Prisoner to be freed

The warden meets with 23 new prisoners when they arrive. He tells them, "You may meet today and plan a strategy. But after today, you will be in isolated cells and will have no communication with one another.

"In the prison is a switch room, which contains two light switches labeled 1 and 2, each of which can be in either up or the down position. I am not telling you their present positions. The switches are not connected to anything.

"After today, from time to time whenever I feel so inclined, I will select one prisoner at random and escort him to the switch room. This prisoner will select one of the two switches and reverse its position. He must flip one switch when he visits the switch room, and may only flip one of the switches. Then he'll be led back to his cell.

"No one else will be allowed to alter the switches until I lead the next prisoner into the switch room. I'm going to choose prisoners at random. I may choose the same guy three times in a row, or I may jump around and come back. I will not touch the switches, if I wanted you dead you would already be dead.

"Given enough time, everyone will eventually visit the switch room the same number of times as everyone else. At any time, anyone may declare to me, 'We have all visited the switch room.'

"If it is true, then you will all be set free. If it is false, and somebody has not yet visited the switch room, you will all die horribly. You will be carefully monitored, and any attempt to break any of these rules will result in instant death to all of you"

What is the strategy they come up with so that they can be free?




Similar Difficult Riddles

What is the unique property of the following words ?
* Revive
* Banana
* Grammar
* Voodoo
* Assess
* Potato
* Dresser
* Uneven

Asked by Neha on 20 Aug 2021


Three people enter a room and have a green or blue hat placed on their heads. They cannot see their own hat but can see the other hats.
The colour of each hat is purely random. They could all be green, blue, or any combination of green and blue.
They need to guess their own hat colour by writing it on a piece of paper, or they can write 'pass'.
They cannot communicate with each other in any way once the game starts. But they can have a strategy meeting before the game.
If at least one of them guesses correctly they win $10,000 each, but if anyone guesses incorrectly they all get nothing.
What is the best strategy?

Asked by Neha on 05 Dec 2023

When a clock is observed, the hour hand is at a minute mark and the minutes hand is six minutes ahead of it.

When the clock is observed again after some time, the hour hand is precisely on a different minute mark and the minute hand is seven minutes ahead of it.

Can you calculate how much time has elapsed between the two observations?

Asked by Neha on 07 Jul 2021


I travel all around the world but always stay in the corner. What am I?

Asked by Neha on 09 Mar 2022

Something Extraordinary happened on May 6th 19778 at 12:34am what was that?

Asked by Neha on 04 Feb 2026

A clock loses 10 minutes each hour. If the clock is set correctly at noon, what time is it when it reads 3 PM?

Asked by Neha on 26 Apr 2025


Can you name three consecutive days without using the words Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday?

Asked by Neha on 24 Mar 2022

I am something people love or hate. I change peoples appearances and thoughts. If a person takes care of them self I will go up even higher. To some people I will fool them. To others I am a mystery. Some people might want to try and hide me but I will show. No matter how hard people try I will Never go down. What am I?

Asked by Neha on 17 May 2021

I have lakes with no water, mountains with no stone and cities with no buildings. What am I?

Asked by Neha on 14 Mar 2025


A man is looking at a photograph of someone. His friend asks who it is. The man replies, “Brothers and sisters, I have none. But that man’s father is my father’s son.” Who was in the photograph?

Asked by Neha on 04 Jul 2025

Hot Articles

Amazing Facts

Rubik’s Cube

The inventor of the Rubik’s Cube didn’t realize he’d built a puzzle until he scrambled it the first time and tried to restore it.