Given a choice of two puzzles, one easy and one hard, which is better?
“Seven lost explorers, low on food and water, set up camp in a cold, wilderness area. Placing their hopes on a weather-beaten but still effective hunter’s compass along with an equally timeworn pedometer, three of them plan a short scouting trip with the expectation of discovering where they are. They decide to travel due south for two miles, then due east for two more miles, then due north for yet another two miles, and finally due west for the last two miles. As they believe this eight-mile journey will return them to their campsite, they consider this a safe bet and leave their four companions by the fire.
Five and a half miles into their journey they see a faint light in the distance. As they approach the light, they believe they see another campsite. Quickening their pace, they hurry toward the light only to discover that it is their own campfire with their four companions surrounding it. Knowing their instruments are not faulty, they cannot initially understand how they could have managed an eight mile trip after having traveled only six miles. After a short while, however, they realize what has happened and are happy to know they are no longer lost.”
Easy puzzle: What one place on this Earth could be the location where these seven explorers set up camp?
Hard puzzle: What three other places on this Earth could also be the location where these seven explorers setup camp?
Variations of this puzzle, along with the answers, exist all over the world. But which is the better puzzle? The easy one or the hard one? Much like a magic illusion, once the secret is revealed interest disappears. And yet, how long can an individual ponder a problem before frustration also causes interest to disappear? Perhaps a puzzle should neither be too easy nor too hard. Like the soup in the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, perhaps it should be “just right.” (Above picture courtesy of AceExplorers.)
