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If the barber doesn't shave himself, then he must shave himself because he shaves everyone who doesn't shave themselves. But he only shaves those that don't sh
by bigbubba 6y ago
If the barber doesn't shave himself, then he must shave himself because he shaves everyone who doesn't shave themselves. But he only shaves those that don't shave themselves, so he cannot shave himself....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barber_paradox https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barber_paradox
- sumtechguy 6y agoOr there is a second barber and they shave each other? If there is only one barber then it is a paradox.
- bigbubba 6y agoThere is only one barber and he's not bald or otherwise excluded from the 'everybody' in "he shaves everybody who doesn't shave themselves." It's not a lateral thinking problem, or a matter of thinking outside the box. The scenario described is simply impossible. Everybody, including the barber, is either shaved by the barber or [XOR] shaves themselves, which is impossible in the case of the barber. See also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell%27s_paradox https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell%27s_paradox
- prower 6y agoFrom your wikipedia link: The barber is the "one who shaves all those, and those only, who do not shave themselves". The question is, does the barber shave himself? If the answer is "no", then he's shaved from another barber and the problem is solved. Nowhere is stated there's only one barber in the world. Tattoo artists don't tatoo themselves but they're not living paradoxes. How is this different? Again, I'm sorry for the obvious elephant in the room I keep missing. EDIT: I see your answer to sumtechguy, I understand now it's more metaphorical than pratical. In my understanding, the paradox seems to arise when you try to put all your existing elements to fit one of 2 kind of boxes, which are clearly not enough.