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Subject: "question you can't answer"

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Conferences The CTK Exchange Early math Topic #43
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Reading Topic #43

phil

guest

Aug-06-02, 02:33 PM (EST)

"question you can't answer"

i recently found this site and was reading though some of the stuff. one thing in particular was a question you can't answer.
the question "is no your answer to this question?"
to this i'd have to respond, "no, yes is my answer to that question." what do you think?

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ctynan
Member since Jul-18-02

Aug-08-02, 05:03 PM (EST)

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1. "RE: question you can't answer"
In response to message #0

interesting question that appears to cause a paradox at first.

Another paradoxes is:

A teacher wants to set a test thats a complete surprise.
IT can not be at the end or the start of the week because it's too predictable, so this limits the number of options to 3 days. The test can not be on thursday because it is the last day before the last day.

Working back, it can not be on any day. Yet if the teacher set the test on Friday, it would come as a complete surprise.... Weird...

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Whymme

guest

Aug-09-02, 08:47 AM (EST)

2. "RE: question you can't answer"
In response to message #0

So rephrase the question to "Is 'no' your one-word answer to this question?"

And then answer it with: "Maybe..."

Whymme

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Rich

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Aug-09-02, 02:27 PM (EST)

3. "RE: question you can't answer"
In response to message #0

The problem is not stated precisely, but the answer should be yes/no only. It would be better to ask if the following statement is true or false:

This statement is false.

The statement is self negating, it can not be either true or false. That is basically the same paradox as the question, "is no your answer to this question."

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Michael Klipper

guest

Aug-12-02, 09:24 PM (EST)

4. "RE: question you can't answer"
In response to message #3

Paradoxes are fun! In fact, they've helped get people interested in a lot of complicated math. Although this is probably too advanced for your level (since it deals with calculus), you might be interested to hear about Zeno of Elea. He designed paradoxes back in ancient Greece that led people to think about certain fundamental things in physics and calculus!

Anyway, my favorite paradox has to be the Berry Paradox, named after the librarian who came up with it:
What is "the smallest whole number that cannot be named in less than fourteen words?" This Description is a valid way to name a number, correct? Yet it is 13 words long. So if the number can't be described with 13 words, we are saying it can be described in 13 words.

It's a funny paradox, but it actually turns out to be useful. Hope you enjoy it.

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