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        riddles >> medium >> 2 mediums: 9 dots and ghetto palm pilots
        
(Message started by: Misha Kruk on Jul 31^st, 2002, 9:05pm)

Title: 2 mediums: 9 dots and ghetto palm pilots
Post by Misha Kruk on Jul 31^st, 2002, 9:05pm

ok, they are probably easy, an second one is not a riddle at all, but anyway:

1)

You have 9 dots in the form of rectangle:
. . .
. . .
. . .

Your pen starts in the upper left corner. Draw four lines without lifting the pen so that all 9 dots will be crossed.

Hint: Remember what your manager told ya: think outside the box!

2)

How many numbers can you represent with the fingers on both hands?

Hint 1: More than you think

Hint 2: If you still don't get it, you are not a programmer

Title: Re: 2 mediums: 9 dots and ghetto palm pilots
Post by FinkPloyd on Aug 1^st, 2002, 7:01am

First one's easy.

123
456
789

line down through 1, 4 &7, ending just below the square. Up and to the right through 8 & 6 ending just the right of #3. A line going throuh 3 & 2, ending on 1. Now diagonally from 1, 5 & 9.

Title: ghetto palm pilots
Post by srowen on Aug 1^st, 2002, 11:49am

Is the gist of this that you can represent 2^10 = 1024 possible values if you view your fingers as binary digits? ("yeah, 132 to you, pal!")

I suppose you could allow for fingers been straight, curled, or half-curled, giving you 3^10 values, etc. Not sure I can physically make most of those possibilities though.

Title: Re: 2 mediums: 9 dots and ghetto palm pilots
Post by Dave on Aug 5^th, 2002, 7:41pm

As for the Ghetto Palm, I believe the answer is an infinite number, depending upon what base system you use, i.e.,
if using hex, fingers could be labeled abcde on each hand, or bcdef, or fffff, etc., and as was pointed out, you could use a bent finger to indicate a change in base notation as well!