你能解開「愛因斯坦的謎題」嗎？ - Dan Van der Vieren：英語精讀講義

Before he turned physics upside down, 慣用語

在他徹底顛覆物理學之前，

a young Albert Einstein supposedly showed off his genius 講解

據說年輕的阿爾伯特·愛因斯坦展現了他的天才，

by devising a complex riddle involving this list of clues. 片語搭配

設計了一個包含這些線索的複雜謎題。

Can you resist tackling a brain teaser 講解

你能抵擋住去解答這道智力題的誘惑嗎，

written by one of the smartest people in history?

這可是歷史上最聰明的人之一寫出的題目？

Let's give it a shot. 慣用語

讓我們來試一試。

The world's rarest fish has been stolen

世界上最稀有的魚被偷走了，

from the city aquarium.

牠原本在城市水族館裡。

The police have followed the scent

警方順著氣味追蹤

to a street with five identical-looking houses.

到了一條有五棟外觀相同的房子的街道上。

But they can't search all the houses at once,

但他們不能同時搜查所有的房子，

and if they pick the wrong one,

如果他們選錯了，

the thief will know they're on his trail. 慣用語

小偷就會知道警方在追蹤他。

It's up to you, the city's best detective, 文法

這就全靠你這位本市最好的偵探

to solve the case.

來破案了。

When you arrive on the scene,

當你抵達現場時，

the police tell you what they know.

警方告訴了你他們所知道的情況。

1.

1.

Each house's owner is of a different nationality,

每棟房子的主人國籍不同，

drinks a different beverage,

喝不同的飲料，

and smokes a different type of cigar.

抽不同牌子的雪茄。

2.

2.

Each house's interior walls are painted a different color.

每棟房子的內牆漆成了不同的顏色。

3.

3.

Each house contains a different animal,

每棟房子裡養了不同的動物，

one of which is the fish. 文法

其中一隻就是那條魚。

After a few hours of expert sleuthing, 用詞

經過幾個小時的專業偵查，

you gather some clues.

你收集了一些線索。

It may look like a lot of information, 文法

雖然看起來資訊量很大，

but there's a clear logical path to the solution. 片語搭配

但通向答案有一條清晰的邏輯路徑。

Solving the puzzle will be a lot like Sudoku, 文法

解開這個謎題會很像玩數獨，

so you may find it helpful to organize your information 文法

所以你可能會發現將資訊整理成

in a grid like this.

這樣的表格會很有幫助。

To start, you fill in the information 講解

首先，你填入資訊

from clues 8 and 9.

來自線索8和9。

Immediately, you also realize that since the Norwegian 文法

很快你還會意識到，因為挪威人

is at the end of the street,

在街道的盡頭，

there's only one house next to him,

他旁邊只有一棟房子，

which must be the one with blue walls in clue 14. 文法

那一定就是線索14中有著藍色牆壁的房子。

Clue 5 says the green-walled house's owner drinks coffee.

線索5說，綠牆房子的主人喝咖啡。

It can't be the center house,

它不可能是中間那棟房子，

since you already know its owner drinks milk.

因為你已經知道它的主人喝牛奶。

But it also can't be the second house,

但它也不可能是第二棟房子，

which you know has blue walls.

你已經知道那棟的牆壁是藍色的。

And since clue 4 says the green-walled house

而且既然線索4說綠牆房子

must be directly to the left of the white-walled one, 片語搭配

必須緊貼在白牆房子的左邊，

it can't be the first or fifth house either. 文法

它也不可能是第一棟或第五棟房子。

The only place left for the green-walled house 片語搭配

因此，綠牆房子和喝咖啡的人

with the coffee drinker is the fourth spot,

唯一剩下的位置就是第四個位置，

meaning the white-walled house is the fifth. 文法

這意味著白牆房子是第五棟。

Clue 1 gives you a nationality and a color.

線索1給出了一個國籍和一種顏色。

Since the only column missing both these values

既然唯一同時缺失這兩個值的欄位

is the center one,

是中間那一欄，

this must be the Brit's red-walled home.

那這就一定是英國人的紅牆房子。

Now that the only unassigned wall color is yellow, 文法

現在唯一未分配的牆壁顏色是黃色，

this must be applied to the first house,

這必須應用於第一棟房子，

where clue 7 says the Dunhill smoker lives.

而線索7說這裡住著抽Dunhill的人。

And clue 11 tells you that the owner of the horse

線索11告訴你，養馬的主人

is next door, which can only be the second house.

就在隔壁，那只能是第二棟房子。

The next step is to figure 片語動詞

下一步是弄清楚

out what the Norwegian in the first house drinks.

住在第一棟房子的挪威人喝什麼。

It can't be tea.

不可能是茶。

Clue 3 tells you that's the Dane.

線索3告訴你喝茶的是丹麥人。

As per clue 12, it can't be root beer, 用詞

根據線索12，也不可能是沙士，

since that person smokes Blue Master.

因為那個人抽Blue Master。

And since you already assigned milk and coffee,

既然你已經分配了牛奶和咖啡，

it must be water.

那就只剩下水了。

From clue 15, you know that the Norwegian's neighbor,

從線索15中，你知道挪威人的鄰居，

who can only be in the second house,

也就是只能住在第二棟房子裡的人，

smokes Blends.

抽Blends。

Now that the only spot in the grid

現在表格中唯一一個

without a cigar and a drink is in the fifth column,

沒有雪茄和飲料的位置在第五欄，

that must be the home of the person in clue 12.

那一定是線索12中提到的那個人的家。

And since this leaves only the second house without a drink, 文法

因為這使得只有第二棟房子沒有飲料，

the tea-drinking Dane must live there.

所以喝茶的丹麥人一定住在那裡。

The fourth house is now the only one

第四棟房子現在是唯一

missing a nationality and a cigar brand.

缺少國籍和雪茄品牌的。

So the Prince smoking German from clue 13 must live there.

所以線索13中抽Prince的德國人一定住在那裡。

Through elimination, you can conclude 表達脈絡

透過排除法，你可以得出結論：

that the Brit smokes Pall Mall,

英國人抽Pall Mall，

and the Swede lives in the fifth house,

瑞典人住在第五棟房子裡，

while clue 6 and clue 2 tell

而線索6和線索2告訴你

you that these two have a bird and a dog, respectively. 用詞

這兩人分別養了一隻鳥和一隻狗。

Clue 10 tells you that the cat owner

線索10告訴你，養貓的主人

lives next to the Blend-smoking Dane,

住在抽Blends的丹麥人隔壁，

putting him in the first house. 文法

這說明他住在第一棟房子裡。

Now, with only one spot left on the grid, 片語搭配

現在，表格上只剩下一個位置，

you know that the German in the green-walled house

你就知道住在綠牆房子裡的德國人

must be the culprit. 用詞

必定是罪魁禍首。

You and the police burst into the house, 片語搭配

你和警察衝進那棟房子，

catching the thief fish-handed. 慣用語

人贓俱獲，逮住了拿著魚的小偷。

While that explanation was straightforward, 文法

雖然上述解釋聽起來很直接，

solving puzzles like this often involves

但解決這類謎題往往包含著

false starts and dead ends. 慣用語

錯誤的開頭和死胡同。

Part of the trick is to use the process of elimination 片語搭配

訣竅之一是使用排除法，

and lots of trial and error 片語搭配

以及大量的反覆試錯，

to hone in on the right pieces. 片語動詞

來鎖定正確的拼圖碎片。

And the more logic puzzles you solve, 文法

你解開的邏輯謎題越多，

the better your intuition will be

你的直覺就會越好，

for when and where there's enough information

能判斷何時何地有足夠的資訊

to make your deductions.

來進行推論。

And did young Einstein really write this puzzle?

那麼，年輕的愛因斯坦真的寫了這個謎題嗎？

Probably not.

很可能沒有。

There's no evidence he did, 文法

沒有任何證據表明他寫過，

and some of the brands mentioned are too recent.

而且其中提到的一些品牌太新了。

But the logic here is not so different 文法

但這裡的邏輯其實與你用來解方程式的邏輯

from what you'd use to solve equations

沒有什麼不同，

with multiple variables,

尤其是在解多變數方程式時，

even those describing the nature of the universe.

甚至是那些描述宇宙本質的方程式。