Saturday, 14 June 2014
How logic fails God-believers
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“Jack is looking at Anne, but Anne is looking at George. Jack is married but George is not. Is a married person looking at an unmarried person?” The answer can be "yes" or "no", or "cannot be determined".
Around 90% of people will get this wrong despite the fact that you are given all the information necessary to get it right.
Many of the people who fail to solve this conundrum are very sure about another, infinitely more difficult conundrum with highly incomplete information. They say, "Something cannot come from nothing therefore the universe must have been created by something outside of the universe. That something we call God".
People arrive at this conclusion:
1) Knowing it is based on inductive reasoning which never guarantees a correct conclusion (we never see something coming from nothing, therefore it cannot happen) .
2) Not knowing what, if anything, existed prior to the Big Bang.
3) Knowing the laws of physics (and, therefore, classical cause and effect) cannot have applied before matter appeared.
The Jack, Anne and George conundrum illustrates that humans typically have limited and highly fallible logic skills yet we can still be certain we have the correct answer to highly complex problems even when we lack the information to solve them.
So, for the avoidance of doubt, the "Something cannot come from nothing" argument is fatally flawed and you do yourself no credit if you repeat it.
Oh yes, the correct answer to the Jack, Anne and George conundrum is "yes". Did you get it right?
______________________________
If you need help with the logic...
Jack is married, George is not, Anne is either married or not.
If Anne is not married: a married person (Jack) is looking at an unmarried person (Anne).
If Anne is married: a married person (Anne) is looking at an unmarried person (George).
So, either way, a married person is indeed looking at an unmarried person. We have sufficient information to determine that a married person is looking at an unmarried person, but not which couple this applies to.
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Nildogma, the blogga
About Me
- Nildogma
- As a 20-year-old I was insatiably curious about the world and passionate about rejecting superstitions and all kinds of false beliefs. I still am today. Sometimes when people believe things that are not true, it make little or no difference but sometimes the consequences can be disastrous and deadly. Now, I do what I can to help people improve their thinking skills, especially in how they impinge on core beliefs, such as cultural values and religious beliefs. I have an active Facebook page for which I create memes and write articles almost daily. I also engage people in on-line debates. You can find me here: https://www.facebook.com/bill.flavell.1 I lecture at universities around the world and present or debate at public meetings. I also, draw on my management consultancy background to help freethought groups, almost anywhere in the world, to get organised, develop strategy and improve their media and presentation skills. If you would like me to present at your university or for your church group or freethought group, please contact me.
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The answer is not yes. We do not know the marital status of Anne.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, Jack and Anne are not necessarily married. There is a logical jump required to arrive at "yes."
DeleteDid you read it properly? It states that Jack is married.
Deletejack is married , anne is undetermined, and george isn't.
Deleteif anne isn't married, then jack, a married person, is looking at a non-married person. if anne is married, then jack is looking at anne. anne is looking at george, who is a married person.
in this scenario, there are only 2 states. not married and married. ergo, a married person will always be looking at someone who is not married.
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I understand why you think it is "I don't know" (I thought that too at first). Turn it into symbols & it is easier to figure it out. Also it is one equation with two possibilities. Not 2 separate equations. Try & figure it out first & if you can't look at my explanation.
DeleteIt is easier to think of this as an equation. People go wrong because they are thinking of it as 2 single equations when it is in actually 1 equation. M=married S= single -> looking at This is a true dichotomy (if one is not married they are by default single). Jack is Married. George is single. So there is 1 equation with 2 possibilities. M ->S -> S OR M -> M ->S. Whichever equation is correct...there is a married person looking at a single person. I didn't see it at first either because I was looking at it as 2 separate equations.
Her marital status is irrelevant. If she's married, she is looking at an unmarried person.
ReplyDeleteIf she's not married, then jack is looking at an unmarried person
Option 1 - Anne is married. Anne (married) is looking at George (unmarried). "Is a married person looking at an unmarried person?” - Yes.
ReplyDeleteOption 2 - Anne is unmarried. Jack (married) is looking at Anne (unmarried). "Is a married person looking at an unmarried person?” - Yes.
It is easier to think of this as an equation. People go wrong because they are thinking of it as 2 single equations when it is in actually 1 equation. M=married S= single -> looking at This is a true dichotomy (if one is not married they are by default single). Jack is Married. George is single. So there is 1 equation with 2 possibilities. M ->S -> S OR M -> M ->S. Whichever equation is correct...there is a married person looking at a single person. I didn't see it at first either because I was looking at it as 2 separate equations.
ReplyDeleteit CAN be determined, the data is just incomplete, if she's single Jack is looking at her and married and if she's married she's looking at George who is single.
ReplyDeleteIt is easier to think of this as an equation. People go wrong because they are thinking of it as 2 single equations when it is in actually 1 equation. M=married S= single -> looking at This is a true dichotomy (if one is not married they are by default single). Jack is Married. George is single. So there is 1 equation with 2 possibilities. M ->S -> S OR M -> M ->S. Whichever equation is correct...there is a married person looking at a single person. I didn't see it at first either because I was looking at it as 2 separate equations.
DeleteI wonder why you didn't choose three men.
ReplyDeleteWhat if Anne is in an open relationship where single/married is undefined? Add Frutiger's cat?
ReplyDeleteIt is not about the marital status of the one being looked at- The question is- is a married person looking at a single person and the answer is quite obviously yes it being a chain of events Jack is looking at Anne who is looking at George, Married looking at indeterminate looking at single. If Anne is married then she is the married person looking at a single person, if she is single then Jack is the married person looking at a single person. In either case a married person is looking at a single person so the answer is Yes.
ReplyDeleteOK so how does this logic fit into the consept of there is no God or vise versa
ReplyDeleteor it can be taken at face value... the story says that jack is looking at anne (married or not) he is looking at anne okay??? what's wrong with you people??? ;-)
ReplyDelete