You are given eight coins and told that one of them is counterfeit. The counterfeit one is slightly heavier than the other seven. Otherwise, the coins look identical. Using a simple balance scale, how can you determine which coin is counterfeit using the scale only twice?
First weigh three coins against three others. If the weights are equal, weigh the remaining two against each other. The heavier one is the counterfeit. If one of the groups of three is heavier, weigh two of those coins against each other. If one is heavier, it’s the counterfeit. If they’re equal weight, the third coin is the counterfeit.
Twenty one points divide and dance, Twirling and leaping about, Ladies, Romans and knights of France, Craving a victor’s rout, Wrought of wood, ivory or bone, An exciting yet vicious pursuit, Ancient, forbidden and crooked, All in search of the loot.
A die. The standard die has 21 pips (or points), divided up on the six sides of the die which dance around when rolled. Ladies, knights and Romans all played dice as a pastime (though not together). Dice can be made of wood, ivory and bone, among other materials. Dice have been used in Asia since before recorded history and many governments tried unsuccessfully to outlaw the game. Professional gamblers were common and often used loaded dice. Desperate German chaps even bet their own liberty on a single roll of the dice.
The moon. It has two sides, but on earth we only ever see one side. Man has been on the moon, but no one is there now. A full lunar eclipse is known as a blood moon, and the phrase “once in a blue moon” refers to something that rarely happens. Promising the moon is making an extravagant or impossible promise, and there’s a new moon once every lunar cycle.
We are four against the masses. We are trying to find the one who is the whole package. We sigh, we laugh, we frown while we hope that the next one will be the one. Who are we?