are 2 possibilities: The left road either leads to heaven or to hell.

- The left road leads to Heaven
==> Truth Guard will reply: "The other guard would say the left road leads to hell", because indeed, if you would ask the liar where it leads to, he would lie about it.
==> Lying Guard will reply: "The other guard would say the left road leads to hell". The other guard would actually say it leads to heaven, but he must lie about it.

- The left road leads to Hell
==> Truth Guard will reply: "The other guard would say the left road leads to Heaven"
==> Lying Guard will reply: "The other guard would say the left road leads to Heaven"
Indirectly, they thus say the other guard would say the right road leads to hell.

They will both answer the same to this question, whether they're lying or not. In other words: it doesn't matter what guard you ask it to, because they both answer the same thing to this question.
The way that's really leading to heaven is the road that's marked as "Hell". In the first case, it's the left road, which is said to lead to hell. In the second case, it's the right road, which is also said to lead to hell.

So basically, what you need to do is go to one guard, ask him the question and then take the road to hell.

Thats good but extremely complex example. I think it works with everything you know answer to. If the guy doesnt answer right to question = road goes to hell. If it answers right = road goes to heaven. (as I stated before.) So I do not think thats the only question you can ask. So no, guards dont have to have same answer.

 

[Eleandor]

Thats good but extremely complex example. I think it works with everything you know answer to. If the guy doesnt answer right to question = road goes to hell. If it answers right = road goes to heaven. (as I stated before.) So I do not think thats the only question you can ask. So no, guards dont have to have same answer.

They do need to have the same answer because:
- There's no way to find out who's lying with 1 question, thus you don't know what to believe and what not to.
- If they don't have the same answer to your question, you have no way to find out the correct road.

It's simply a fact.

 

[kewlthis]

They do need to have the same answer because:
- There's no way to find out who's lying with 1 question, thus you don't know what to believe and what not to.
- If they don't have the same answer to your question, you have no way to find out the correct road.

It's simply a fact.

explain yourself. If other must lie, and other must tell truth. If you ask something like is my mothers name xxxx? Aint it simple to know whos lying? What would the guys answer then?

 

[Eleandor]

And that brings you to knowing heaven, how?

 

[kewlthis]

And that brings you to knowing heaven, how?

Situation 1:
It was stated that hell guy lies so if he answers wrong, you know what path leads to hell and take opposite direction.

Situation 2:
And heaven guy will answer right, so you know where heaven is. And take that path.

 

[HappyTauren]

the problem is that you don't know who is hell and who is heaven guy...

 

[Eleandor]

And thus cannot possibly know which way leads to heaven or hell since you don't know if the answer you receive is truth or lie. The way to solve this is to ask a question with a reply that's the same no matter who you ask it to.

 

[kewlthis]

*edit* I take my words back and rest my case :E

 

[The Last Istari]

Here's one.

Just ask them how Lucifer's doing. The good one wouldn't know, the liar would give an answer other than "I don't know".

 

[Restor]

ehm, cannot someone just close this thread

everyone knows that it is about asking only one question and there are masssing posts like "i will ask some normal question first, and then the question about way)

 

[The Last Istari]

Why close it? There's technically nothing going on that could get it closed.

 

[Japut3h]

WHY do some people find this so hard? The first reply to this question was a straight answer.

You just ask any of them:

"What would the other one tell me if I asked him which road is right?"

The one who lies would tell you the opposite of what the one who tells the truth would say. So he'd tell you which road isn't right.

The one who tells the truth would tell you what the one who lies would say.
So he would, as well, tell you which road isn't right.

All you have to do is pick the opposite afterward, argh.