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The Infamous Einstein Puzzle

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
on noes, Opie's posting something from an email :blah:

Albert Einstein supposedly wrote this quiz. He also said he believed
98% of the world could not figure it out.
It's actually pretty simple if you know the magic of drawing and use
pen and paper instead of trying to imagine it all in your mind.

Here it is:

There are 5 houses in a row in five different colors.
In each house lives a person with a different nationality.
These 5 owners drink a certain drink, smoke a certain brand of tobacco
and keep a certain pet.
No owners have the same pet, smoke the same tobacco, or drink the same
drink.

The big question is:
Who owns the fish?

These things are known:
1. The Brit lives in the red house
2. The Swede keeps dogs as pets
3. The Dane drinks tea
4. The green house is adjacent on the left of the white house
5. The green house owner drinks coffee
6. The person who smokes Pall Mall raises birds
7. The owner of the yellow house smokes Dunhill
8. The man living in the house right in the center drinks milk
9. The Norwegian lives in the first house
10. The man who smokes Blends lives next to the one who keeps cats
11. The man who keeps horses lives next to the one who smokes Dunhill
12. The owner who smokes Bluemaster drinks juice
13. The German smokes Prince
14. The Norwegian lives next to the blue house
15. The man who smokes Blend has a neighbor who drinks water.


Highlight to read my reply to my friend...I only skimmed it, but noticed there was no mention of a fish. Am I to assume that one of them is guaranteed to have a fish? Maybe the cat ate it? Also, is it possible to solve when only three pets were mentioned: horse, dog, and cat? Personally, I'd have a ferret, hamster, or bird before I had a fish. Unless we're talking about dinner, then fish does top my list.

In other words, before I waste my time, is there a definitive answer?
Edit: there is an answer according to my buddy.
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
I think I solved it: The German owns the fish. He lives in a Green house which is #4, smokes Prince, drinks coffee and has horrible breath and teeth. :)
 

Angus

Jack Ass Pen Goo Win
Oct 15, 2004
1,478
0
South Bend
ok how did you get that? I figured out that the first house is yellow, with a norwegian, who smokes dunhill, the second house is blue with horses, and the center house drinks milk, but how did you determine that #4 is green??
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
MunkeeHucker said:
ok how did you get that? I figured out that the first house is yellow, with a norwegian, who smokes dunhill, the second house is blue with horses, and the center house drinks milk, but how did you determine that #4 is green??
I made decision trees to mark possibilities.

For example, the green house is to the left of the white. Since you know the first two house colors, then the green must be #3 or #4, yeah? Ok, put that on paper and leave that as an option.

Make a list of all the knowns with the common item, like a beverage, on the same line as each other... go from there :)
 

Echo

crooked smile
Jul 10, 2002
11,819
15
Slacking at work
I think the norwegian has the fish, and you don't need to solve the whole table to determine that.

edit: oh damn, I got owned
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
Echo said:
I think the norwegian has the fish, and you don't need to solve the whole table to determine that.
well, I had to do the whole table before I found the answer. Sorry, not the Norwegian, even if they're great at catching 'em.

motomike said:
I'm pissed off now
:D
 

kizzi77

Monkey
Aug 11, 2005
564
0
nashvegas
That took WAY longer than I expected (30 minutes), but I love me some puzzles!

Here is what I got, is it the same as you lord opie?

House 1: Norwegian, yellow, drinks water, smokes dunhill, has cats
House 2: Dane, blue, drinks tea, smokes blend, has horses
House 3: Brit, red, drinks milk, smokes pall mal, has birds
House 4: German, green, drinks coffee, smokes prince, has FISH
House 5: Swed, white, drinks juice, smokes bluehouse, has dog
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
kizzi77 said:
That took WAY longer than I expected (30 minutes), but I love me some puzzles!

Here is what I got, is it the same as you lord opie?

House 1: Norwegian, yellow, drinks water, smokes dunhill, has cats
House 2: Dane, blue, drinks tea, smokes blend, has horses
House 3: Brit, red, drinks milk, smokes pall mal, has birds
House 4: German, green, drinks coffee, smokes prince, has FISH
House 5: Swed, white, drinks juice, smokes bluehouse, has dog
Winner! :thumb:
 

SilentJ

trail builder
Jun 17, 2002
1,312
0
Calgary AB
Who's to say that the german has to keep fish? It is possible that nobody keeps fish. ;) The german could raise friggin polar bears for all we know since there's no mention of fish after the question of "who owns the fish?" :D

Edit: Just read your white-ed out quote Opie...personally, I think you're right in this thinking....I dont think the puzzle is hard enough, straight away, for him to call it unsolvable for 98% of peeps.

Of course nowdays the puzzle is as easy as "google: einstein fish puzzle" :rolleyes:
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
SilentJ said:
I dont think the puzzle is hard enough, straight away, for him to call it unsolvable for 98% of peeps.
98% of all people on the planet? I think so, but that's cuz most of the world doesn't receive the type of math/logic courses that first world countries do and even then, you have to have the right mindset to do it and follow through.

I still say we eat the dang fish... with some wasabi.
 

Jeremy R

<b>x</b>
Nov 15, 2001
9,701
1,056
behind you with a snap pop
It took me forever to do.
I was too lazy to draw out the possibility trees, so I just drew the houses and started trying to figure something out.
Sometimes I would get on to something and then completely forget what I was doing.
Anyway, that was a great puzzle, I was surprised I figured it out.
 

peter6061

Turbo Monkey
Nov 19, 2001
1,575
0
Kenmore, WA
That was fun. It took about twenty minutes, but what else am I going to do while waiting for the clock to tick?

I got the right answer and then scrolled down.

I like the idea of 'PUZZLE FRIDAY'

I agree with the spreadsheet thing. Until I drew it out and separated each item on a different line, things were a little 'blurry'.
 

kizzi77

Monkey
Aug 11, 2005
564
0
nashvegas
LordOpie said:
I still say we eat the dang fish... with some wasabi.
When we come out to Denver...tell Jason you want sushi, he'll love it!!!

side note, I think I love puzzles because I :heart: math!!! It was my major in college for a while until I realized I couldn't do much with it, not wanting to teach or be an actuary. But you're right. Most people don't have the skills, patience, or just general logic to solve **** like this. So...um...have any more puzzles? :love:
 

SilentJ

trail builder
Jun 17, 2002
1,312
0
Calgary AB
LordOpie said:
98% of all people on the planet? I think so, but that's cuz most of the world doesn't receive the type of math/logic courses that first world countries do and even then, you have to have the right mindset to do it and follow through.
You're right...I somehow forgot that an excessively high proportion of people in the world are complete idiots...what was I thinking?
 

kizzi77

Monkey
Aug 11, 2005
564
0
nashvegas
LordOpie said:
Dace likes sushi?
Um...no...he had a horrible experience this summer so it is fun to try and make it seem like everyone is going to get sushi. I have to make sushi dates with my classmates or his room mates if I want sushi.

mmmm crunchy shrimp :drool:
 

SilentJ

trail builder
Jun 17, 2002
1,312
0
Calgary AB
LordOpie said:
you have to have the right mindset to do it and follow through.
So, does solving the puzzle through to figure out that the german has the fish mean that you were in the right mindset for this problem(as Einstein intended it)?
 

LordOpie

MOTHER HEN
Oct 17, 2002
21,022
3
Denver
SilentJ said:
You're right...I somehow forgot that an excessively high proportion of people in the world are complete idiots...what was I thinking?
I was not suggesting the world is full of idiots. Not everyone has a mathematical/analytical mind. Don't ask me to decorate a house, I would have no clue what pattern pillow cases matches the ceiling fan.
 
kizzi77 said:
When we come out to Denver...tell Jason you want sushi, he'll love it!!!

side note, I think I love puzzles because I :heart: math!!! It was my major in college for a while until I realized I couldn't do much with it, not wanting to teach or be an actuary. But you're right. Most people don't have the skills, patience, or just general logic to solve **** like this. So...um...have any more puzzles? :love:
So why didn't you pursue engineering if you like math? Teacher or actuary my ass!