Paradoxes

• Paradox: Rebuilding A Ship

  Students will grapple with a 2,500-year-old paradox about a ship that gets rebuilt two different ways.

• Paradox: The Barber’s Paradox

  Students will grapple with The Barber’s Paradox about a barber who may (or may not) shave himself.

  Show 2 Steps

  1. Students hear the barber’s paradox. Does he shave himself?

  2. Students work out the contradiction, then write their own version using a different character.

• Paradox: Crocodile Dilemma

  Students will grapple with The Crocodile Dilemma, a paradox from Ancient Greece in which a set of parents negotiate with a tricky crocodile who has stolen their baby.

  Show 2 Steps

  1. Students meet the crocodile dilemma: a crocodile will return a child only if the parents guess his next move.

  2. Students work out why the parents’ guess creates a paradox.

• Paradox: The Liar’s Paradox

  Students puzzle through three variations on The Liar’s Paradox.

  Show 3 Steps

  1. Students examine the statement “This statement is a lie” and find its contradiction.

  2. Students analyze a more complex version with two conflicting statements.

  3. Students consider Pinocchio’s claim that his nose is about to grow.