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  • This has nothing to do with physics, but I want to make a bet with you and 99 other people:

  • 100 in total. You'll all stand in a line, take a one dollar bill out of your pocket

  • and write your position in line on the bill. Then I'll collect the bills, take them to

  • a separate room, put each one into its own one of 100 identical boxes, and randomly rearrange

  • the boxes.

  • The game is this: each of you come into the room and try to find which box your bill is

  • in - but you're only allowed to come in one at a time, you're only allowed to peek in

  • half of the boxes, and you aren't allowed to change anything about the boxes or move

  • bills around. If you find your own bill, great! Show me that you've succeeded and then leave

  • the bill in its box. And regardless of whether or not you find your bill, you have to leave

  • the room by a different route so you can't tell anyone else what you've seen, and the

  • room is then reset before the next person comes in.

  • At the end, if all 100 of you have successfully found your own bills, you all win and I'll

  • give each of you a hundred dollars plus the one you started with! But if any one of you

  • doesn't find your bill… I keep all the dollars. You are allowed to plan a strategy together

  • with the other players before any of you come into the room, but no communication afterwards.

  • The question is this: should you take the bet?

  • To recap, every person gets to look in half of the boxes, there's no communication between

  • players after they go into the room, and you only win if every single person finds their

  • own bill. $101 dollar payout if you win, nothing if you lose.

  • Take a moment to think about it, then click the links on screen or in the description

  • to make your choice - and find out what the correct answer is.

This has nothing to do with physics, but I want to make a bet with you and 99 other people:

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