[ExI] bar sinister gets more than you, was:... gets more than you do

[spike]

Earlier I wrote:

…

Here’s the game, ExI-chatters: I place some number V of imaginary dollars in a vault.  You name your bid, N virtual dollars.  Imagine some unsavory character gets the larger of either N or V-N.  

I don’t know the amount in that vault either…

Name your bid and state your reasoning, if any.

Is this identical to any ordinary trivial guessing game?  State your reasoning if any.

spike

 

It occurred to me that without some kind of indication of a range of possible amounts in the vault, this is any ordinary trivial guessing game.  But if we assume the amount of money in the vault is somewhere between 0 and 6,283,185 dollars with each amount being equally probable, the problem becomes a calculation.

 

Those who posted me offlist, now what say ye?

 

It occurred to me it was in bad taste to put Dr. Gruber in the subject line, so we can go with a fictitious bad guy, such as Simon Bar Sinister or Mr. Potter the evil banker from the Jimmy Stewart classic.  With that information on the max amount in the vault, you can do a calculation to suggest the optimal strategy.  

 

If you post onlist, post your bid first before you explain your reasoning please.  The vault opens Tuesday 5 pm US west coast time.

 

spike

 

 

 

 

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