MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD – A2

Problem Set No. 1

Mathematics in the Modern World

1. Alice, Ben and Carl collect stamps. The exchange stamps among themselves
according to the following scheme: Alice gives Ben as many stamps as Ben has and
Carl as many stamps as Carl has. After that, Ben gives Alice and Carl as many
stamps as each of them has, and then Carl gives Alice and Ben as many stamps as
each has. If each finally has 64 stamps, with how many stamps does Alice start?

a. (Analysis)
Statement 1: If each finally has 64 stamps
Statement 2: Carl gives Alice and Ben as many stamps as each has
Statement 3: Ben gives Alice and Carl as many stamps as each of them has
Statement 4: Alice gives Ben as many stamps as Ben has and Carl as many stamps
as Carl has
b. Let:
x = Carl’s number of stamps
y = Alice’s number of stamps
z = Ben’s number of stamps
c. According to the statement 1
x = 64 | y = 64 | z = 64
According to the statement 2
So…
| 64 ÷ 2=32 |
Original number of stamps each/Before Ben give Alice and Carl stamps

Carl Alice Ben

x = 128 y = 32 z = 32

Ben gives Alice and Ben as many stamps as each has/After.

Carl
MIRASOL, ELIZA KATE B. GED102 – A2
128 – 64 = x
x = 64

Alice
32 + 32 (received from Carl) = y
y = 64

32 + 32 (received from Carl) = z Ben

z = 64

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According to Statement 3

BEFORE: AFTER:

Alice = 16 Alice = 16 + 16 (received from

Ben) = 32
Ben = 112
Ben = 112 – 64 (given to Carl)
Carl = 64 – 16 (given to Alice) = 32

Carl = 64 + 64 (received from

Ben) = 128
According to Statement 4

AFTER:
BEFORE:
Alice = 104 – 56 (given to Ben) –
Alice = 104 32 (given to Carl) = 16

Ben = 56 Ben = 56 + 56 (received from

Alice) = 112
Carl = 32
Carl = 32 + 32 (received from
Alice) = 64

Answer: Alice has 104 stamps in the start.

2. Solve the following cryptarithms. In each problem, letters represent a single digit MIRASOL, ELIZA KATE B. GED102 – A2
only.

a. (HE)2 = SHE
ANSWER: 625
b. WRONG
+ WRONG
------------------
RIGHT

ANSWER: 50876

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 MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD – A2

3. How many squares of all sizes are in an 8x8 checkerboard?

Checkerboard Size Squares Unit squares
8x8 64 1 x 1 unit squares
7x7 49 2 x 2 unit squares
6x6 36 3 x 3 unit squares
5x5 25 4 x 4 unit squares
4x4 16 5 x 5 unit squares
3x3 9 6 x 6 unit squares
2x2 4 7 x 7 unit squares
1x1 1 8 x 8 unit squares
= 204
total
squares

4. In order to encourage his son in the study of algebra, a father promised the son P8
for every problem solved correctly and to fine him P5 for each incorrect solution.
After 26 problems, neither owed anything to the other. How many problems did the
boy solve correctly?

Because “neither owed anything to the other,”

5 x 16 =80
8 x10=80
80-80=0
The son got 10 correct answers.

5. Find 3 solids and their measurements whose surface area is 60 square units.
 Rectangular Prism
 Triangular Prism
 Cube
i. Rectangular Prism Surface Area: 2 (lw + wh + hl)
w=2|l=5
2l + (2) (5) + 5l = 30
7l + 10 = 30 MIRASOL, ELIZA KATE B. GED102 – A2
7l = 20
l = 20/7
20
Rectangular Prism = or 2.86
7
ii. Triangular Prism
A = 2 (area of the triangle) + (perimeter of triangle) (height of the solid)
The (perimeter) (height) makes up the rectangle sides of the prism.
Sides of Base of the base triangle – 3,4,5 and Pythagorean triple.

The area of the triangle would be 1/2 b x h = ½ 3 x 4 = 6 square units

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 MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD – A2

By multiplying to 2, we get 12.

60 - 12 = 48 square units for the (perimeter) (height).

We know that the perimeter of the base triangle is 3 + 4 + 5 = 12

By substitution:
48 = 12 (height)
Height = 4 units.
60 square units is a triangular prism with base sides 3,4,5, and height 4.

iii. Cube

Surface area of Cube = 6 a 2 or 10 = 6 a 2

To get 60 square units, we can take 60 = 6 a 2

Thus, the side of the cube should measure square root of 10 units.

6. If a pup is worth a pooch and a mutt, and a pup and a pooch are worth one bird dog,
and two bird dogs are worth three mutts, how many pooches is a pup worth?
Let: pup = x | pooch = y | mutt = z | bird dog = a
Then: 2(x+x-z)=3z
x=y+z 4x-2z=3z
a=x+y 4x=5z
2a=3z z=4x/5
Then: x=y+4x/5
y=x-z 5x=5y+4x
a=x+x-z x=5y

A pup is worth 5 pooches

MIRASOL, ELIZA KATE B. GED102 – A2
7. If it is now 10:45 am, what time will it be in 143,999,999,995 minutes from now?

24 hours x 60 minutes = 1440 minutes/day.

Add 5 to 143,999,999,995
We will have 144,000,000,000,
The time would be 5 minutes earlier: 10:40am

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8. Find the units digit for the sum 1325 + 481 +5411.
The unit digit is “3”
1325 3 follows a powers cycle with a period of 4:
3→ 9 → 7 → 1 → 3 → 9 → 7 → 1 …
So, since 25 = 1 (rem. 4) the units digit of 1325 will be 3 (the same as 131).
The units digit is “4”

4 follows a powers cycle with a period of 2:

481 4 → 6 → 4 → 6…
Since 81 = 1 (remainder 2) the units digit of 481 will be 4 (the same as
41).

The units digit is “5”

5411 The unit digit in the power cycle of 5 has a period of 1, meaning it is
always the same digit no matter what power it’s raised to. → 5.

We add the unit digits of these terms: 3+4+5 = 12.

12 has a units digit of 2. The answer is 2

9. Mang Ruben has only an 11-liter can and a 5-liter can. How can he measure out
exactly 7 liters of water?

There are steps of which he can measure out 7 liters of water.

 First, He needs to fill up the 11-liter can and transfer 5-liter water to the 5-liter
can. After that, he should empty the 5-liter can.
We can say that11-liter can has 6 liters remaining and the 5-liter can is empty.

 Second step, from the 6 liters in the 11-liter can, transfer 5 liters to the 5-liter can.
Again, he should empty the 5-liter can.
Then the 11-liter can has 1 liter of water left and the 5-liter can is empty.
MIRASOL, ELIZA KATE B. GED102 – A2
 Third step, transfer the remaining 1 liter of water from the 11-liter can to the 5-
liter can.
We can say that the 11-liter can is empty and the 5-liter can has 1 liter of water.

 Lastly, Fill the 11-liter can with water and transfer 4 liters of water to the 5-liter
can to fill it. Empty the 5-liter can.
Then, now measured an exactly 7 liters of water in the 11-liter can while the 5-
liter can is empty.

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10. An egg vendor broke all the eggs that he was delivering to a local store. He could
not remember how many eggs there were in all. However, he did remember that
when he tried to pack them into packages of 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 he had one left over
each time. When he packed them into packages of 7, he had none left over. What is
the smallest number of eggs he could have had in the shipment?

Let x = number we wish to find.

rem = remainder
x rem 2 = 1
x rem 3 = 1
x rem 5 = 1
x rem 4 = 1
x rem 6 = 1
x rem 7 = 0
We will discard some divisors.

 •Discard 2 since the greatest common divisor (GCD) of 2 & 4 is 2.

 •Discard 6 since the greatest common divisor (GCD) of 6 & 3 is 3.
We will equate the following.
X = rem 3 + rem 4 + rem 5 + rem 7

Next, we will equate each rem with anti-factors of themselves.

X = 4×5×7 + 3×5×7 + 3×4×7 + 3×4×5

X = 140 + 105 + 84 + 60
X = 140(2) + 105 + 84(4) + 60(7)
X = 280 + 105 + 336 + 420
X = 1141
We need to reduce the x by getting the least common denominator of 3, 4, 5 and 7

LCD (3,4,5,7) = 420 MIRASOL, ELIZA KATE B. GED102 – A2

1141 - 420 = 721

721 - 420 = 301

The answer is 301.