[gerdesj]

One commentator here questioned why is this on HN (and was DVd somewhat) There is the fact that dad teaches stuff to daughter. The lesson is fun and interactive. The concepts dealt with are pretty profound and can be quite deep: constraints, maxima and minima.

Well done dad - you've covered some complex stuff in a fun and accessible way. Good skills.

If anyone else doubts why this is valid Hacker News, they may want to simply hand in their nerd card and do something else.

[falsedan]

Slamming my nerd card down so hard the whole table spins around

It's hacker news, not motivational team building shared insight news. I'd expect a GA solver which selected the four pieces which could be constructed into the tallest possible structure (with all the dirty tricks e.g. a boat hull attached to a wobbly assemblage of Giant Base/wing plates with a 12x24 brick balanced on the top), with a Speculation section positing possible future pieces which would allow an even taller structure (with plausible details of the sets & why they would need even longer pieces than those currently available).

[gerdesj]

... and where do you think new hackers come from?

Personally speaking, I have no idea what a GA solver is but my initial solution would involve putting all the pieces on top of each other with their longest edges aligned - that's the maximum. Then we look at the constraints: gravity is a bit of a bugger. etc etc

Keep your card and open your mind. You might be a bright lad but you can still learn to look at problems from a fresh angle. The OP's daughter is in safe hands as far as I can see - she'll learn critical thinking and that is a real gift.

BTW: what is a GA solver?

[vacri]

> with their longest edges aligned

Longest axes aligned. Longest edges is not the maximum. The article's final solution uses a long axis rather than an edge.

[gerdesj]

Whoops, it is surprisingly easy to think one word and type another.

[jedberg]

> what is a GA solver

Genetic Algorithm solver, I assume.

[gerdesj]

Ok, got it (thanks) - something that would simply follow the rules to find a solution yet be unable to think outside the box. It would, for example, not even "think" of dabbing a small amount of Super-Glue on the edges to achieve the theoretical maximum.

I don't recall the initial problem as stated precluding outside assistance.

My point stands: dad is pushing daughter to use the rather large brain that she has to solve a problem. Whether or not she becomes a Hacker as we know it does not matter - she is learning critical and analytical thought processes through this game.

That is one of the many gifts that any parent can bestow on their progeny and I'm impressed at his approach in this case. Society as a whole becomes a little richer as a whole through these little steps.

[52-6F-62]

Couldn't agree more. It's a lesson in perceiving the largest range of possibilities.

Coming from a family with a less money than average North Americans, this is an especially good lesson. For countries with enormous possibility, but few open paths to achievement, the value of this kind of ability in thinking can not be overstated.

[jacquesm]

No, the whole elegance here is in the simplicity of the puzzle, and no child would get excited about anything like what you are suggesting. Unless you're missing a /s tag somewhere.

[striking]

I think the sarcasm is too strong for it not to be a parody of the lightest-gray comments in this thread.

[falsedan]

My opinion is 100% genuine and stupid. i don't read the comments.

[panic]

Genetic algorithms? What is this, 1995? Show me the TensorFlow dataset or this post is as good as [dead].

More seriously, though -- I think problems like this can actually be more interesting than solutions. They get you thinking about what the solution might be. Lots of interesting work starts with a problem rather than a particular solution technique. That said, I'd be interested to see your GA solver solution, or any other solution someone can find!

[gerdesj]

Bugger GA (whatever) thingies. I've got some super glue - stick all Lego bits together on their longest axis: problem solved as posed but probably not as intended.

The large thing between my ears beats the crap out of a GA thingie any day, provided that the problem is loosely defined 8)

[foobarian]

Does superglue work on Lego? I found that gluing pieces of plastic together (especially nice plastic like Lego) is the most challenging of all. Wood, paper, rubber, even metal with welding. The best experience I have with plastics is with PVC and the nasty chemical cements that temporarily dissolve the material.

That said it would probably work well enough for this problem.

[vaara]

You need to use the Kraggle.

[jacquesm]

Yes it works like magic. PVC glue works as well.

[eriknstr]

>I think problems like this can actually be more interesting than solutions

Reminds me of an animated shortfilm I saw not too long ago but not that recently either.

There's this person that has a box full of questions and s/he encounters an elderly person that has "all the answers", and I'm not going to spoil the rest.

I just can't for the life of me remember what it was called and I can't find it with any web search I can think of either. Anyone know which one I'm thinking of?

[josinalvo]

I don't, but I bet you can find it if you ask to "stack overflow movies".

link: https://movies.stackexchange.com/

[fdsfsafasfdas]

Such over-engineering does not smack of interesting material for a site called "hacker news". This is great material in itself, especially considering the context of education here.

[falsedan]

> context of education

Oh, advancement through self-education? There's practically zero pedagogic content on HN. Or in this submission! How did the father guide his daughter? Through examples & showing a restricted subset of the problem? By following the technique in How to Solve It & steadfast avoiding showing the student anything but patiently & gently reminding them of what they know & which skill to apply in each circumstance?

[moeamaya]

And HNers wonder "Why do so few people major in computer science?"

Enabling potential CS Majors to encounter technically-unencumbered problems is a great first step!

[PhasmaFelis]

If novel solutions to trivial technical problems aren't of interest to hackers, I dunno what is.

[falsedan]

> novel

The problem & solution seemed trivial, not novel: tallest structure with _these four_ pieces (get them on their sides) vs. _any four_ pieces (hmm what is the longest piece, will it be stable on its side, can they be stacked, what will help them stack, etc.)

[roryisok]

Hah, my first thought was actually a boat hull a diamond building platform sail!

[timwaagh]

here is mine. collectible somewhere across the atlantic ocean. dont get me wrong i loved lego. but my playing days are about 20 years behind me.

[flukus]

Have you tried recently? It's still fun, just unfairly stigmatized as a kids only thing.

As an adult no one bats an eye if you play something like Cities: Skylines, minecraft or dwarf fortress. There's an army of adults playing FarmVille. So why not lego?