IBM Research3/31/2026

Ponder This Challenge - April 2026 - The Unlabeled Clock

Gadi Aleksandrowicz
- Ponder This We are given a strange analog clock - its dial has no markings, and although it has three hands that move continuously (not in steps), they are all of the same length and are indistinguishable. Quickly it becomes obvious that the clock is far from useless, since we can usually deduce the time from the cyclic triple of relative angles between its three hands. However, there are still many moments in time that cannot be safely deduced from the state of the clock, because there are...