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Dilemma

Posted on November 3rd, 2009 at 14:23 by John Sinteur in category: Funny! -- Write a comment

[Quote:]

You’re given a choice between two gifts: $5 and $1,000. You can choose either, but a bystander will give you $1 million if you choose irrationally. Can you do it?

Hm…. let’s see. Without the $1 million option, the irrational choice would be to pick the lower dollar amount, but if you pick that the bystander offering the million will simply claim that you do that to get the million dollars, making it the rational choice.

So, picking either would trigger a claim that your choice is rational, so you might as well disregard the $1 million offer and make the rational choice and pick the $1000. Eh… wait, that would make the $5 irrational, right?

  1. Maarten on November 3rd, 2009 at 16:28:

    Flip a coin.

  2. spaceman spiff on November 3rd, 2009 at 16:51:

    Answer: mug the guy with the million $.

  3. Steffen on November 3rd, 2009 at 18:06:

    In the moment you started to think about the alternatives “gift of 5$ or 1000$”, you acted rationally. You made a rational consideration which of both choices is irrational. Therefore -> Sorry, no million dollars for you, regardless of your choice.

    To choose irrational would imply that the act of choosing was done without reasoning. The only chance to get the million $ in my view: To immediately grab one of both gifts, without any thinking.

  4. Turnaround on November 3rd, 2009 at 18:40:

    Vote Republican.

  5. Turnaround on November 3rd, 2009 at 18:43:

    Vote Republican?

  6. John Sinteur on November 3rd, 2009 at 19:56:

    That would certainly be irrational, with bonus points for it being a choice not offered in the bet.

  7. Mykolas on November 3rd, 2009 at 21:02:

    Mug both the guy with the million and the guy with the 5 and 1000, buy republican senator a male gigolo, use change to invest in new diving gear and boat to go with it. Take long vacation. Far too rational I fear.

  8. Maarten on November 4th, 2009 at 1:25:

    I still like my answer the best of the above.

    Here’s another suggestion: the challenge says “you CAN choose either”, it does not say you MUST choose either. Turn both down. Get $1M.

  9. Leon on November 4th, 2009 at 1:48:

    I’m with spaceman.

  10. Mauro on November 4th, 2009 at 8:07:

    You can’t possibly get the million, since the rational choice is to try to get it — as John says in the post! So the best you can do is get the $1000. Any other choice is either stupid — in which case, you win the million — or an attempt at the million — in which case you don’t. So be happy with your $1000 and try to make sure our government doesn’t incentivize underachieving.

  11. Tommi on November 19th, 2009 at 20:47:

    Ah! The good old self-reference paradox rephrased!

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