The Mad Hatter

by
Erik Oosterwal



Problem Number One


Two men are sitting in a room facing each other.  A hat is placed on each of their heads and they are informed that the hats can either be black or white, but at least one of them is wearing a white hat.  Some time passes before either man speaks then suddenly the both jump up at the same time and exclaim what color hat they are wearing.

What color hat was each man wearing and how do you know?

I give up, show me the Answer


Problem Number Two


Three men are seated in a room so that Andrew can only see the wall ahead of him, Bart can see the back of Andrew's head, and Clifford can see the back of Andrew's head and the back of Bart's head.  Hats are placed on each man's head and they are told that they are wearing either a black hat or a white hat and that there is at least one black hat and at least one white hat.  Some time passes before one of the men exclaims he knows what color his hat is.

Who jumped up and how did he know what color his hat was?

I give up, show me the Answer



Copyright E. Oosterwal - 2004
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