The joyful, perplexing world of puzzle hunts | Alex Rosenthal

譯者: Val Zhang 審譯者: Helen Chang

It's 4am, you've been awake for forty hours,

早上四點，你已經四十個小時沒睡了，

when you unlock a puzzle containing this video

你解開了一個謎題，裡面有支影片：

of some kind of dance-off between a chicken and a roller-skating beaver.

一隻雞和一隻溜直排輪的海狸在尬舞。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

The confusion and delight you're experiencing

此時你所感受到的困惑和喜悅，

is a typical moment at the MIT Mystery Hunt,

就是參與麻省理工學院 尋寶競賽的典型感受，

which is basically the Olympics meets Burning Man

基本上， 它就像奧運遇上了燃燒人節慶，

for a specific type of nerd.

針對某種怪胎舉辦。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Today, I'm going to take you inside this strange,

今天，我要帶領你們進入 這個奇特、自尋煩惱

intellectually masochistic and incredibly joyful world.

且極富趣味的世界。

But first, I have to explain what I mean when I say "puzzle."

但，首先，我得要解釋 我所謂的「謎題」。

A puzzle-hunt-style puzzle is a data set.

尋寶形式的謎題是一種資料集。

It can be a grid of letters, a sudoku, a video, an audio --

它可由文字、數獨、 影像、聲音所構成，

it can be anything that contains hidden information

它可能是任何帶有隱藏資訊的東西，

that can eventually resolve into an answer that is a word or a phrase.

最終能夠被破解，精煉成一個答案， 可能是個字或句子。

So, to give you an example,

舉個例子，

this is a puzzle called "Master Pieces."

這個謎題叫做「大師之作」。

It consists of 10 images of LEGO people looking at piles of LEGOs.

這謎題由樂高人盯著一堆樂高的 十張圖片所構成。

And to save us some time, I'm going to explain what's going on here.

為了節省時間，我直接解釋狀況。

Each of the piles of LEGOs is a deconstructed work of art

每一堆樂高都是件藝術作品的解構，

in the style of a famous artist.

依循某一位知名畫家的風格。

So, does anybody recognize the artist on the left?

有沒有人可以認出最左邊這一幅 誰的作品呢？

They used a lot of red.

他用了許多紅色。

I heard "Rothko," yeah.

我聽到有人說「羅斯科」，沒錯。

The second one?

第二張呢？

(Audience) Mondrian.

（聽眾說）蒙德里安

Alex Rosenthal: Yeah, well done.

亞歷克斯·羅森塔爾：耶，做得好

And the third one? This is the hardest one --

第三張呢？這是最難的一張。

Yeah, Klimt, I heard it.

是的，克林姆，我聽到了。

Well done, the color is the biggest clue there.

做得好，顏色是最明顯的線索。

So the puzzle has various clues

這個謎題有不同的線索

that tell you what matters here are the artists,

告訴你關鍵的是這些畫家，

not the specific works of art.

而不是哪一幅作品。

And what you need to do is then look at what you haven't used yet,

然後你必須看看， 還有什麼線索是你沒用上的，

which is the number of LEGO people in each painting.

像是每幅畫前面樂高人的人數。

And you can count them

你數了人數，

and then count into the artists' last names by the same number of letters.

然後比對畫家姓氏的字母排序。

So there's three people in front of the Rothko on the left,

最左邊有三個人站在羅斯科的畫作前面

so you take the third letter, which is a T.

所以你取第三個字母，是「T」

There's only one in front of the Mondrian, so you take the first letter, M.

只有一個人站在蒙德里安的畫前面， 所以你取第一個字母「M」

And there's three again in front of Klimt, so you take the third letter, I.

同樣的，有三個人站在克林姆的畫前面， 所以你取第三個字母「I」。

You do that for all 10 of the original artists

以此類推完成十個作家的作品， 依次排序。

and put them in the order,

and you get the answer, which is "illuminate."

你便得到答案「ILLUMINATE」。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Puzzles like this are about communicating an idea.

像這樣的謎題都試圖傳達一個概念。

But where I'm trying to be as clear as possible for you now,

在此，我嘗試想為各位說得透徹，

puzzles have to navigate the line between abstraction and clarity.

謎題必須平衡拿捏在抽象與具體之間。

They have to be obtuse enough to make you work for it,

謎題必須相當程度地易懂， 讓人去解它；

but elegant enough so you can get to the aha moment,

但也必須夠巧妙， 讓人享受心領神會的頓悟時刻，

where everything clicks into place.

讓每一件事情串聯之後，恍然大悟。

Puzzle solvers are junkies for this aha moment --

解謎題的人就像成癮者， 追尋著頓悟時刻——

it feels like a brief high and an instant of pristine clarity.

帶來短暫的高度亢奮 和瞬間的豁然開朗。

And there's also a deeper fulfillment at play here,

此外，人們的自我成就感也是原因之一，

which is that humans are innate problem-solvers.

人類天生是問題的解決者。

That's why we love crosswords and escape rooms

這也是為什麼我們喜歡 拼字、密室逃脫，

and figuring out how to explore the bottom of the ocean.

思考如何探索海底。

Solving deviously difficult puzzles expands our minds in new directions,

解決不同的困難謎題 以不同的面向拓展了我們的心智，

and it also helps us come at problems from diverse perspectives.

它也協助我們 以多元的觀點去思考問題。

These puzzles come in various puzzle hunts,

這些謎題有許多不同的規格跟形式。

which come in various shapes and sizes.

There's one-hour ones designed for novices,

有為新手設計的一個小時賽、 二十四小時的接力賽、

24-hour road rallies,

and the puzzle hunt of puzzle hunts, the MIT Mystery Hunt.

還有尋寶遊戲中的尋寶遊戲， 像是麻省理工學院的尋寶競賽。

This is an event that takes place once a year

這是一年一度的活動，

and has around 2,000 people descending on MIT's campus

大約有兩千人 遍佈著麻省理工學院的校園，

and solving puzzles in teams that range from a single person to over 100.

從一個人到超過一百個人的團隊， 成群結隊地解著題。

My team has 60 people on it --

我的團隊有六十個人，

that includes a national crossword puzzle tournament champion,

包含全國性的填字遊戲冠軍、

a particle physicist, a composer,

粒子物理學家、作曲家、

an actual deep-sea explorer,

現實生活中的深海探險家，

and me, feeling like "Mr. Bean goes to Bletchley Park."

而我感覺自己像是 「豆豆先生逛 X 電台」。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

That's actually an apt comparison, because one year involved a puzzle

這其實是很貼切的比喻， 因為某一年，有一個謎題

where you had to construct a working Enigma machine

就是必須用紙板建構出 可運作的恩尼格瑪密碼機。

out of pieces of cardboard.

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Each Mystery Hunt has a theme.

每一屆的尋寶競賽都有一個主題。

Past ones have included "The Matrix" and "Alice in Wonderland."

曾有的主題像是「駭客任務」、 「愛麗絲夢遊仙境」，

It's often pop culture- and literary-based themes.

通常是流行文化或文學背景的主題。

And the goal is to find the coin

而目標是找到一枚硬幣，

that's been hidden somewhere on MIT's campus.

它被藏在麻省理工學院校園的某處。

And in order to get there, you have to solve around 150 puzzles

為了要解題， 你必須解開大約 150 道謎題，

and do various events and challenges.

並參與不同的活動跟挑戰。

I had done this for about 10 years without ever dreaming of winning,

我參加了這個活動將近十年 從沒想過要得獎，

until January of 2016,

直到 2016 年的一月，

where 53 hours into a hunt whose theme is the movie "Inception,"

在將近 53 個小時的投入 而這次的主題是電影《全面啓動》，

we haven't slept in days, so everything is hilarious ...

我們已經好幾天沒睡了， 所以所有事情都變得很滑稽…

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

The tables are covered in piles of papers, of our notes and completed puzzles.

桌上佈滿了成堆的 紙張、筆記、已解開的謎題。

The whiteboards are an unintelligible mess of three days' worth of insights.

而白板上混雜了三天以來 令人難以看懂的洞察。

And we're stuck on two puzzles.

而我們卡在兩個謎題。

If we could crack them, we would get into the endgame,

如果我們可以解開， 我們就抵達最後階段，

and after hours of work, in a magical moment,

而在數個小時的工作之後， 在一個神奇的時刻，

they both fall within 10 seconds of each other,

兩個謎題被解開的時間 差距不超過十秒，

and soon, we're on the final runaround,

很快到了最後「跑來找去」的環節，

a series of clues that will lead us to the coin,

一連串的線索 將引領我們去找那個硬幣，

and we're racing through the halls of MIT,

我們在麻省理工學院的穿堂奔跑著，

trying not to knock over or terrify tour groups,

試著不要撞到或嚇到觀光客；

when we realize we're not alone,

然後發現我們並不是唯一的團隊，

there's another team on the runaround as well,

另外一個團隊也在這個最後環節中，

and we don't know who's ahead.

我們不知道彼此誰是領先的。

So, we're a mess of anxiety,

我們既焦慮又期待， 既緊張又缺乏睡眠。

anticipation, exhilaration and sleep deprivation,

when we arrive at the Alchemist,

當我們來到校內的煉金者雕塑，

a sculpture in which we find ...

我們找到了…

this coin.

這個硬幣。

(Cheers)

（歡呼聲）

Yeah.

耶！

(Applause)

（掌聲）

And in claiming it, we win the MIT Mystery Hunt

拿到了這硬幣，我們便贏了 麻省理工學院學院解謎競賽，

by a tiny margin of five minutes.

僅以五分鐘的些微差距勝出。

What I didn't mention before

我剛剛沒有提到的是，

is that the prize for winning

贏得比賽的獎品就是 你可以負責建構次年的整個尋寶活動。

is that you get to construct the whole hunt for the following year.

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

The punishment for winning

贏得比賽的懲罰就是 你必須負責建構明年的「整個」活動。

is that you have to construct the whole hunt for the following year.

At the beginning of 2016, I had never constructed a puzzle before --

2016 年初，我從來沒有設計過謎題，

I had solved plenty of puzzles,

我解過了許多謎題，

but constructing and solving are entirely different beasts.

但設計跟解題是完全不一樣的大魔王。

But once again,

同樣的，我很幸運有一個充滿 優秀的導師跟創作者的團隊。

I was lucky to be on a team full of brilliant mentors and collaborators.

So, from a constructor's point of view,

從一個設計者的觀點，

a puzzle is where I have an idea,

謎題是當我有一個想法，

and instead of telling you what it is,

比起直截了當地告訴你，

I'm going to leave a trail of breadcrumbs so you can figure it out for yourself,

我留下了一列麵包屑作為線索 讓你可以自己發現它，

and have the joy and experience of the aha moment.

並享受頓悟時刻所帶來的愉悅與體驗。

This is another way of looking at the aha moment.

這是另外一種方式來看待頓悟時刻。

And what's incredible to me is that this experience,

對我來說這個體驗最不可思議的

which is very emotional and kind of almost physical,

就是它是令人情緒高漲的 幾乎是感覺身歷其境的，

is something that can be carefully designed.

並可以經過精心設計的。

So, to show you what I mean,

為了讓大家明白我的意思，

this is a puzzle I co-constructed with my friend Matt Gruskin.

這是一個我和我的朋友 Matt Gruski 共同創造的謎題，

It's a text adventure,

這是一種文字探險， 是一種復古的冒險遊戲型式，

which is the old-school adventure game format,

where you're exploring, going north, east, south and west,

你可以探索東南西北，

picking up items and using them.

找到物件並使用物件，

And you could get to the end of the game part,

你可能來到遊戲的尾聲 但仍無法解開謎題。

but you won't have solved the puzzle.

In order to do so, you have to recognize a hidden layer of information,

為了解開謎題， 你必須發現訊息裡的隱藏層次。

and the easiest way of seeing it is by mapping the game out.

而最容易了解它的方式 就是把它繪製標記出來。

That looks something like this.

類似這樣。

Does anybody recognize what this is?

有人認出這是什麼嗎？

Yeah, exactly.

對，沒錯。

This text adventure takes place within "Settlers of Catan."

這個文字遊戲發生在「Settlers of Catan」 桌遊之中。（*中譯：《卡坦島拓荒》）

Who here knows what "Settlers" is?

有誰知道「Settlers」是什麼嗎？

Nerds.

（宅宅）

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

If you don't know, "Settlers" is a board game

如果你不知道， Settlers 是一種桌上遊戲，

where you're competing against other people

你與其他人競爭收集資源

to collect resources and use them to build structures.

並使用資源去建設。

And within the text adventure, we hid information in various ways,

而在文字探險裡， 我們以不同的形式藏起資訊，

with which you could reconstruct an entire game.

透過這樣的方式， 你可以重新架構整個遊戲。

You could figure out the roads, the cities, the towns,

你可以找出道路、城市、城鎮、

the resources, the numbers on the tiles, even the dice rolls.

資源、瓷磚的數量、甚至骰子。

You put all that information together and you could extract an answer

你拼湊起所有資訊， 然後從中煉取出答案

in a way that's too complicated to explain right now.

而這方法實在有點複雜， 一時難以解釋。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

But find me afterwards if you really want to know.

如果你很有興趣的話， 演講後可以來找我。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

But what this puzzle emphasized for me

但這個謎題對我來說的意義， 是引發頓悟時刻的換位思考。

is the value of perspective shifts in inspiring an aha.

So, in this puzzle,

在這個謎題裡，

you go from experiencing the world on the ground, as a character,

你從一開始投入角色之中去體驗故事，

to looking down on it from above as if you're playing a board game,

轉換為由上往下俯視的觀點， 彷彿你在玩一個桌遊。

and in that shift,

在這樣的轉換中，

you completely reframe all the information you've been given.

你會重新架構你吸收到的所有資訊。

The hardest part of construction for me is coming up with a great idea for an aha.

對我而言，設計謎題最難的就是 找出包裝頓悟時刻的好主意。

Fortunately, the world is a torrent of ideas and information.

所幸，這個世界充斥著想法跟資訊。

I've seen fantastic puzzles constructed out of the waggle dances of bees,

我看過美好的謎題

以若干主題為靈感， 像是：蜜蜂跳舞，

and the remarkable coincidence that the 88 keys of a piano

以及鋼琴的 88 個琴鍵恰巧可以 跟天空的 88 個星座完美相呼應。

can be perfectly mapped to the 88 constellations in the sky.

Once you find that out, you can't not construct the puzzle,

一旦你找到了這樣的關聯， 你不能直接依此設計謎題，

and it's going to be about having the solvers

必須由解題者心領神會， 找到其中的關聯。

make that connection in their own minds.

Whether you give them stars on a keyboard

不論你要給他們琴鍵上的星星，

or play the celestial music of the cosmos,

或是放一首以宇宙為題的天籟，

you're getting them there, one way or another.

你會留下若干線索引導他們。

Before long, you find yourself staring at a turtle,

不久你就會發現自己盯著一隻烏龜，

and asking yourself, "Is this a puzzle?"

然後自問：「這是一個謎題嗎？」

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

And also, staring at a turtle and saying,

而且盯著烏龜，然後說：

"I never appreciated what multitudes this contains in its shell alone."

「我從沒想過，光是烏龜的殼 就蘊含了有這麼多奧妙。」

This might be a familiar experience to you,

這可能對你是個熟悉的情境，

if you've ever been watching a TED Talk and asked yourself, "Is this a puzzle?"

你是否曾經看著一個 TED 演講， 自問：「這是不是一個謎題呢？」

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

I'm not telling.

我不會告訴你的。

But what I will say

我會說的是： 謎題可能在最意想不到的地方被發現。

is that puzzles can be found in the most unexpected of places.

That brings us back to one of my favorite puzzles of all time,

這帶我們回到我最喜歡的謎題，

which was constructed by Trip Payne.

這是由特里普·佩恩所設計的。

And this time, I'm going to play it for you with the sound on,

現在我要為你們播放這支影片， 開著聲音，

so get ready to name that tune.

準備說出這首歌的歌名。

(Slowed-down mock clucking)

（慢速處理過的模擬鷄叫聲）

(Slowed-down mock clucking)

（慢速處理過的模擬鷄叫聲）

(Slowed-down mock clucking)

（慢速處理過的模擬鷄叫聲）

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Who knows what that is?

有人知道這是哪首歌嗎？

Yeah, "You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman."

對了《You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman》

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

So you can identify that and seven other songs and clips,

你可依此認出其他七首歌跟影片，

and then look at the videos themselves for clues,

然後從影片中找到線索，

where the way that they are filmed and edited together

這些影片拍攝跟剪輯的手法

plus things like the cutaways to the panel of five people

加上線索片段像是五人小組

sitting at a table,

坐在桌子前面，

which is reminiscent of a panel of judges,

令人聯想這是一群評審團，

all of this can suggest "reality competition show."

種種線索顯示這是個 「選拔真人秀節目」。

And either through internet research,

不管是透過網路搜尋，

or from just recognizing this, you can get to the aha,

或是你就是認得， 你來到了頓悟時刻——

which is that these clips are shot-for-shot recreations

這些片段是一個個鏡頭的重製模仿

of lip-synch battles from "RuPaul's Drag Race."

「魯保羅變裝皇后秀」中的 對嘴歌唱表演賽。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

So, why do we do this?

我們為什麼要做這些呢？

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

(Applause)

（掌聲）

You tell me, I don't know.

你告訴我，我不知道。

So, first of all, it's really fun.

首先，它真的很有趣。

But I think it also improves our lives in various ways.

我想它在不同層面提升了我們的生活。

Being able to solve puzzles, when I'm confronted with a challenge,

能夠解開一個謎題， 當我遇到困難的時候，

has allowed me to explore it from multiple perspectives

讓我能夠先從不同的角度 去嘗試探索它，

before I lock in an approach.

在我鎖定單一方法之前。

Also, the process of solving is great training for working with a team,

此外，這樣解題的過程， 對共事的團隊也是很好的練習，

knowing when to listen, when to share,

知道何時該傾聽、何時該分享、

and how to recognize and celebrate insight

該如何辨認跟讚揚洞察。

and being able to construct ahas is a very powerful tool.

而擁有能創造出頓悟時刻的能力， 是非常有力的技能。

Think of how powerful and exciting and convincing an idea is

一個想法可以是多麼的 強而有力、令人興奮、說服人心，

that comes from your own mind,

當它由你的思緒而生，

where you make all the connections yourself.

你獨立完成其間所有的連結。

So in January of 2017,

在 2017 年一月，

after tens of thousands of hours of work,

經過數萬個小時的工作，

we finally run our Mystery Hunt.

我們籌備的尋寶競賽終於開始了。

And it's a different sort of satisfaction than the quick high of an aha moment.

這與解完謎後的頓悟時刻所帶來的 短暫興奮，是不同的成就感。

Instead, it's the slow burn of saying something through perplexing abstraction,

取而代之的是透過引人思考的抽象事物 慢慢醞釀地訴說著什麼，

yet being understood.

但能夠被他人所了解的滿足感。

And when it was all over,

當遊戲結束的時候，

in our exhaustion, we turned to each other and the world, and we said,

精疲力竭之際， 我們告訴彼此並公告週知，

我們說：「我們絕不會再設計謎題了。 這工作量太大了。

"We're never doing this again. It's too much work.

It's really fun, but no more winning."

這很有趣，但不許再贏得遊戲了。」

One year later, in January of 2018,

一年之後，2018 年的 1 月

we won the MIT Mystery Hunt again.

我們再次贏了麻省理工學院尋寶競賽。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

So, we're currently I don't know how many tens of thousands of hours of work in,

所以我不知道 我們還要工作幾萬個小時，

and we're two months out from the 2019 Hunt.

我們離 2019 年的尋寶競賽 只剩兩個月了。

So, thank you for listening, I have to go write a puzzle.

謝謝你們的聆聽，我得去設計謎題了。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

(Applause)

（掌聲）