Eluding the meshwire

All of us have either cheated or tried to cheat at an exam. Sometimes the cheat method is so cunning that it has to be remembered. Let me tell you of two methods, very similar to each other, developed independently in Bulgaria and Germany.

In high school, we used to have a term exam in Mathematics. Actually, we had term exams in everything, but it was in Mathematics where we had to chat smart. In the beginning of every term, our teacher would give us a one or two hundred problems. Four of those would then comprise the exam. Mathematics was definitely my subject but I still managed to hold my head above the water. There were some of my classmates, however, that were Maths geniuses, as well as some that could not solve their way out of a wet paper bag. What we did, was following. Those of us who had some idea how to solve the hundreds of problems, we put our heads together and solved them probably two weeks before the exam, writing them down really nice and readable with all the small details. Then we photocopied that for all our classmates whose only task was to sit down and study the questions. On the day of the exam, one copy of the solved problems was hidden in a convenient spot (I am not telling which one) in the restrooms. So, if one or more of the exam problems would seem unsolvable, you could always feign (or have a real one, even better) toilet emergency, go to the little humanoids' room and take a look at the elusive solution. Et voilá - the test is passed.

This works fine only if you know the questions or problems that are going to be given. For example it is very useful in the aforementioned situation, as well as all exams where you have to write on one of a series of known questions. This is how the university exams in biology or history can be taken. However, if the exam is a multiple choice test, nothing can ensure that you know all the questions. Unless, of course, there are some unchanging test variants and you acquire them all. Provided the latter is not possible, there are still ways out of the situation. Here, the German students come to help.

A small group of students synchronise their watches before the exam. The smartest of them solves the questions in a flash and then gives a sign. The others start note the time. After a couple of minutes, the smart guy goes out - either to the toilet or hands in his papers or whatever. Suddenly, the others start writing and hand in their answers in a couple of minutes. The secret? Simple. When the smart one goes out, the others take a look at their watches. Let us say, it has been 29 minutes since he went out and the exam had 6 Yes-No questions. And 29 in binary is 011101. So, the first answer is No, the second Yes and so on. Apart from the obvious limitations, occurring at questions with more than one answer or exams with more than 8 questions, this is an amazing method. Go, Germany!

The moral is... cheating is allowed if you do not get caught. (Applicable only for exams, human relations are not governed by this rule).