278 replies to this topic

[rookie1ja]

Crocodile Sophism - Back to the Paradoxes

A slim crocodile living in Nile took a child. Mother begged to give him back. The crocodile could not only talk, he was also a great sophist, and so he stated: "If you guess (Edited: predict the fate = guess correctly), what I will do with him, I will return him. However, if you don't guess his fate I'll eat him." What statement shall the mother make to save her child (what about a vicious circle ...)?

[Garrek99]

I don't think that this is a paradox. It sounds like one. The word "guess" doesn't belong because there is nothing to guess about. This is more like an 'Honestant and Swindicant' problem becuase the mother either says "crocodile gives the child back" and the croc does it or the croc "deceives" the woman and eats the child.

[jayat27]

Well, I'm guessing that she said that he was gonna return the child.

[J Man]

I would think that the only way to make ANY sense of the situation is for the woman to repeat back to the croc EXACTLY what he said to HER: "If I guess right, you'll give my baby back, if I dont, you'll eat him. That's what you'll do to him." He'd have to return the baby, because she's CORRECT NO MATTER WHAT. Eh? hehehe

[delarius]

Perhaps I'm not understanding the question here. However, it would seem to me the obvious issue and advice here would be to say: "You'll eat the child Mister Crocodile." Remember: this is an ancient beast more known for clamping down and rolling around in muddy pools of water than for it's scholarly dissertations on high energy physics. In the confusion where it doesn't know if it should consume the kid and thus have to return him, unharmed, or fail to and thus be compelled to do so - grab the child and run away. If you are very kind you might leave behind an aluminium crocodile hat/heatsink as the poor guy tries to figure out what just went wrong.

[wonderlandwitch]

This is what the mother should say to the crocodile:

"Crocodile, before I tell you what you will do to my child, I will tell you this: My child is the thing I hold dearest to my heart and if someone were to take him away from me, then I will spend the rest of my life studying whomever was responsible for destroying my child and destroy the one thing that he loves most in this world. If he has children of his own, I will destroy them. If not, he will have to live in constant fear that if one day he should have children, their lives will be in danger. If perhaps it is a swamp that he loves the most in the world, I will use the power of man's knowledge to destroy it. Whatever it is that he loves most will be taken away from him, and he will not know when it will happen and thus must live a life of fear. That being said, you will give me back my child."

[conga]

There is no way to get the child back because:
1. If she ask for the child (predict that he will turn it back) Croc can eat child.
2. If she will tell that the croc will eat the child she cant be right - in this situation id croc will give back child she wont be right but he cant eat the child because mother will be right.

Only way to prevent crock from eating child is tell him that child will be eaten and this is only thing that can be done for him :>

F

[imtcb]

"You will hold my child until I answer your question."

The croc didn't ask EVERYTHING he would do with him. Fate is a fickle matter. His fate is to be held until the croc does something, at which time his fate becomes something else.

[Cyr|x]

I would think that the only way to make ANY sense of the situation is for the woman to repeat back to the croc EXACTLY what he said to HER: "If I guess right, you'll give my baby back, if I dont, you'll eat him. That's what you'll do to him." He'd have to return the baby, because she's CORRECT NO MATTER WHAT. Eh? hehehe

ur statement seems partially true

had the croc's st8ment been like
"If you guess, what I will do with him", I will return him
so the mother could repeat "if you guess, what will I do with him" and the croc wud return the kid
but the quote includes the words " I will return him" so the logic doesnt work

I think the mother could say anything to retrieve the chiild
since all the croc wants is the mother to "GUESS"
he dint say predict the fate or speak the truth or sumthin liek that
so the mother could go on and guess anything random related to the child in order to save him

[Mangadbz]

if you look at the so called paradox it says if you dont guess his fate, ill eat him, so as long as you provide a guess you'll get him back either way, because any guess is a correct guess but if you stay silent and not provide an answer then your screwed lady