Vera wants to go on a date and prefers her date to be tall, dark and handsome.
- Of the preferred traits - tall, dark and handsome - no two of Adam, Boyd, Cary and Dirk have the same number.
- Only one of Adam or Dirk is tall and fair.
- Only one of Boyd or Cary is short and handsome.
- Adam and Cary are either both tall or both short.
- Boyd and Dirk are either both dark or both fair.
Who is tall, dark and handsome?
From rule 1, only one of the four likely lads has all three desirable traits. The other three must have 0, 1, and 2 of the traits.
If Adam is Tall, Dark, and Handsome, then:
- Dirk is Tall and Fair (by rule 2)
- Cary is Tall (by rule 4)
- Boyd is Short and Handsome (by rule 3)
Which means no-one has 0 traits, so it cannot be Bachelor #1.
If Boyd is Tall, Dark, and Handsome, then:
- Cary is Short and Handsome (by rule 3)
- Adam is Short (by rule 4)
- Dirk is Tall and Fair (by rule 2)
- Boyd is Fair (by rule 5)
Woops; a contradiction! It's not Bachelor #2, either.
If Cary is Tall, Dark, and Handsome, then:
- Boyd is Short and Handsome (by rule 3)
- Adam is Tall (by rule 4)
- Dirk is Short, Fair, and Plain (by rule 1)
- Boyd is Fair (by rule 5)
- Adam is Fair (by rule 2)
- Adam is Handsome (by rule 1)
All traits have been assigned without breaking the rules.
If Dirk is Tall, Dark, and Handsome, then:
- Boyd is Dark (by rule 5)
- Adam is Tall and Fair (by rule 2)
- Cary is Tall (by rule 4)
Which means no-one has 0 traits, so it cannot be Bachelor #4.
So Bachelor #3 (Cary) is our winner.
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Posted by snark
on 2013-06-13 00:12:31 |