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Whataresomefunny,nice,intelligentandmindboggling
trickymathquestionstoask?

Whatistheanswertothefollowingtrickyquestion?

Puzzlesandriddlesarewelcome.
IwanttoknowstufffromMontyHallProblemto"howmanydayswillittake45ratstoeat25
blocksofcheeseiftheyalleatequalpartsandtheydecreaseby3everydayinnumber?"

Namesometrickymathematicalquestionswith
answers?

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Whataresometrickyhypotheticalquestions?

Whataresometrickymathematicsquestions?
Whataresometrickyquestions?

11Answers
KerenzaDoxolodeo,17yo.Melancholic.Lovesprogramming,numbers.
13.9kViews

Youwantnicemathquestion?Herewecome?

HowcanIimprovemyskillsinmathsandin
answeringtrickyquestions?
Whataresometrickyquestionsandanswersrelated
tophysics?
Whataresomemathstrickyproblems?
Whataresometrickyquestionsinlimits(maths)?

SupposeIhavea10digitslock.Thelockhasthefollowingrule:

WhatisthemostmindbogglingMathsquestion
askedinJEE?

Thefirstdigitofthecodeisthenumberofappearanceofthedigit'0'inthepassword

MoreRelatedQuestions

Theseconddigitofthecodeisthenumberofappearanceofthedigit'1'inthepassword
Thethirddigitofthecodeisthenumberofappearanceofthedigit'2'inthepassword
andsoonuntil...

QuestionStats
165Followers
59,965Views
LastAskedJun3

The10thdigitofthepasswordisthenumberofoccurrenceofthedigit'9'inthepassword.
Yourtask,findmypassword?

Edits

9000000000iswrongthatdespitethey're9zeroes(andthefirstdigitis9whichis
correct)butthelastnumberiszerowhichiswrong(becausethereis1nineinthepassword
insteadof0)
Agoodprogrammersolvesthisin3minutes.Thiskindofmathquestiontests2skillset:1.
Readingcomprehensionskill(ifyoudon'treadthisproperlyyouwillrunincircle)2.
Analyzingskill

Iwillnottellexactlytheanswer,buthereishowyoudeduceit(don'tscrollifyoudon't
wanttoseetheanswer)
Firstthingtorealizeisthatnumber9willneverappearhowhardyoutry(asItoldyou
9000000000isimpossible)
Secondthingtorealizethatthenumber8willalsoneverappearhowhardyoutry.You
can'tdosomethinglike8000000010becausethebolded0(theseconddigit)will
conflicted.
Thirdthingtorealizeisthatnumber7willneverappearforthesamereason.Youcan'tdo
somethinglike7X00000100becauseyouwillhaveconflictwithX.
Thehighestnumberthatcanappearis6whichcanbedonebytrialanderror.
(Nowyouknowtheanswer,checkthecomment)
Thereisnomathhere,pointtaken.ButasItoldyou,ifyoudon'thavegoodreading
comprehensionskillandbothanalyzingskill,youwillneedwaaaylongerthan3minutes
(youeitherwillconfusedwiththequestionorrunningincirclemakinguselessapproach)
Thisquestionappearin2015provinciallevelofInformaticOlympiadofIndonesia.During
incontestIcan'tanswerthequestionbecauseIwasintimidatedbythequestionlimit,
whichsomehowscrewmyanalyzingskillanditcostsmyseatinnationallevel.
Duh.

WrittenNov3,2015ViewUpvotes
Upvote 64

Downvote Comments 7+

RobvandenBerg,MScinphysics
8.3kViewsRobhas120+answersinPhilosophyofEverydayLife

ImagineaprisonwithNprisoners(takeahundredifyouwant).ThereareN+1cells,all
isolated,nocontactpossible.Noftheprisoncellsaretheusualcellsfortheprisoners,the
last1isspecial.
Everynight,asinglerandomprisonerwillbetakenintothespecialcell.Theother
prisonersdonotknowwhoandtheycannotfindoutfromtheircellbyanymeans.
Inthespecialcellthereisalightbulb,whichcan,ofcourse,beonoroff.Thebulbhas
infinitelighthours,soyoudon'thavetoworryaboutitburningthrough.Everynight,
whenaprisonerisputinthespecialcell,theprisonercandecidewhethertoactivatethe
lamp(ifitwasoff),todeactivateit(ifitwason),orleaveitalone(ifitwaseither).
Atanypointintime,aprisonercanstepforwardtowardsoneoftheguardsandmakethe
claim"We'veallbeeninthecell.".Ifthisiscorrect,theyaresetfree.Ifit'snot,theyare
killed(ortheprocessstartsover,somepunishment,assumetheprisonersarenotsuicidal).
Beforethisstarts,theprisonersget1daytodiscussamongstthemselveshowtheywantto
playthis'game'.
Thequestiontoyouistoprovideawayfortheprisonerstowin.Findastrategysothat
theycanbe100%certainwhetherthey'veallbeeninthereornot(sojustwaiting10years
andbetting100livesonthe1in8 10 partsisnotallowed).
15

Tomakeitmoremathematical,trytofindtheaveragelengththeseprisonersstayinprison
beforeyourstrategyworks.Youwill,mostlikely,onlybeabletofindanupperbound,but
giveitatryanyway.
Note:
IttookmeafewhourstocomeupwithagoodstrategywhenIfirstheardthispuzzle,but
therearemultiplesolutions.

EditEdit:
Docommentyourstrategyifyouhaveone,I'minterestedinwhatpeoplecancomeupwith
(andiftheycanbeatmypersonstrategy:p).
WrittenNov4,2015ViewUpvotes
Upvote 24

Downvote Comments 5+

SeanLucent,privatetutorofmathematics
2.5kViews

Youandsixstrangersfindyourselvestrappedtogetherinaroom.
Anarmedguardentersandinformsyouthatshortlyyouwilleachbeledtoisolated
individualcells.Afteryouhavebeenseparatedyouwillallbeassignedoneofthe7colours
oftherainbow.Next,youwillbeinformed,innoparticularorder,ofthecoloursthatwere
assignedtotheothersixpeople,butnotofyourown.Ifanyofyouareabletocorrectly
guesstheirownassignedcolourthenyouwillallbesetfree.However,shouldnoneofyou
correctlyguesstheircolourthenyouwillallbethrownintoadeepdarkpit,nevertoseea
rainbowagain.Youwilleachhaveonlyoneattempttoguessyourcolour.
Theguardleavestheroomatwhichpointdiscussioneruptsinthegroup.Someone
suggestsyoualltrytorushtheguardwhenhereturns.Anotherpersonpointsoutthat
theremaybemoreguardsoutsidetheroom,orfurtherlockeddoors,andthatsomeone
wouldsurelygetinjured(orworse)insuchaplan.Athirdsuggestsyouallshouldjust
guessadifferentcolour,thenrethinksandproposesinsteadthatyouallshouldguessthe
samecolour.Afourthcountersthattherewasnothingintheguardsexplanationto
suggestthatall7coloursoftherainbowwouldbeusedintheassignment(otherwiseyou
couldjustguessthemissingcolourwhenyoulearnoftheothersix)northatanyofyou
willhavemeansofdeterminingtheguessesofothersbeforemakingyourown.Thefifth
strangerisagitatedbythenotionthatsomeoneamongyoumaybeatreacherousspy,
intentonundoinganystrategyyoucomeupwith,sothesituationishopeless.However,
thesixthreasonsthatthegroupcannotaffordtothinklikethatandeveryonemustassume
theycantrustoneanother.Thegroupturnstoyou,theonepersonyettocontributetothe
discussion
Isthereastrategy(withintherulesoftheguardsgame)thatguarantees
yoursurvival?Ifnot,whatsthebeststrategyyoucancomeupwith?

Ishallpostthebeststrategyforthispuzzleinaweekorsoasanedit,afterallowingsome
timefordiscussiontobuildinthecomments.Restassured,somemathsisinvolved.Ishall
alsotrytoregularlycheckthecommentsinthistimetoansweranyquestionsandadd
clarificationwheredesired.

UPDATE1:
AnInterestingObservation:YoumayhavethoughtthisalreadybutIcanconfirm
thatitistruethatseeingthesixcoloursthatareassignedtotheothersgivesyouabsolutely
noinformationwhatsoeveraboutyourassignedcolour.
AnInterestingFact:Giventheaboveobservation,itisallthemoresurprisingthatthere
doesexistaperfectstrategythatguaranteesyourfreedom!(Thisapparentdichotomyis
whatmakesthismyalltimefavouriteriddle.)
UPDATE2:
AHint:Despitethemutualexclusivityofyourcolourandtheassignmentsmadetothe
othersixitisimportanttohearwhattheothersixassignmentswerefortheperfect
strategytowork.
AnotherHint:Theresnotalotofobviousmathsintheproblemasitsstated.Letusfix
thatbysubstitutingnumbersforcolours.Wecanmaptherainboworder(Red,Orange,
Yellow,Green,Blue,Indigo,Violet)easilytothedigits0to6
UpdatedMonViewUpvotes
Upvote 10

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RaviHanda,TeachingMathematicsfor10yearsonwww.handakafunda.com
1.4kViewsMostViewedWriterinMathematicalPuzzles

Hereissomethingthatisprettysimplebutgetsagreatresponsefromfriendsand
students.
QuestionSupposeyoulikeabook.ItisavailableontheFlipkartwebsiteata30%
discountandontheAmazonwebsiteata20%discount.Ifyoubuyitviathemobileapp,
Flipkartoffersanadditional20%discountonthereducedpricewhereastheAmazonapp

offersanadditional30%discount.So,whichappyoushouldusetobuy?
YouwillgetanswersfavoringbothFlipkartandAmazonunlessyourentireaudienceis
goodwithbasicmath(thatdoesn'thappenoften).Youwillalsogetsomewisecrackabout
buyingfromAmazonbecauseitisbetter.Theactualansweristhatitdoesnotmakeany
difference.Bothareofferingyouthesameprice.
Letussaythebookcosts100Rs.
ViaFlipkart:Websiteoffersa30%discountbringingdownthepriceto70Rs.Theflipkart
appoffersanother20%discount(on70Rs.)i.e.adiscountof14Rs.Thisreducesthe
priceto56Rs.
ViaAmazon:Websiteoffersa20%discountbringingdownthepriceto80Rs.The
Amazonappoffersanother30%discount(on80Rs.)i.e.adiscountof24Rs.Thisreduces
thepriceto56Rs.
Asyoucansee,bothofthemareofferingittoyouatthesameprice.Sogoahead,buyit
fromAmazonbecauseitisbetter.
WrittenMar16ViewUpvotes
Upvote 17

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NandakumarS.G.,ObservingeverydaylifewillmakeanyonePhilospohical.
422Views

AnandplacestwoacesandaJackonatableinarandommanner,butbynotingtheir
positions.Youaretoidentifyoneace.Youmaypointatacardandaskanyyes/no
question.IfthecardisanAce,Anandwillreplytruthfully.IfthecardisaJack,Anandwill
replyinaRandommanner(eitherayesorano).
Whatwillyouask?
OkaysothisquestionisasimplerversionofmuchharderquestionbyGeorgeBoolos.
AndbysolvingthisyouwillbeabletogetapartialsolutiontoBoolossoriginalquestion.
http://www.thebigquestions.com/b...
Thislinkgivesthesolutiontothisquestionandtheoriginal.

WrittenMay25ViewUpvotes
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GlennRhoads
621Views

(1)Whatisthesmallestsetofweightsthatallowyoutoweighonabalancescaleevery
integernumberofkilogramsupto40?
(2)InasmalltownthereareNmarriedcouplessuchthatoneofthepairhascommitted
adultery.Eachadultererhassucceededinkeepingtheirdallianceasecretfromtheir
spouse.Sinceitisasmalltown,everyoneknowsabouteverybodyelse'sinfidelity.Inother
words,eachspouseofanadultererthinksthereareN1adulterers,buteveryoneelse
knowsthatthereareNadulterers.
Peopleofthistownhaveatraditionofdenouncingtheirspouseinchurchiftheyareguilty
ofadultery.Sofar,ofcourse,noonehasbeendenounced.Inaddition,peopleofthistown
areallperfectlogicians,andcanbeexpectedtofigureouttheimplicationsofanything
theyknow.
AskQuestion
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Apriesthasheardtheconfessionofallthepeopleinthetownandistroubledbythestate
ofmoralturpitude.Hecannotbreaktheconfessional,butknowingofhisflock'slogical
turnofmind,hehitsuponaplantodoGod'swork.HeannouncesinchurchoneSunday
thatthereisatleastoneadultererinthetown.

Whathappens?
(3)Supposeyouboreacylindricalholestraightthroughthecenterofasphere.Thelength
oftheholemeasuredalongtheinsideedgeofthespheresremainderis6inches.What
volumeofthesphereremains?
(4)Explainthefollowingparadox.Supposeyouhaveathinverystretchablerubberinner
tube(ahollowdoughnutshape).Theinnertubehasagoodsizeholeinit.Itsverydifficult
todobutsuchaninnertubecanbeturnedinsideoutthroughthehole.Beforedoingthat,
wegluealargeelasticband/stringaroundtheinsideitgoesaroundtheholebutison
theinsideofthetube.Glueasmallelasticband/stringaroundtheoutsideyoucanthink
ofitasputtingthebandinacirclearoundacylinderandthenbending/stretchingthe
cylinderbringingtheendstogetherintoadoughnutshape.Observethatthetwoelastic
bandsareinterlocked.Nowturntheinnertubeinsideoutthroughthehole.Theouter

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bandmovestotheinsideandtheinnerbandmovestotheoutside.Butwhenyoumovethe
bandstotheoppositesidesofthetube,theyarenolongerlinked!Itisphysicallyimpossible
toseparatetwointerlockedcircleswithoutbreakingoneofthemyetapparentlywehave
justdoneso.Explain.
Partialanswerto(2)withoutexplanation.Alladulterersgetdenounced.Butonwhich
day(s)dothesedenouncementsoccur?
Answerto3withoutexplanation.36pi.:)
Note:Thevolumeofasphereis4/3pir^3whereristheradiusofthesphere.Thevolume
ofonesphericalcapispih/6(3r^2+h^2)whereristheradiusofthecylinderandhis
theheightofthecap(measuredatthecenter).
Hinton4:Makeamodeloutofclothandthread.Usetwodifferentcoloredmarkingpens
forthecircularbands.
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