The "Magic Coin" problem:
- There is a room with a 64x64 grid of coins
- All coins have a heads and tails side and start in random orientation (~50% heads-up, ~50% tails-up)
- One coin is the "magic coin" but is indistinguishable from the other coins
- You have a friend with you who enters the room first and is shown which coin is the magic coin
- Your friend has the option to flip ONE of the 642 coins (or they may flip no coins)
- Your friend leaves the room (out a back door) and you enter the room
- You must determine the location of the magic coin
Stipulations:
- You are not allowed to see the initial state of the coins (you cannot see the coins until after your friend has left the room).
- You and your friend may communicate, but only before your friend enters the room. Once your friend has entered the rom, you effectively never communicate with them again.
- The only possible action your friend can take is to flip a coin completely (no rotating, moving, marking or the like).
- No mechanics exist which are not stated in the problem (e.g. you can't stand a coin up on its edge, yell to your friend through the walls, etc.)
~SPOILER ALERT~
See solutions directory.
Feel free to submit pull requests with new solutions!