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teh.pwnerer
Canada110 Posts
"If you push the button, 2000 people die. If you do not push the button, 2001 people die. You have one hour to decide." You assume this man means business. So what do you do, and why? (By the way I did not come up with this, I remember seeing it somewhere.)  | ||
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Hurricane
United States3939 Posts
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YPang
United States4024 Posts
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ilovezil
United States4143 Posts
On August 27 2008 09:05 Hurricane wrote: Don't push it. It gives you longer to think of a way to stop it, also with the chance of him bluffing, not pushing is definitely the best choice because it buys you more time for something to happen to stop it. I agree with what you're saying, but the problem becomes more complicated since there are so many unknown variables. Assuming that the man is as dangerous as he seems, he's most likely capable of pulling something within the one hour, so you might not have as long a time as you think. Plus, there are always the bizzare possibilities such as there's a certain timing to when to push the button to limit casualties. I don't know though, I might be missing something within the information presented, but that's all I can immediately come up with. | ||
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Lemonwalrus
United States5465 Posts
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Caller
Poland8075 Posts
take button shove down throat GG in all seriousness, I would probably not press the button, because I would guess he is bluffing as he has no way to do so. | ||
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Raithed
China7078 Posts
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ketomai
United States2789 Posts
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Pervect
1280 Posts
B. Complain of a faulty button and ask to contact his manager. C. Masturbate. D. All of the above. This is what the SAT's trained you for, choose wisely. | ||
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Lemonwalrus
United States5465 Posts
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XCetron
5226 Posts
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kleenexboxman
United States2 Posts
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thoraxe
United States1449 Posts
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CapO
United States1615 Posts
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Slithe
United States985 Posts
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Dromar
United States2145 Posts
On August 27 2008 09:05 Hurricane wrote: Don't push it. It gives you longer to think of a way to stop it, also with the chance of him bluffing, not pushing is definitely the best choice because it buys you more time for something to happen to stop it. That's true. If there's even a tiny chance he's bluffing/has a heart attack/you all get saved or whatever, you've got a higher EV. Either way, if you choose to push the button, don't do it until the last possible moment to maximize the chance that something interferes. But I assume the intent of the question is to ask "would you kill 2000 people to save 2001 people?" As if you should carry some heavy burden for pressing the button. In that respect, my answer is press the button, easy. | ||
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prOxi.swAMi
Australia3091 Posts
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CapO
United States1615 Posts
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FreeDoM[YA]
Canada855 Posts
I wouldn't press the button until the time is nearly up. Assuming the police are onto this I would stall for as long as possible and then probably press the button. If you think of it either way ur killing atleast 2000 people. If you don't press it 2001 will die due to your stubbornness and weak conscious, if you push it, 2000 people will die that were inevitably going to die anyway. | ||
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Grobyc
Canada18410 Posts
On August 27 2008 10:01 freedom yay wrote: I'm going to make the assumption that this room is underground, thick concrete walls, a door locked form the outside and absolutely no way to escape.. I would think about it.. alot.... I wouldn't press the button until the time is nearly up. Assuming the police are onto this I would stall for as long as possible and then probably press the button. If you think of it either way ur killing atleast 2000 people. If you don't press it 2001 will die due to your stubbornness and weak conscious, if you push it, 2000 people will die that were inevitably going to die anyway. | ||
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MeriaDoKk
Chile1726 Posts
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Ghost151
United States290 Posts
push the button, so i can save one person at least, otherwise they are all dead? what kind of question is this? lol, unless there's like a way to persuade the guy in an hour to free everybody But I assume the intent of the question is to ask "would you kill 2000 people to save 2001 people?" As if you should carry some heavy burden for pressing the button. In that respect, my answer is press the button, easy. you all make too many assumptions. We don't know how many people in total are in the room, we don't know if the 2001st person is yourself or not. We don't know whether there are only 2k people in the room and #2001 is yourself, if there are 2001 people in the room and you could potentially save 1 of them, if there are 2000 people in the room and by pressing the button you save yourself, or if there are far more people in the room that would bear witness to you murdering 2000 people by your action or 2001 by your inaction. It's too vague to come to conclusions like those that are quoted. From what we are given in the OP all we know is either 2000 or 2001 people *will* die whether you act or not. The question being asked is what value does one human life (regardless of whose it is) hold for you? BTW my decision is to press it. Either way 2000 people are fucked, and you might as well do your best to save one (even if human beings for the most part don't derserve it) And strictly speaking, refusing to press the button is an act in itself, so yes you kill people either way in my view...better it be 2000 than one more. | ||
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Swarmy
Canada70 Posts
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolley_problem | ||
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Nitrogen
United States5345 Posts
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FR4CT4L
Australia697 Posts
Then you true fight for survival against 800 pissed off special forces commandos begins. Either that or the person you save is 95 or something. I'd probably press the button. | ||
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GoldenSun
21 Posts
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skyglow1
New Zealand3962 Posts
On August 27 2008 11:05 GoldenSun wrote: Press the button and think about Schrödinger's cat's experiment. That way you'd think the people in the warehouse are all in a limbo state between death and living thus you don't have to feel guilty about killing them. Hahaha awesome! | ||
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ShmotZ
United States581 Posts
by sheer guilt that i stripped 2000 people from there lives would probably lead myself to suicide myself making it 2001 either way. | ||
micronesia
United States24779 Posts
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CapO
United States1615 Posts
On August 27 2008 11:23 ShmotZ wrote: no, i will not have the death of 2000 be by my hand. by sheer guilt that i stripped 2000 people from there lives would probably lead myself to suicide myself making it 2001 either way. emo n00b! | ||
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TeNken.1
United States226 Posts
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micronesia
United States24779 Posts
On August 27 2008 12:14 TeNken.1 wrote: This reminds me of the scene in dark knight with the two boats...I would either not do anything, or whip out my invisible snes controller and micro battle him to the death. Yeah I immediately thought of this and half-assumed this blog was inspired by that scene. However, it's very difficult to say what you would do in that situation. | ||
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raiame
United States421 Posts
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BottleAbuser
Korea (South)1888 Posts
Then again, fuck this kind of hypothetical situation - there's always another way. "Die trying" is always available. | ||
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doubleupgradeobbies!
Australia1325 Posts
On August 27 2008 11:31 micronesia wrote: I'd demand a method to arrange for all 4001 people to be killed. Damn right, the world is overpopulated anyway. Assuming you are not one of either the 2000 or 2001 the more people that die the better. In which case don't press the button until he tells you that the 2001 people are dead, then press it to see if another 2000 then get to die :D | ||
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