Drinking Philosophers


Cogito ergo sum: ergo diende consumo!

The "Drinking Philosophers" pub is a quite select establishment, having the utmost selection of rare drinks. To uphold its name, the pub has the policy that every guest must absolutely get its drink served in original glasses manufactured especially for the pub and particular to every drink type.

Nowadays, due to its fame, the number of visitors is increasing, and the barman got into an embarrassing situation a couple of times: at some point during the evening he remains without available original glasses, while guests at several tables await their orders.

The problem is that the guests don't leave before having consumed all what they desire. Moreover, piling up empty drink glasses became a popular game among guests, and the barman gets to collect the empty glasses only after the guests have left the table.

Of course the guests are aware of the limited number of glasses, so they usually don't mind waiting for some group at another table to finish drinking before they get a new round. However there is one exception: if the bartender cannot serve immediately the first round they order, they will get angry and leave.

Our barman thinks it's quite easy not to get into an embarrassing situation again, as long as he asks every incoming group what kind of drinks and how many glasses they intend to consume during their stay (allegedly for making sure rare drinks can be timely found in the pub's huge cellar) ...


Last modified on the 30th of January 2007 by Calin Curescu.