Anyone who has seen the Michael Caine classic will know the ending to the film well.. A coach teetering over the edge of a cliff. Pallets of gold temptingly close, but ever creeping towards the end of the coach, and away from the team that had just stolen it – trying desperately to keep the coach balanced.
And that’s where the film ended. What happened next? How could they retrieve the gold? Well the Royal Society decided to put that question to the general public, in the hope of finding the answer – and at the same time get everyone’s grey matter working.
And that it did – although they were expecting only a few entries, they were inundated with over 2000! Ranging from the bizarre to intrinsically detailed. And the winner? Well the official results will be announced Friday, but I can tell you that The Register thinks a computer consultant will win after he noticed unused space on the coach towards the front. Members of the crew could make their way away from the gold and that would be enough to counter-act the weight. One member of the team could then retrieve the gold. I’m sure everyone will agree we will all be better off when the question is finally answered!