Cleverness When It Counts - Lauren Ipsum: A Story About Computer Science and Other Improbable Things - page 79

“No, I mean the answer is the same even if you had two wolves instead. You can't leave the
goat alone with anything. If you change your point of view, it's easy. I think.”
“Go on,” said the General.
Laurie thought a little more, then wrote down her idea. It looked a bit like the algorithms
back at Tinker's:
1. Take the goat over to the other side.
2. Come back empty.
3. Take the wolf over, but then bring back the goat.
4. Leave the goat and take the mandelbroccoli over.
5. Come back empty.
6. And finally, take the goat over again!
Darius studied Laurie's idea for a while, his hands moving this way and that as he thought it
through.
“I believe this will work. The goat won't like going back and forth so much, but it's better
than getting eaten,” said Darius. “Now what is it you wanted, miss?”
* * *
At last, Laurie arrived back at the Office of Perimeter Security. “General Case, sir? General
Darius signed my Pass.”
“Hmm,” Case hmmed, scribbling a signature below Darius's.
“Thank you, sir.”
“Hmm.”
“Sir? One more thing,” Laurie said.
“Hmm?”
“I don't think anyone is stealing your fenceposts. It's just that you need eleven posts. Like
this.”
“Hmm!”