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Which Alice?

Which Alice?

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ALICE IN PUZZLE-LAND<br />

WHO IS MURDOCH? Since A claims to be the spy, then he is<br />

either a knave or the spy. Likewise C claims to be the spy, so he also<br />

is either a knave or the spy. So one of A, C is a knave and the other<br />

a spy. Therefore, B is the knight; hence his statement is true; so A<br />

must be the spy.<br />

THE RETURN OF MURDOCH If A is Murdoch, all three<br />

statements are true, which is impossible since one of them is a<br />

knave. If C is Murdoch, all three statements are false, which is also<br />

impossible since one of the three is a knight. Therefore, B must be<br />

Murdoch.<br />

A MORE INTERESTING CASE If we had not been told that<br />

after C's accusation the judge knew who the spy was, then we could<br />

not solve this problem. But we are given that the judge knew, and<br />

this is the vital clue!<br />

Suppose C had accused A. Then the judge couldn't have known<br />

who was the spy, because it could be that A is the spy, B the knave,<br />

and C the knight, or that B is the spy, A the knight, and C the<br />

knave, or it could also be that C is the spy, A the knave, and B the<br />

knight. So if C had accused A, the judge couldn't have made a<br />

conviction.<br />

Now, let's see what happens if C accused B. This means that A<br />

and C both accused B. Then their accusations are either both true<br />

or both false. If they were both true, then B would really be the spy,<br />

and since the accusations are true, A and C must both be knights<br />

(neither could be a spy, since B is), and it is not possible that there<br />

are two knights. Therefore, their accusations were false, which<br />

means that B is not the spy. Could A be the spy? No, for if he were,<br />

then B and C would have both lied in accusing each other, which<br />

would make both of them knaves, which is not possible. Therefore,<br />

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