Thinking "Out of the Box"
Many hundreds of years ago in a small Italian town, a
merchant had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money
to the moneylender. The moneylender, who was old and ugly,
fancied the merchant's beautiful daughter so he proposed a
bargain. He said he would forgo the merchant's debt if he
could marry the daughter. Both the merchant and his
daughter were horrified by the proposal.
The moneylender told them that he would put a black pebble
and a white pebble into an empty bag. The girl would
then have to pick one pebble from the bag. If she picked the
black pebble, she would become the moneylender's wife and
her father's debt would be forgiven. If she picked the white
pebble she need not marry him and her father's debt would
still be forgiven. But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father
would be thrown into jail.
They were standing on a pebble strewn path in the
merchant's garden. As they talked, the moneylender bent
over to pick up two pebbles. As he picked them up,the sharp-
eyed girl noticed that he had picked up twoblack pebbles and
put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick her
pebble from the bag.
What would you have done if you were the girl? If you had to
advise her, what would you have told her? Careful analysis
would produce three possibilities:
1. The girl should refuse to take a pebble.
2. The girl should show that there were two black pebbles in
the bag and expose the moneylender as a cheat.
3. The girl should pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in
order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment.
The above story is used with the hope that it will make us
appreciate the difference between lateral and logical thinking.
The girl put her hand into the moneybag and drew out a
pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto
the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost
among all the other pebbles.
"Oh, how clumsy of me," she said. "But never mind, if you look
into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell
which pebble I picked." Since the remaining pebble is black, it
must be assumed that she had picked the white one. And
since the moneylender dared not admit his dishonesty, the
girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an
advantageous one.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Most complex problems do have a solution, sometimes we have to think about them in a different way.
Many hundreds of years ago in a small Italian town, a
merchant had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money
to the moneylender. The moneylender, who was old and ugly,
fancied the merchant's beautiful daughter so he proposed a
bargain. He said he would forgo the merchant's debt if he
could marry the daughter. Both the merchant and his
daughter were horrified by the proposal.
The moneylender told them that he would put a black pebble
and a white pebble into an empty bag. The girl would
then have to pick one pebble from the bag. If she picked the
black pebble, she would become the moneylender's wife and
her father's debt would be forgiven. If she picked the white
pebble she need not marry him and her father's debt would
still be forgiven. But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father
would be thrown into jail.
They were standing on a pebble strewn path in the
merchant's garden. As they talked, the moneylender bent
over to pick up two pebbles. As he picked them up,the sharp-
eyed girl noticed that he had picked up twoblack pebbles and
put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick her
pebble from the bag.
What would you have done if you were the girl? If you had to
advise her, what would you have told her? Careful analysis
would produce three possibilities:
1. The girl should refuse to take a pebble.
2. The girl should show that there were two black pebbles in
the bag and expose the moneylender as a cheat.
3. The girl should pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in
order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment.
The above story is used with the hope that it will make us
appreciate the difference between lateral and logical thinking.
The girl put her hand into the moneybag and drew out a
pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto
the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost
among all the other pebbles.
"Oh, how clumsy of me," she said. "But never mind, if you look
into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell
which pebble I picked." Since the remaining pebble is black, it
must be assumed that she had picked the white one. And
since the moneylender dared not admit his dishonesty, the
girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an
advantageous one.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Most complex problems do have a solution, sometimes we have to think about them in a different way.
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