Again, let's look closer at the hypothetical table that was built in the
previous step. This table closely resembles one that was already discussed
in the previous step, and was found to be contradictory. In fact, this table
has the same basic fault:
No
1
2
3
4
5
Col
yellow
blue
red
green
white
Nat
Norw
Dane
Brit
Swede
Germ
Bev
tea
milk
coffee
Cig
Dunh
Prince
Pet
horse
Indeed, one of the owners of the house 2, 3 or 4 should smoke Blue Master,
since we know already that none of the owners of house 1 or 5 smokes it.
And as far as:
12.
The owner who smokes
Blue Master
drinks
beer.
— one of the owners of the house 2, 3 or 4 should drink beer.
However, our hypothetical table shows that none of them can drink beer.
So the second of three possible distributions leads to a contradiction,
and should therefor be discarded (along with the first one).
This makes the third distribution:
No
1
2
3
4
5
1
Norw
Germ
Brit
Swede
Dane
2
Norw
Dane
Brit
Swede
Germ
Norw
Dane
Brit
Germ
Swede
the only remaining possibility, and we have no other choice,
but to try to follow it.
No
1
2
3
4
5
Col
yellow
blue
red
green
white
Nat
Norw
Dane
Brit
Germ
Swede
Bev
milk
coffee
Cig
Dunh
Pet
horse
From this point on solution rolls down the hill and choices become easy.
Can you figure out what those choices are?