打雜工的窩 (Lynn)

資料來源：學習電子報

思考解決方案 

親愛的朋友們，你能想出一個解決方案嗎？

很多年前在印度一個小村落中，有位農夫不幸欠了村中一名女放債人一大筆金錢。

這位女債主既老又肥又醜，她喜愛農夫英俊的兒子，克里夫。

於是她提出了一個協議。她說，如果她能夠嫁給他的兒子，她將放棄農夫的債務。

農夫和他的兒子被這個協議嚇壞了。

狡猾的女債主建議，讓上帝來決定這件事。她告訴他們，她將一粒黑色和一粒白色鵝卵石放到一個空錢袋中。然後兒子必須從錢袋中拿出一粒鵝卵石。

如果他挑選的是黑色鵝卵石，他將成為她的丈夫，父親的債務將得到豁免。

如果他挑選的是白色鵝卵石，他不必和她結婚，父親的債務仍然可以免除。 但是如果他拒絕挑選鵝卵石，他的父親將被關進監獄。

他們站在農夫牧場一條鋪著鵝卵石的路上。當他們談論著的時候，女債主彎下腰去挑選了兩粒鵝卵石。

在她挑選時，眼尖的兒子發現，她拿了兩粒黑色鵝卵石放進袋子中。然後，她要兒子從袋子中挑選一粒鵝卵石。

現在，設想你站在該地。如果你是兒子，你該怎麼做？如果你必須向兒子提供建議，那麼你將告訴他什麼？

仔細分析會產生三種可能：

1、兒子應該拒絕選取鵝花石。

2、兒子應該表明，袋子中都是黑色鵝卵石，揭露債主謊言，反擊該女人的欺詐。

3、 兒子應該選擇黑色卵石犧牲自己，以拯救他父親的債務和監禁。

藉此機會來深思故事。上述故事是希望我們體會橫向思考和邏輯思維之間的差異。

兒子的困境不可能以傳統邏輯思維得到解決。 如果他選擇上述邏輯的答案，想想後果吧。

請問你建議兒子該怎麼辦？

好吧！瞧他是怎麼做的....

兒子把手伸進錢袋中，拿出了一粒鵝卵石。還沒看，一個沒拿穩就掉落到鋪滿鵝卵石的路上，它立刻掉進所有鵝卵石中不見了。

「噢，我怎麼這麼笨」他說。「但是沒關係，只要你看袋子中剩下的鵝卵石，就可以知道我挑選是那種顏色的鵝卵石了」。

由於剩下的鵝卵石是黑色的，必須假定他選擇了白色。而且由於債主不敢承認自己的不誠實，兒子改變了一個不可能的處境成為極為有利情況。

故事的寓意：

最複雜的問題亦有解決辦法。

這只是我們沒有嘗試去思考。

一個人的想法就是一種創意。

英文故事原文
Dear friends, could you think of a solution?

Many years ago in a small Indian village, a farmer had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to a female village moneylender. The female moneylender, who was old, fat and ugly, fancied the farmer‘s handsome son, Cliff.

So she proposed a bargain. She said she would forego the farmer‘s debt if she could marry his son.

Both the farmer and his son were horrified by the Proposal.

The cunning female moneylender suggested that they let Providence decide the matter. She told them that she would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty moneybag. Then the son would have to pick one pebble from the bag.

If he picked the black pebble, he would become her husband and her father's debt would be forgiven. If he picked the white pebble he need not marry her and his father's debt would still be forgiven. But if he refused to pick a pebble, his father would be thrown into Jail.

They were standing on a pebble-strewn path in the farmer's field. As they talked, the moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles. As she picked them up, the sharp-eyed son noticed that she had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. She then asked the son to pick a pebble from the bag.

Now, imagine that you were standing in the field. What would you have done if you were the son? If you had to advise him, what would you have told him?

Careful analysis would produce three possibilities: The son should refuse to take a pebble.The son should show that there were two black pebbles in the bag and expose the moneylender as a lying, back stabbing female cheat. The son should pick a black pebble and sacrifice himself in order to save his father from his debt and imprisonment.

Take a moment to ponder over the story. The above story is used with the hope that it will make us appreciate the difference between lateral  and logical thinking.

The son's dilemma cannot be solved with traditional logical thinking. Think of the consequences if he chooses the above logical answers.

What would you recommend to the son to do

Well, here is what he did....

The son put his hand into the moneybag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, he 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,' he 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 he had picked the white one. And since the moneylender dared not admit her dishonesty, the son changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.

MORAL OF THE STORY

Most complex problems do have solutions.

It is only that we don‘t attempt to think.

A man is but a product of his thoughts.