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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxn!ihnp4!mgnetp!ltuxa!ttrdc!levy
From: levy@ttrdc.UUCP (Daniel R. Levy)
Newsgroups: net.puzzle,net.math
Subject: Re: Logic puzzle creation query
Message-ID: <625@ttrdc.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 6-Dec-85 20:35:44 EST
Article-I.D.: ttrdc.625
Posted: Fri Dec  6 20:35:44 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 7-Dec-85 20:51:37 EST
References: <4253@topaz.RUTGERS.EDU> <2506@pucc-h>
Organization: AT&T, Computer Systems Division, Skokie, IL
Lines: 24
Xref: watmath net.puzzle:1231 net.math:2605

In article <2506@pucc-h>, ags@pucc-h (Dave Seaman) writes:
>In article <4253@topaz.RUTGERS.EDU> cje@topaz.RUTGERS.EDU (Ernst @ Sanctum Sanctorum) writes:
>>I've seen puzzles in which you have males
>>and females and the clues run along the lines of "Neither Polly, the cat
>>owner, nor Mr. Smith have a green car", which tells you that Smith is male
>>(which wasn't known before) and that neither he nor Polly own the cat or the
>>green car.
>
>The stated clue does not allow you to conclude that either Polly or Mr. Smith
>is a different person from the cat owner.  Any puzzle whose solution depends
>on this deduction is defective.
>--
>Dave Seaman	  {decvax|harpo|ihnp4|inuxc|seismo|ucbvax}!pur-ee!pucc-h!ags

That's right; Polly could be the cat owner, and it would be true that she
and the cat owner would not have a green car, of course.  I think the exam-
ple was inadvertently misstated.
-- 
 -------------------------------    Disclaimer:  The views contained herein are
|       dan levy | yvel nad      |  my own and are not at all those of my em-
|         an engihacker @        |  ployer or the administrator of any computer
| at&t computer systems division |  upon which I may hack.
|        skokie, illinois        |
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