A riddle of ice and fire dragons - Henri Picciotto

翻译人员: KIWI KIWI 校对人员: Zizhuo Liang

It’s your first day in your new job as Center Realm’s official cartographer,

这是你作为中央王国 官方制图师的第一天,

and you've already got a big problem.

你已经遇上了一个大问题。

Center Realm is home to three elder dragons: two ice, one fire,

中央王国是三条远古龙的家: 两条冰龙，一条火龙,

and they’ve lived in harmony on the east coast for centuries.

他们已经在东海岸 和睦地生活了几个世纪。

But scouts have sighted three fire dragons and five ice dragons

但是侦察兵们看到三条火龙和五条冰龙 正在飞越西部海洋。

flying across the Western Ocean.

You’ll only have a few hours to assign them their designated regions

在他们到达之前，你只有几个小时的时间 给他们分配指定的地区。

before they’ll arrive.

Elder dragons are extremely territorial.

远古龙的领地意识非常强。

Each must have its own, officially acknowledged stomping ground.

每一条都必须有自己的、 得到官方承认的领地。

They’ll peacefully roost there unless their region borders another dragon

他们将和平地栖息在那里，

除非他们的领地与 另一条同类的龙的领地接壤

of the same type,

in which case the matching dragons will go on a rampage.

在这种情况下，这对龙会大打出手。

However, fire and ice dragons can border each other,

然而，火龙和冰龙的 领地可以相互接壤，

and matching regions can touch at corners.

同种领域之间也允许角落相接。

You’ll soon have 11 dragons and just 8 regions.

你很快就会迎来11条龙 和有限的8个地区。

Fortunately, you have enough political capital to create 3 new regions,

幸运的是，你有足够的政治资本 来建立三个新的地区,

each of which must be completely enclosed spaces.

每一个都必须是完全封闭的。

Add more or otherwise mess this up, and you’ll lose your job and your head.

继续增加，或者用其它方式把事情搞砸， 你就会丢掉工作和脑袋。

Where do you draw lines and place the new dragons?

你将在哪里画线 来安置新来的龙？

Pause here to figure it out for yourself. Answer in 3

在这里停下来自己想一想。 [答案在3秒后出现]

Answer in 2

[答案在2秒后出现]

Answer in 1

[答案在1秒后出现]

It isn't difficult to create three new regions.

建立三个新的区域并不困难。

What is more challenging is to make sure the result

更具挑战性的是确保 每条龙都远离自己的同类。

will keep each dragon away from its own kind.

For instance, this can be neither ice nor fire,

比如，这个区域 不可以是冰也不能是火,

because it borders both.

因为它与两者都接壤。

However, create a new region like this, and suddenly there are viable options.

然而，创建一个像这样的新区域， 就瞬间提供了可行的选择。

Why did that work? Look at the point where these four regions meet.

这样为什么可行呢? 看看这四个区域的交汇点。

If you go around it, it alternates between fire and ice.

如果你绕过了它， 就会在火和冰之间交替。

Before the new line was added, that wouldn’t have worked.

在增加新线之前， 这是行不通的。

Nor would 5 or 7 regions.

分成5个或7个区域也不行。

6 and 8, however, both do.

但是分成6个或8个， 便都可以。

The pattern is that points where lines meet must be surrounded

这其中的模式是线相交的点 必须被偶数的区域包围。

by an even number of regions.

As long as that’s true, you can color the map in two colors,

只要这一点成立，你就可以 只用两种颜色给地图上色，

by alternating them around those points.

方法是围绕这些点交替使用。

In our initial arrangement, there were six such meeting points.

在我们最初的筹备中， 有六个这样的交汇点。

So what we want to do is connect those to each other.

所以我们要做的 就是把它们连接起来。

Each line adds a single new region that touches both meeting points.

每条线都增加一个新的区域， 该区域与两个交汇点相接触。

There are several ways to do this to accommodate all 8 new dragons.

有几种方法都可以做到， 容纳下八条新的龙。

You’ve done such a great job that your boss puts you in a ship

你做得实在太好了， 你的老板把你送上了一条船

and sends you out across the Western Sea to investigate

并派你穿越西海去调查

where these new dragons are coming from.

这些新龙是从哪里来的。

There you’re met with a civilization in disarray.

在那里你会遇到一个混乱的文明。

Their 17 elder dragons are ravaging the countryside, wiping out the peasants,

他们的17条古龙正在肆虐农村， 屠杀农民,

devastating all the people and their thatch-roofed cottages.

毁灭了所有的人和他们的茅草屋。

And here there aren't just ice and fire dragons, but lightning dragons too.

这里不仅有冰龙和火龙， 还有闪电龙。

Their people will only allow the creation of two new regions.

他们的人民只允许创建两个新的地区。

Where do you create new regions and place all the dragons?

你将在哪里建立新的区域并 安置所有的龙？

Pause here to figure it out for yourself. Answer in 3

在这里停下来自己想一想。 [答案在3秒后出现]

Answer in 2

[答案在2秒后出现]

Answer in 1

[答案在1秒后出现]

Unfortunately, our meeting-point trick won’t suffice

不幸的是，我们的交汇点技巧 对此无能为力

now that there are three dragon types,

因为现在有三种龙,

so we need to find another method to identify problem areas.

所以我们需要找到另一种方法， 来识别问题区域。

A great way to do so is to experiment:

一个好方法是进行实验:

focus on one area and start coloring until we run out of possibilities.

专注于一个地方，然后开始着色， 直到穷尽所有可能性。

Take this section.

以这一部分为例，

These 3 regions all border each other, so they need to be different colors.

这三个区域相互接壤， 所以它们需要不同的颜色。

But they also all touch this giant territory, which we now can’t color.

但是他们也都接触到了这个 我们现在无法上色的巨大领地。

To generalize the issue, when there are 4 regions that all border each other,

概括地说就是， 当有4个地区彼此接壤时,

it's impossible to color them with three colors.

只用三种颜色是不可能的。

The map has two other such areas.

地图上还有另外两个这样的区域。

So what you need to do is break them up.

所以你需要做的就是拆散它们。

And once again, the key is drawing lines between points

同样，关键是在多个问题区域

where multiple problematic regions touch.

接触的点之间画线。

No matter how you do it,

不管你是怎么做的,

you’ll effectively subdivide the giant territory into smaller ones.

你都能把这片巨大的领地， 有效地细分成更小的领地。

Now coloring the map becomes a logic puzzle.

现在给地图着色变成了一个逻辑难题。

So long as you approach it systematically by starting in one area and radiating out,

只要你系统地从一个区域开始， 向外辐射,

you’ll reach an arrangement that you can fit all your dragons into,

你就可以完成一种安排， 把所有的龙都安置好,

shifting the colors as needed.

根据需要改变颜色。

Just assign this region last, because it’ll have two options.

最后分配这个区域， 因为它有两种选择。

You've saved not one, but two continents from certain ruin.

你拯救了不只一个， 而是两个大陆免于毁灭。

Now to see if you can find a giant eagle and hitch a ride back home.

现在看看你是否能找到一只巨鹰， 让它载你回家。