What is a good way of figuring out a problem? Since people started using computers, lots of so far, most of the people who think about this stuff look people get paid to think about ways to figure out only at the size of the problem. first: it must be so simple and clear that we can explain it to problems. that's what i'm doing. today we a computer. (Or a Human. That's not so different.) understand that some problems are hard, and but some of us feel that you can think more clearly about others are pretty easy. problems when you not only look at their size, but at some second: it must be fast enough so that it is done before other things as well. Sometimes, this way of thinking even hard problems and lunch. (Or before the sun burns out. that's not so different.) I want to help us becoming better at talking about helps us to come up with better ways to figure out problems! what makes a problem hard. (explained using only the ten hundred how to figure them out words people use most often) two other people and myself have come up with a way to finish the game for all five-letter words — as long as you are forced to visit only around ten words. or maybe twenty. so We word-visiting Letter changing game found out that the number of words all-in-all was not so important. instead, what makes the problem hard is how many you are forced to visit. we can even find the shortest such path! usury this is a word game played with the twenty-two words of two letters. gassy cedar funky steal goats shops biddy bible bibbs bhoys bhang bezel bevel beths betel betas bests bergs beret bents besot beset jingo beaky beaks beady beads beach bazar bayou bayed bawls baulk bauds batty baton batik baths bathe bates being beige begun bairn bails bahts baggy bagel badly badge baddy bacon backs babes babel azure barge barfy barfs bares avian avert avers avast avant aquae aptly apsos apses apron apply apple aport 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