Don Terrill’s Speed-Talk

The Marriage Problem:

Bill is looking at Nancy, but Nancy is looking at Greg.
Bill is married, and Greg is unmarried.
Is a married person looking at an unmarried person?

A) Yes
B) No
C) Cannot be determined

We do not know if Nancy is married or unmarried. Also it does not say who Greg is looking at. From that I say C is the correct answer.

C was also my answer, but its wrong.

It doesn't matter if Nancy is married or not. If she is married, the answer is A. If she is unmarried, the answer is A.

"More than 80% of people choose C"

https://www.scientificamerican.com/arti ... ests-miss/

I have to think about this. The question: "is a married person looking at an unmarried person?"

1. So if married Bill is looking at Nancy and she is unmarried then the answer is A. Married looking at unmarried.
2. If Nancy is married and looking at unmarried Greg then the answer is A. Married looking at unmarried.

So it works either way.

Fully disjunctive reasoning would require that an evaluation of the term 'married' and its negation take place.

Hint: Human logical reasoning is based on time and space. Counter-measures can involve manipulations of time and space. In this instance, there is a rather lengthy history of voiding or invalidating the state of marriage which can extend forward and backwards in time. A good lawyer or cleric should be familiar with this.

It is a dangerous weakness of ours.