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The potato paradox

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  • J Offline
    J Offline
    Jorgen Andersson
    wrote on last edited by
    #1

    You have 100 lb of "mathematical" potatoes, which are 99 percent water by weight. You let them dehydrate until they're 98 percent water. How much do they weigh now? No googling, ok.

    Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello

    OriginalGriffO L Richard DeemingR D W 12 Replies Last reply
    0
    • J Jorgen Andersson

      You have 100 lb of "mathematical" potatoes, which are 99 percent water by weight. You let them dehydrate until they're 98 percent water. How much do they weigh now? No googling, ok.

      Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello

      OriginalGriffO Offline
      OriginalGriffO Offline
      OriginalGriff
      wrote on last edited by
      #2

      50lbs. 1lb == 1% of 100lb, and 2% == 50lbs So as not to give the game away! (hilight to reveal)

      Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

      "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
      "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

      J M L 3 Replies Last reply
      0
      • J Jorgen Andersson

        You have 100 lb of "mathematical" potatoes, which are 99 percent water by weight. You let them dehydrate until they're 98 percent water. How much do they weigh now? No googling, ok.

        Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello

        L Offline
        L Offline
        Lost User
        wrote on last edited by
        #3

        Quote:

        No googling, ok.

        Ok, but than please ask it for 45.359237 kg ;P :-D

        It does not solve my Problem, but it answers my question

        OriginalGriffO 1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

          50lbs. 1lb == 1% of 100lb, and 2% == 50lbs So as not to give the game away! (hilight to reveal)

          Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

          J Offline
          J Offline
          Jorgen Andersson
          wrote on last edited by
          #4

          And we have a winner. That was to quick, I was hoping for a few wrong ones to start with. :)

          Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello

          OriginalGriffO 1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • J Jorgen Andersson

            And we have a winner. That was to quick, I was hoping for a few wrong ones to start with. :)

            Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello

            OriginalGriffO Offline
            OriginalGriffO Offline
            OriginalGriff
            wrote on last edited by
            #5

            That's why I hid it - I remembered it from somewhere.

            Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

            "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
            "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

            1 Reply Last reply
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            • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

              50lbs. 1lb == 1% of 100lb, and 2% == 50lbs So as not to give the game away! (hilight to reveal)

              Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

              M Offline
              M Offline
              Munchies_Matt
              wrote on last edited by
              #6

              I dont get it. Should be 99.0001 lbs or some such.

              OriginalGriffO 1 Reply Last reply
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              • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

                50lbs. 1lb == 1% of 100lb, and 2% == 50lbs So as not to give the game away! (hilight to reveal)

                Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                L Offline
                L Offline
                Lost User
                wrote on last edited by
                #7

                Forgive me for being thick but I cannot get my head round that. In 100lb there is 1lb of starch and 99 lbs of water (yes?). So if you lose 1% of the water, isn't that just 1lb less than before?

                OriginalGriffO W M N 4 Replies Last reply
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                • L Lost User

                  Forgive me for being thick but I cannot get my head round that. In 100lb there is 1lb of starch and 99 lbs of water (yes?). So if you lose 1% of the water, isn't that just 1lb less than before?

                  OriginalGriffO Offline
                  OriginalGriffO Offline
                  OriginalGriff
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #8

                  OK, so 100ib of potatoes, 99% water. That means that 1% is not water, and that weighs 1lb. If you reduce the water content to 98%, that doesn't affect the non-water part, so 1lb of the potatoes is now 2% of the total. If 2% of the weight is 1lb, then the total weight is now 50lb. For 97% you get 33.3lb, 96% gives 25lb, and so on.

                  Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                  "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
                  "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

                  L 1 Reply Last reply
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                  • M Munchies_Matt

                    I dont get it. Should be 99.0001 lbs or some such.

                    OriginalGriffO Offline
                    OriginalGriffO Offline
                    OriginalGriff
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #9

                    OK, so 100ib of potatoes, 99% water. That means that 1% is not water, and that weighs 1lb. If you reduce the water content to 98%, that doesn't affect the non-water part, so 1lb of the potatoes is now 2% of the total. If 2% of the weight is 1lb, then the total weight is now 50lb. For 97% you get 33.3lb, 96% gives 25lb, and so on.

                    Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                    "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
                    "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

                    M 1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • L Lost User

                      Quote:

                      No googling, ok.

                      Ok, but than please ask it for 45.359237 kg ;P :-D

                      It does not solve my Problem, but it answers my question

                      OriginalGriffO Offline
                      OriginalGriffO Offline
                      OriginalGriff
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #10

                      OK - the new weight is 22.679618kg.

                      Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                      "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
                      "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

                      1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

                        OK, so 100ib of potatoes, 99% water. That means that 1% is not water, and that weighs 1lb. If you reduce the water content to 98%, that doesn't affect the non-water part, so 1lb of the potatoes is now 2% of the total. If 2% of the weight is 1lb, then the total weight is now 50lb. For 97% you get 33.3lb, 96% gives 25lb, and so on.

                        Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                        L Offline
                        L Offline
                        Lost User
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #11

                        :thumbsup: I knew it would be simple.

                        OriginalGriffO 1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • L Lost User

                          :thumbsup: I knew it would be simple.

                          OriginalGriffO Offline
                          OriginalGriffO Offline
                          OriginalGriff
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #12

                          It's simple when you see it! :laugh: If I recall correctly, I scratched my head a fair amount the first time I saw this one.

                          Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                          "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
                          "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • J Jorgen Andersson

                            You have 100 lb of "mathematical" potatoes, which are 99 percent water by weight. You let them dehydrate until they're 98 percent water. How much do they weigh now? No googling, ok.

                            Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello

                            L Offline
                            L Offline
                            Lost User
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #13

                            That's more lettuce than potato. A potato will clock in at roughly 75% water (just a tad more than a human). Still a nice example where math beats intuition :thumbsup:

                            Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] "If you just follow the bacon Eddy, wherever it leads you, then you won't have to think about politics." -- Some Bell.

                            J 1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

                              OK, so 100ib of potatoes, 99% water. That means that 1% is not water, and that weighs 1lb. If you reduce the water content to 98%, that doesn't affect the non-water part, so 1lb of the potatoes is now 2% of the total. If 2% of the weight is 1lb, then the total weight is now 50lb. For 97% you get 33.3lb, 96% gives 25lb, and so on.

                              Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                              M Offline
                              M Offline
                              Munchies_Matt
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #14

                              "To 98%" of what is the question. The original weight or the final weight. That wasnt specified. :)

                              OriginalGriffO 1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • M Munchies_Matt

                                "To 98%" of what is the question. The original weight or the final weight. That wasnt specified. :)

                                OriginalGriffO Offline
                                OriginalGriffO Offline
                                OriginalGriff
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #15

                                Quote:

                                You let them dehydrate until they're 98 percent water.

                                That's pretty clear!

                                Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                                "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
                                "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

                                M P 2 Replies Last reply
                                0
                                • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

                                  Quote:

                                  You let them dehydrate until they're 98 percent water.

                                  That's pretty clear!

                                  Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                                  M Offline
                                  M Offline
                                  Munchies_Matt
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #16

                                  Nothing is clear in the land of language....

                                  B 1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • L Lost User

                                    That's more lettuce than potato. A potato will clock in at roughly 75% water (just a tad more than a human). Still a nice example where math beats intuition :thumbsup:

                                    Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] "If you just follow the bacon Eddy, wherever it leads you, then you won't have to think about politics." -- Some Bell.

                                    J Offline
                                    J Offline
                                    Jorgen Andersson
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #17

                                    These are 'mathematical' potatoes. :) But feel free to substitute with jellyfish if you want to.

                                    Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello

                                    L 1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • J Jorgen Andersson

                                      These are 'mathematical' potatoes. :) But feel free to substitute with jellyfish if you want to.

                                      Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello

                                      L Offline
                                      L Offline
                                      Lost User
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #18

                                      Could as well have chosen a mathematical ball of lead with 99% water-content. --edit It is misleading, since we have some "experience" with potatoes not shrinking 50% when they lay in the basement.

                                      Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] "If you just follow the bacon Eddy, wherever it leads you, then you won't have to think about politics." -- Some Bell.

                                      J OriginalGriffO 2 Replies Last reply
                                      0
                                      • L Lost User

                                        Could as well have chosen a mathematical ball of lead with 99% water-content. --edit It is misleading, since we have some "experience" with potatoes not shrinking 50% when they lay in the basement.

                                        Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] "If you just follow the bacon Eddy, wherever it leads you, then you won't have to think about politics." -- Some Bell.

                                        J Offline
                                        J Offline
                                        Jorgen Andersson
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #19

                                        Indeed.

                                        Wrong is evil and must be defeated. - Jeff Ello

                                        1 Reply Last reply
                                        0
                                        • L Lost User

                                          Could as well have chosen a mathematical ball of lead with 99% water-content. --edit It is misleading, since we have some "experience" with potatoes not shrinking 50% when they lay in the basement.

                                          Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^] "If you just follow the bacon Eddy, wherever it leads you, then you won't have to think about politics." -- Some Bell.

                                          OriginalGriffO Offline
                                          OriginalGriffO Offline
                                          OriginalGriff
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #20

                                          That's because they start out at 80% water, not 99%. And because nobody regularly checks their spuds for water content... :laugh:

                                          Sent from my Amstrad PC 1640 Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay... AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!

                                          "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
                                          "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

                                          L 1 Reply Last reply
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