Thanks for the datapoint. I concur with your friends, I wouldn't ask that question. IMHO even if you get a perfect answer, all you can be sure of is that the ca

Thanks for the datapoint. I concur with your friends, I wouldn't ask that question. IMHO even if you get a perfect answer, all you can be sure of is that the candidate has a good memory and happened to read the right books last night. I'd be more interested in a much simpler problem but with some modifications that prove there's original thought going on. There is a (surprising?) latitude given to interviewers to ask their own questions however, and the best advice I could give to interviewers and interviewees is that the question should really just be a seed to a good technical discussion.