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The Zombie River Crossing: A Logic Puzzle

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The Zombie River Crossing: A Logic Puzzle

Prepare to engage your brain with this classic logic puzzle, the Zombie River Crossing! It’s a test of strategy and critical thinking, and it’s surprisingly fun to figure out.

The Challenge

Imagine you’re tasked with transporting a group of zombies and humans across a river. Here’s the catch:

  • You have a boat that can only carry two people at a time.
  • You must ensure that at no point is there ever a greater number of zombies than humans on either side of the river.

The Setup

Let’s say you have three humans (H) and three zombies (Z) to ferry across. The starting side of the river is where you begin, and the destination is the opposite side.

Solving the Puzzle

Here’s one possible solution to get all the humans and zombies across safely:

  1. Two Humans Cross: Two humans (HH) cross the river in the boat.
  2. One Human Returns: One human (H) rows the boat back to the starting side.
  3. Two Zombies Cross: Two zombies (ZZ) cross the river.
  4. One Zombie Returns: One zombie (Z) rows the boat back to the starting side.
  5. Two Humans Cross Again: The two remaining humans (HH) cross the river.
  6. One Human Returns: One human (H) rows the boat back to the starting side.
  7. Two Zombies Cross Again: The two remaining zombies (ZZ) cross the river.

Now, everyone is safely across!

Why is this a Logic Puzzle?

The Zombie River Crossing is a classic example of a logic puzzle because it involves:

  • Deductive Reasoning: You need to analyze the rules and constraints to determine the most logical steps to take.
  • Planning Ahead: You can’t just move things randomly; you need to plan your moves in advance to avoid creating a situation where there are more zombies than humans on either side.
  • Trial and Error: Sometimes you might need to try different approaches and see what works.

Give it a Try!

This puzzle has many variations. Try changing the number of humans and zombies, or add more complex rules. Have fun and see if you can outsmart the zombies!

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