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 Riddles

A train full of passengers goes through a tunnel. When the train comes out from the other end, there is no single person on the train.

How did it happen?

Asked by Neha on 26 Dec 2025


John was piloting a plane behind a car but was never able to overtake it. Why?

Asked by Neha on 04 Dec 2023

Three people check into a hotel. They pay $60 for the rent of the room. After they check-in, the manager realize that the rent for the room is $55. So, he gives $5 to the bellboy and asks him to give it to them. The bellboy thinks that it will be difficult for the three people to share $5 among them and seeking the personal benefit, he pockets $2 and gives the remaining $3 to them.

Now, each person paid $20 and got back $1. In this manner, each of them paid just $19 which totals to the amount of $57. The bellboy has $2 with him and adding them, we get $59. So where is the remaining $1?

Asked by Neha on 02 Aug 2023


Do You See It?

Do You See It?

Asked by Neha on 17 Feb 2022

I am a word of 12 alphabets.

* Alphabets 12, 4, 7, 2, 5 : Eastern beast of burden
* Alphabets 1, 8, 10, 9 are street made famous by Sinclair Lewis.
* Alphabets 11, 3, 6 are past.

On whole it means a person suffering from delusions of greatness.

What Is it ?

Asked by Neha on 05 Jul 2021

John is looking at Jenifer, but Jenifer is looking at Jacob. John is married, but Jacob is not.

Is a married person looking at an unmarried person ?

Asked by Neha on 08 Feb 2021


Two boys were admitted to a school. When the headmaster asks them about their parents, they tell him that they have same parents (father and mother). On further inquiry, it turns out that they both share the same date for their birthday.

"Are you twins," ask the headmaster.
"No," replies the boys.

Is it possible?

Asked by Neha on 22 Feb 2024

Two men play a dice game involving roll of two standard dice. Man X says that a 12 will be rolled first. Man Y says that two consecutive 7s will be rolled first. The men keep rolling until one of them wins.

What is the probability that X will win ?

Asked by Neha on 13 Apr 2023

John and his team plan to rob a safe. They got just one chance to break the code else the local police will be informed. Below are clues:
A) Exactly one number is perfectly placed: 9 8 1
B) Everything is incorrect: 9 2 4
C) Two numbers are part of the code of the safe but are wrongly placed: 0 9 3
D) One number is part of the code of the safe but is wrongly placed: 1 4 7
E) One number is part of the code of the safe but is wrongly placed: 7 8 3

Asked by Neha on 27 Apr 2024


Role Action
Block Prevents the target player from acting
Redirect Change target player target.
Save Protects the target player from death.
Seer Sees all actions that occurred
Murderer Kills the target player

The following five players are playing:

Andy
Brian
Chris
Daniel
Fred

You are Andy the Seer and you saw the following things:
a) Brian was redirected to Chris.
b) Chris was blocked.
c) Daniel was killed.

Who is the murderer then?

Asked by Neha on 26 Mar 2025

Hot Articles

Amazing Facts

Challenging

There is a cryptic organization called Cicada 3301 that posts challenging puzzles online, possibly to recruit codebreakers and linguists.