Christmas Contest 2024: One Before, One After, and One to Me (60 Hi...

Hi Everyone,

Another year draws to a close. Yes, it is Christmas time again. It has been a strange year for many reasons. The world becomes ever more uncertain. This fills many of us with fear; that is understandable. So much feels far from our control. It is like plunging into the abyss and hoping for the best. The feelings of hopelessness can be overwhelming. It is possible to see hope out of this chaos. I personally feel a combination of the two. The latter feeling can be difficult to reach. If we look at what we can do and where that can take us. The world can start to look a little more certain and a lot more optimistic.

The Christmas Contest is about giving and sharing with fellow participants. This contest enables participants to do that if they please. Participants can win a little by helping other participants win the contest, or they could also act like the Grinch to win the biggest prize for themselves. Beware, being mean has consequences.

Before I begin this contest, I would like to share a new popular Christmas music song and video from the UK. It sends a strong message to the Government about their ‘cost-saving’ policies. It is directed at the policy to scrap winter fuel allowances, which will inevitably lead to the death of many thousands of elderly in the UK over this winter.

Welcome to the 2024 Christmas Contest!

How to Play?

The Christmas Contest involves 3 simple steps.

Choose a present for yourself.
Choose a present for the participant who went immediately before you.
Choose a present for the participant who comes immediately after you.

As there are no participants before the first participant, the first participant gives a present to the last participant to enter (determined once the contest has closed). As there are no participants after the last participant, the last participant gives a present to the first participant. For example, if the contest has six participants, presents are given out as follows.

First participant gives a present to the sixth (last) participant and the second participant.
Second participant gives a present to the first participant and the third participant.
Third participant gives a present to the second participant and the fourth participant.
Fourth participant gives a present to the third participant and the fifth participant.
Fifth participant gives a present to the fourth participant and the sixth participant.
Sixth participant gives a present to the fifth participant and the first participant.

All participants should receive 3 presents.

All the information you need to know to play the game is provided in the question; i.e., no external research is required.

All entries must be made in the comments section of this post.

Each account is only permitted one entry.

Objectives of the Game

This contest has two objectives. The first objective is to receive the highest value of presents (one from yourself and two from two other participants). The second objective is to give the highest value of presents (one to yourself and two to two other participants). These objectives are measured separately; thus, two participants can win Hive Power. The usual contest tie-breaker rules apply. If there is a tie, the participant who entered first wins.

Game Assumptions

There are 12 boxes that may contain presents.
Each box may contain a present worth a stated value, or the box might be empty; therefore, it has no value.
Each box is assigned a probability that the present will be of the stated value.
A participant can give and receive the same present more than once (e.g., Participant 2 could give themselves Present 8 as well as to Participants 1 and 3).

What Information Is Provided?

The values of presents that might be in each box
The probability that the box contains the present of the value stated.

How Are the Results of the Game Determined?

A Microsoft Excel Model is used to determine if the presents are in the boxes. The model will calculate each participant’s value of presents and the value of presents given away, as well as determine the winners. The results post will contain a video generating the above results. The winners will be announced in both the video and written post.

Contest Prizes

The participant with the highest total value of presents received will win 40 Hive Power. The participant who gave away the highest total value of presents will win 20 Hive Power. Hive will be directly powered up to the winners’ accounts. The first 12 entries will be given upvotes.

Let the Contest Begin!

Participants need to choose three presents. One for themselves, one for the participant who went immediately before them, and one for the participant who entered immediately after them. The presents are as follows:

Presents

The table below contains the possible value of the presents inside the above boxes and the probability that these presents are worth this stated value. If they are not worth the stated value, they are worth nothing (i.e., the box is empty).

Present	Possible Value of Presents	Probability
1	300	40%
2	120	30%
3	210	25%
4	30	10%
5	85	70%
6	110	50%
7	250	20%
8	50	90%
9	400	5%
10	160	30%
11	150	80%
12	280	15%

Use this information to decide which presents you choose.

Entry Format

For the Christmas Contest, I expect to see entries made in the following format:

Present for myself:
Present for the participant before me:
Present for the participant after me:

Example of Entry

Present for myself: 9
Present for the participant before me: 11
Present for the participant after me: 2

The closing date and time for this contest is 6 PM Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) on 27/12/2024. Responses after this time will not be accepted. The winners will be announced in the results post along with the video revealing which boxes contain presents. I hope everyone has fun and enjoys the Christmas Contest.

Source: Bing Image Creator

Have an awesome Christmas and a fantastic New Year.

My New Book, Sapien Loop

I have published an ebook on Amazon; it is titled ‘Sapien Loop: End of an Era’. The book is fiction. I do not normally write fiction. However, I felt it was appropriate considering what is happening in the world today. Freedom is the most important thing we have, but we are gradually losing it. I have covered this in many of my posts.

In the story, most citizens do not understand the concept of freedom because they have never really experienced it. In essence, the story is about an alien world that might represent our not-so-distant future. There are many other elements to the story that are an abstract and exaggerated version of our reality. I believe this book to be an important read, and I believe it has the potential to change the way you think.

Brief Summary of Sapien Loop

This story is based on the fictional planet Sapia and its sole country, Sapey. Sapey is portrayed as a form of utopia for all its citizens. No poverty. No war. Almost no crime. Opportunities for all.

This was enough for most citizens, but not all. In one of the small regions, some of the citizens had become discontent. They felt something important was missing in their lives. Their discontent did not go unnoticed. Some of the Sapey elite wanted to weaponise this discontent to gain more power. This created more chaos than they anticipated. This led to further widespread social unrest.

On top of the chaos, ambition and greed provoked another enemy. This enemy was on a mission to settle both new and old scores.

If you want to buy a copy of the book, below are links to the relevant Amazon websites for each country it is available in. The book is priced at approximately US$5.08.

I am also running monthly contests where participants are required to answer questions based on the book. The prize is 30 Hive Power plus upvotes for the first twelve entries. You can recover the cost of the book with just one win.

Christmas Contest 2024: One Before, One After, and One to Me (60 Hive Power to be Won)