The Finland Booth: Three Notices and a Calendar Clash
Yuki wants to run a Finland booth at her school's International Day. She has three notices. Notice A: 'International Day is Saturday, November 9, 9:30-15:00 in the gym. All booth organizers must attend a briefing on Thursday, November 7, at 16:30 in Room 204.' Notice B: 'Booth plans are due to the office by Friday, November 1. Late plans cannot be accepted.' Notice C: 'If it rains, all booths move to the library; volunteers should report to the library desk at 8:45.' Yuki has a dental appointment on November 7 from 16:00 to 16:40, and she will be away from November 1 to November 3. She asks whether she can still participate and what she should do first. Her friend says, 'Just submit the plan on November 4 and skip the briefing; the rain plan is the only real problem.'
1. Is the friend's advice sound? Order Yuki's required actions and identify any conflict.
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The friend's advice is not sound. Notice B sets a hard deadline of Friday, November 1, and says late plans cannot be accepted; submitting on November 4 is therefore too late. Because Yuki is away November 1-3, her first action must be to submit the booth plan before she leaves-by October 31 at the latest-or to arrange for someone to deliver it by November 1 if the office allows a proxy, which the notice does not state. The briefing on November 7 at 16:30 conflicts with her dental appointment from 16:00 to 16:40. She cannot simply skip it, because Notice A says all booth organizers must attend. She should ask the office whether late arrival is permitted or whether an alternative briefing is available. The rain plan is conditional, not a current problem: if it rains, she must report to the library desk at 8:45, which is earlier than the gym time.
2. What information is missing that would decide whether Yuki can participate at all? Distinguish information she can infer from information she must ask for.
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She can infer the plan deadline and the briefing obligation because the notices state them. She cannot infer whether the office will accept a plan delivered by a friend, whether a late arrival at the briefing is acceptable, or whether the dental appointment can be moved. Those are the deciding unknowns. If the office allows neither a proxy nor late arrival, she cannot meet both requirements and should ask whether she can withdraw without penalty or join as a helper rather than a booth organizer. The rain plan does not decide participation; it only changes the location and reporting time. A good answer separates fixed constraints (November 1 deadline, November 7 briefing) from negotiable ones (proxy delivery, late arrival, appointment change).