Twenty Beautiful Women

[Julian Assange]

> 
> At 20:54 7/27/96, Mike Duvos wrote:
> >ichudov at algebra.com (Igor Chudov @ home) writes:
> >
> > > Also, I would appreciate if someone specified what exactly
> > > the goal function is.
> >
> >Me too.
> 
> For clarification, the problem is often stated in textbooks similar like this:
> 
> You ask someone to write one number each on ten pieces of paper without you
> being able to see the numbers. The person may use any number from 1 to
> 10^99, but may not use a number twice. The person turns over the ten
> papers.
> 
> You goal is to determine the paper with the highest number [rules apply as
> described in the original post]
> 
> The general solution is to flip over 1/e papers and choose the paper that
> has a higher number on it than any of the 1/e papers turned over at first.

Can someone explain the theory behind this?


-- 
"Of all tyrannies a tyranny sincerely  exercised for the good of its victims  
 may be the most  oppressive.  It may be better to live under  robber barons  
 than  under  omnipotent  moral busybodies,  The robber baron's  cruelty may  
 sometimes sleep,  his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who  
 torment us for own good  will torment us  without end,  for they do so with 
 the approval of their own conscience."    -   C.S. Lewis, _God in the Dock_ 
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