Chell & Savant
Chell
You think you can prove every pattern with numbers? Let me give you a puzzle that only logic and a bit of stubbornness can solve.
Savant
Sure, lay it on me.
Chell
Three boxes. One has only apples, one only oranges, one has both. Every box is labelled wrong. Pick a single fruit from just one box. What’s the correct way to relabel all of them?
Savant
Take a fruit from the box labelled “Both.” Since every label is wrong, that box actually contains only one kind of fruit. If you pull an apple, the box is the all‑apple box; if you pull an orange, it’s the all‑orange box. Now the box labelled “Apples” cannot be the all‑apple box, so it must be the mixed one. The remaining box, labelled “Oranges,” is the all‑orange box if you pulled an apple, or the all‑apple box if you pulled an orange. All labels are now correct.
Chell
Nice. Not exactly how I’d do it, but it works. Just don’t let anyone else get your system wrong.
Savant
Glad it fits your style. I tend to lean on deduction; feel free to refine the steps, the core logic stays the same.
Chell
Sure, but I’ve already got a clean method. Don’t bother tweaking it; just use what works.