Carol E. Greenes, Rika Spungin, Justin M. Dom Brow Ski - PROBLEM-MATHICS (Mathematical Challenge Problems With Solution Strategies) - Creative Publications, 1977 - 141p

SPUNGIN
o MBROWSKI

SECTION I-PROBLEMS

PROBLEM-MATHICS:

MATHEMATICAL CHALLENGE PROBLEMS WITH SOLUTION STRATEGIES

Carole E. Greenes Rika Spungin

Justine M. Dombrowski

CREATIVE PUBLICATIONS PALO ALTO, CA 94303

5.077.11

Limited Reproduction Permission: The authors and publisher hereby grant permission to the teacher who purchases this book or the teacher for whom the book is purchased, to reproduce any part of this book for use with his or her students. Any further duplication is prohibited.

Acknowledgements Walter Hayes Ralph White Peggy Mason Barbara Saunders James Leahy Paula Wolf

Illustrations by Bill Eral

© 1977 Creative Publications, Inc.

P. O. Box 10328

Palo Alto, California 94303 Printed in U.S.A.

ISBN: 0-88488-085-0

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction 5

Why Was This Book Written? 5

What Is PROBLEM-MATHICS? 5

What Is in PROBLEM-MATHICS? 5

How Can PROBLEM-MATHICS Be Used? 8

The Proof Is in the Pudding

Problem 13

Discussion 49

A-Mazing

Problem 14

Discussion 51

An Open and Shut Case

Problem 15

Discussion 55

Frosting on the Cake

Problem 16

Discussion 59

Table Top Teaser

Problem 18

Discussion 61

Elementary, My Dear Watson

Problem 20

Discussion 67

Number Neighbors

Problem 21

Discussion 70

The French Connection

Problem 24

Discussion 73

Amusements

Problem 25

Discussion 77

Patience's Patience Pays Off

Problem 26

Discussion 81

The Question Is: What is the Question?

Problem 27

Discussion 84

Towering Numbers

Problem 28

Discussion 88

Sock It Two Me

Problem 30

Discussion 91

The Spider and the Fly: This One Bugs Me!

Problem 31

Discussion 94

Odd Products

Problem 32

Discussion 97

High Rise

Problem 33

Discussion 99

King of the Road

Problem 34

Discussion 105

e

Don't be Square

Problem 36

Discussion 110

Pool-ing Information

Problem 37

Discussion 115

Choo Choo

Problem 39

Discussion 119

Stamp-ede to the Post Office

Problem 40

Discussion 122

Pagi ng All Books

Problem 41

Discussion 125

A Classy Case of Who's Who

Problem 43

Discussion 129

Bed Side Manor

Problem 44

Discussion 133

Number Jotto

Problem 45

Discussion 139

INTRODUCTION

WHY WAS THIS BOOK WRITTEN?

In recent years, there has been a tremendous surge of interest in problem solving in mathematics. This interest has come from a realization that problems that will confront a student in his life often require as much effort for their analysis and selection of appropriate strategies to be used as for the solution process itself. Students have traditionally been taught to solve specific problems tailor-made to illustrate a particular idea or concept; nevertheless, real life problems demand for their solution that the student select from a wide variety

of possible strategies and use a wide variety of conceptual tools.

We have found that students can learn such problem solving skills by exploring problems rich in the variety of strategies necessary for their solution. There exist many collections of mathematical problems worthy of exploration; but, except for concise statements of the answers, these collections have typically not included discussion of the solution processes. It is our belief that exploration of the problem solving strategies is of substantial benefit to the student. By comparing their methods with those of experts, the students can gain insight into the rationale for selection of particular strategies.

WHAT IS PROBLEM-MATHICS?

PROBLEM-MATHies is a collection of 25 mathematical problems with

solution strategies, designed to challenge as well as to teach the reader to become a better problem solver. The problems represent the areas of arithmetic, geometry, algebra, number theory, and logic. The book is intended for students in grades 6-12.

WHAT IS IN PROBLEM-MATHICS?

PROBLEM-MATHies contains two sections. In Section I the 25 challenge problems are presented in situational contexts. The challenge problem pages

are designed so that they may be presented to students as worksheets. Permission is granted to teachers to reproduce the problem pages for their students. The format and graphic illustrations should provide motivation and clarification

of the problem. Teachers may wish to make an overhead transparency of the challenge problem for class presentation.

Section II contains the problem analyses. For each of the 25 problems,

the content area(s) is identified; the mathematical skills necessary for solving the problem are enumerated; and the problem solving strategies that are utilized in the problem's solution are listed. The discussion section presents a detailed description of one or more methods for analyzing and solving the problem. For many of the problems, variations are presented along with their solutions. The variations are analogous to the original problem, allowing students to apply experiences and insights gained from solving the original problem. PROBLEMMATHieS presents 37 variation problems.

5

CONTENT AR EAS

A classification of problems by content areas is presented below.

Arithmetic-Algebra "Don't Be Square" "Paging All Books"

Arithmetic-Number Theory "Stamp-ede To the Post Office" "Number Neighbors"

"An Open and Shut Case"

Arithmetic-Algebra-Number Theory "Towering Numbers"

Arithmetic-Logic "The Proof Is In The Pudding"

Algebra "Bed Side Manor"

"Patience's Patience Pays Off"

Algebra (Probability) "Sock It Two Me"

Algebra-Geometry "H igh Rise"

"Frosting On The Cake" "Table Top Teaser"

"The Spider and the Fly: This One Bugs Me"

Algebra-Number Theory "The French Connection"

Geometry "Amusements" "King Of the Road"

Geometry-Number Theory "Pool-ing Information"

Number Theory "A-Mazing" "Choo Choo"

"Odd Products"

Logic "A Classy Case of Who's Who" "Elementary, My Dear Watson" "Number Jotto"

"The Question Is: What Is the Question?"

6

MATHEMATICAL SKILLS

The purpose of PROBLEM-MATHICS is to develop techniques for solving problems. In order to concentrate on these processes, the student must have previously acquired the mathematical skills or knowledge required for solving the problems. Most of the problems in PROBLEM-MATHICS require only competency in the use of basic arithmetic operations.

PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGIES

For each of the 25 problems, the problem solving strategies used in the discussion section are identified. These strategies include: estimating, simplifying the problem, identifying patterns and generalizing, arranging data, making a diagram, writing an equation, deductive logic, forming a decision structure, and working backwards. A brief description of each strategy follows. After each description, the problem that best exemplifies the application of the particular strategy is identified.

Estimating

Guessing or estimating requires thinking about what the answer to a problem should be. The first guess provides an initial reference point which may be revised or verified as additional data are collected. Estimating is an integral part of trial-and-error methods for solving problems. In the very early stages of problem solving, trial and error is the only technique that some students use. This technique may be tedious, but if used systematically can often provide the solution and/or suggest alternative strategies. ("Amusements")

Simplifying The Problem Simplifying may take two forms:

1. The magnitude of the problem may be reduced to a simpler case or cases (analogous problems). By considering the simpler cases, certain patterns and relationships may be more easily observed-patterns and relationships that may be consistent with the original problem. ("An Open and Shut Case")

2. The problem may be decomposed into several subproblems. Each subproblem may then be analyzed independently, and the resulting information integrated or recomposed into a solution for the original problem. ("Stamp-ede to the Post Office")

Arranging Data

1. Organized listing-The solution to many problems requires the recording of all possible combinations or arrangements. To be complete, this list must be systematically formed. ("Sock It Two Me")

2. Making a table-Ordering data by one or several of their attributes may help solve a problem. A table allows for rapid visual inspection of the data, and often facilitates pattern recognition. ("Table Top Teaser")

7

Identifying Patterns And Generalizing

Once data have been collected and arranged, certain groups of data that have common attributes may be identified. These observed patterns may then be extended and generalized to the solution of the original problem. ("Number Neighbors")

Making A Diagram

A diagram is useful for making an abstract problem more concrete through visual representation. ("The Spider and the Fly: This One Bugs Me")

Writing An Equation

Sometimes it is possible to translate a physical world problem to mathematical terms, solve the mathematical problem, then relate the solution back to the original real world problem. ("High Rise")

Deductive Logic

Deductive logic applies to problems in which the logical relationship

among data must be determined from clues given about the relationship. Clues, which are either given initially or obtained through questioning, are used to progressively reduce the range of possibilities for the relationship until it is precisely determined. ("Number Jotto")

Forming A Decision Structure (Partitioning The Decision Space)

Forming a decision structure involves organizing thought processes in such a way that successive decisions can be made, each conditional upon results of preceding decisions. Its best use is to cover the domain of a problem with the fewest number of questions by partitioning the decision space based on information gained. ("The Question Is: What Is the Question")

Working Backwards

Certain types of problems present the final outcome, and require the problem solver to determine or explain how the outcome occurred. In such instances, working backwards may determine the problem structure. ("Frosting On the Cake")

HOW CAN PROBLEM-MATHICS BE USED?

PROBLEM-MATHIes may be used to augment the mathematics curriculum by providing for the application of mathematical skills while enhancing problem solving abilities.

8

WHOLE CLASS METHOD

A period of time may be set aside each week for exploration of challenge problems by an entire class or by small groups within the class. With teacher guidance, students' solution strategies may be discussed and compared with one another as well as with those presented in PROBLEM-MATICS.

MATHEMATICS LABORATORY OR ACTIVITY CENTER

The 25 challenge problems in Section I may be reproduced and/or laminated to tagboard. Variation problems may be similarly placed on activity cards.

INDEPENDENT ENRICHMENT

The book may be used by the more able and/or more curious students working independently.

GENERAL GUIDELINES

Before the solution processes presented in PROBLEM-MATHICS are

examined, students should be given ample opportunity to "play" with the problem and to devise their own solution strategies. Although certain solution processes have been presented in the discussion sections, these are not exclusive; there are many other ways to solve the problems.

Upon completion of a problem, students should be encouraged to formulate additional variation (analogous) problems, to note similarities among the variations, and to discuss solution strategies.

9

THE PROOF IS IN THE PUDDING *

The host at a party turned to a guest and sa id, "I have three daughters and I will tell you how old they are. The product of their ages is 72. The sum of their ages is my house number. How old is each?"

The guest rushed to the door, looked at the house number, and informed the host that he needed more information. The host then added, "The oldest likes strawberry pudding." The guest then announced the ages of the three girls.

What are the ages of the three daughters? (All ages are whole numbers. It is possible that there may be twins.) Explain your answer.

*The original problem was created by Professor George Polya, Stanford University.

13

A-MAZING

"Different routes" means that at least one section of each route is not the same. For example:

14

A rat is put into a square maze that has a feeding station at one corner. The rat can move along corridors to the feeding area. The corridors are represented by the horizontal and vertical lines.

The rat may only travel upward and to the right toward the feeding station. How many different routes can the rat travel to get to the feeding station from corner A?

DO QiD &1 DDiDD giDDD

jDDDD

Ib

DDtaD @ 00100 DlDOD

iDDDD 6

is different from

AN OPEN AND SHUT CASE

The new high school has just been completed. There are 1,000 lockers in the school and they have been numbered from 1 to 1,000. During recess, the students decide to try an experiment.

When recess is over, each student will walk into the school one at a time. The first student will open all of the locker doors. The second student will close all of the locker doors with even numbers. The third student will change all the locker doors with numbers that are multiples of three. (Change means closing lockers that are open and opening lockers that are closed.) The fourth student will change the position of all locker doors numbered with multiples of four; the fifth student will change the position of the lockers that are multiples of five, and so

on. After 1,000 students have entered the school, which locker doors will be open?

15

FROSTinG on THE CAKE

16

Mr. B. Acre had just finished baking a cake for the mathematicians' banquet. The cake was specially designed in the shape of a cube.

In the process of carrying the cake to the frosting table, Mr. B. Acre suddenly slipped and the cube-cake went sailing into the vat of chocolate frosting. Mr. B. Acre thought quickly, then yelled, "FI RE!" (He knew that no one would come to help if he yelled, "CHOCOLATE").

Almost immediately help arrived and the cake was fished out of the chocolate. Fortunately, the cubecake was still in one piece, but was now frosted on all sides.

Mr. B. Acre proceeded to the banquet hall with his unusually frosted cake in hand.

The mathematicians were delighted when they saw the cube-cake with all of the frosting. They asked Mr. B. Acre to stay and cut the cake.

One of the mathematicians, D.

Liteful, suggested that the cake

be cut into cube-shaped pieces, all pieces the same size. Mr. B. Acre agreed, but before cutting the cake he turned to D. Liteful and asked how many mathematicians would like a piece without frosting, a piece with only one side frosted, a piece with exactly two sides frosted, a piece with three sides frosted.

FROSTING ON THE CAKE

Being a mathematician, D. Liteful responded, "Cut the cake so that the number of pieces without frosting is equal to eight times the number of pieces that have frosting on three sides. You will then have enough of each type of piece to satisfy everyone, with nothing

left over."

How many mathematicians attended the banquet?

How many mathematicians were served a piece of cake without frosting?

How many mathematicians requested a piece with only one side frosted?

. with exactly two sides frosted? . with three sides frosted?

17

TABLE TOP TEASER

As an expert on table arrangements, you are presented

with the following problem:

A large banquet hall contains 427 tables. All tables have square tops and all square tops are congruent. You are to move all of the tables together (no table against the walls) to make an arrangement that will seat the fewest number

of people.

The manager of the banquet hall provides you with a set of rules for joining tables.

Rules:

1. Joined tables must share at least one complete side.

yes

no

18

TABLE TOP TEASER

.;

2. Table tops must form a continuous region.

(Examples with 5 tables)

yes

no

3. Exactly one person must be seated at each exposed side of a table.

For 1 table, the minimum seating capacity is 4.

(Examples with 5 tables) x x x x x

x [1~1~1~1~1III~~~]tt~~~l~~~1tH~t~1~1~~~11 x

x x x x x

Seats 12

x x Seats 10

The minimum seating ca pacity is 10.

If the table arrangement surrounds an open area, people must be seated in the interior, one at each exposed side of a table.

(Example with 8 tables)

x x x

x ~~~It~ ~~~II~ ~f~t~~ x x ~~t~I1~ x~x ttt~ x x ~~~~ff~ ttt t~ff x

x x x

The x's show that 4 people must be seated in the center. This table arrangement seats a total of 16 people.

With 427 joined tables, what is the fewest number of people that must be seated?

19

ELEMENTARY, MY DEAR WATSON

The morning after a big football game, the school guard found the goal posts missing! With better than average luck, the guard had three red-hot suspects by midmorning. The suspects, Andy, Dandy and Sandy, were questioned and made the following statements:

Andy: 1. I didn't do it!

2. I never saw Dandy before.

3. Sure I know the football coach.

Sandy: 1. I didn't do it!

2. Andy lied when he said he never saw Dandy before.

3. I don't know who did it.

Dandy: 1. I didn't do it!

2. Andy and Sandy are both pals of mine.

3. Andy never stole anything.

One and only one of the three suspects is the prankster. One and only one of each of their statements is false. Who lifted the posts?

20

NumDER NEIGHDOR~

,

You may have thought that only people have neighbors. Numbers have neighbors too! Consider the counting numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, .... The first neighbors of 2 are 1 and 3 because 2 differs from both 1 and 3 by one. The first neighbors of 3 are 2 and 4.

The second neighbors of 3 are 1 and 5 because 3 differs from both 1 and 5 by two.

What are the second neighbors of 4?

What are the third neighbors of 5?

A new housing development in the city of Futurama is being planned. To allow for plenty of parks and other recreational sites, houses will be constructed on only one side of each street. The streets will be called First Street, Second Street, Third Street, and so on.

Each street must have more than one house. If there are five houses on a street, then

the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 must be used as house numbers. If there are seven houses

on a street, then the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 must be used as house numbers.

The city planners of Futurama have predetermined the number of houses on each street and how each house is to be numbered.

21

NUMBER NEIGHBORS

A. First Street: On this street, no house may be numbered so that it is next door to its first number neighbor. Thus, the house numbered 2 cannot be next door to either the house numbered 1 or the house numbered 3.

What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on First Street if no house can be numbered such that it is next to its first number neighbor? (Remember, there must be more than one house on the street.)

What is the order of the house numbers?

B. Second Street: On this street,

no house can be numbered so that it is next to either its first number neighbors or its second number neighbors. (Remember that the house numbered 3 cannot be next door to the houses numbered 1 or 2 or 4

or 5.)

What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on Second Street?


C. Third Street: On this street, no house can be numbered so that it is next to either its first, second, or third number neighbors.

What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on Third Street?


D. Fourth Street: What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on Fourth Street if on this street no house can be numbered so that it is next to its first, second, third, or fourth number neighbors?

In what order will the houses be numbered?

22

NUMBER NEIGHBORS

E. The Futurama development will also have a Fifth Street, Sixth Street, and so on.

Can you predict the fewest number of houses that can be built on Tenth Street?

What is the order of the house numbers on this street?

F. What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on K Street, where K is any number?

Show the city planners a scheme for ordering the house numbers on K Street.

G. The city planners decide that they will stop development when there are 100 houses on a single street.

What will be the number name of this street?

How many streets will there then be in the new housing development?

23

THE FRENCH CONNECTION

There is a train depot in each of the following cities in France: Paris, Marseilles, Fountainbleu, Nice, Cannes, Versailles, Orleans, Bayonne, Lyon and LeMans. Each train depot must have a direct line of communication to each of the other depots.

How many direct lines are there between the depots in these ten cities?

If a communication system is to be constructed between 100 cities, how many direct lines will be needed?

How many direct lines will be needed for any number of cities?

24

c§lMUSEMENTS

·R

B

Plans for the new amusement park include a refreshment concession that will be located on the boardwalk, BW. The boardwalk is located near the roller coaster (R) and the carousel (C). Where should the refreshment stand be built so that the distance from the roller coaster to the refreshment stand and then to the carousel will be as short as possible?

25

PATIENCE'S PATIENCE PAYS OFF

Patience Fortitude has just accepted a new position. The pay scale, very low at first, changes

each week. But Patience has patience! She will be paid l¢ the first week, 2¢ the second week, 4¢ the third week, and so on. Each successive week her salary will be twice the amount of the previous week.

How much money in total will Patience have earned after working 4 weeks?

8 weeks?

20 weeks?

26

THE OUESTIOn IS: WHAT IS THE OUESTIOn?

Sandy:

Jan:

Sandy:

Jan:

Sandy:

Jan:

I'm thinking of a number. Bet you can't guess it.

Bet I can.

It will take a lot of guesses to think of this one. The number I'm thinking of is somewhere in the range of

1 through 100.

Oh, that's not hard. I'm sure that I can guess that number.

Well, I'll only answer yes or no to your questions. How many questions do you think that you will have to ask? Hmmmm! That depends on how lucky I am. But, I'm not going to take chances. I am sure that I can guess

your number with at most _

questions.

How many questions does Jan tell Sandy she will ask?

• What are the questions and in what

order should they be presented?

Suppose that Sandy's number were in the range, 1 through 1,000.

What is the least number of questions Jan would have to ask to correctly identify Sandy's number without taking chances?

27

TO\l\lERING NU~BER5

The ancient Greeks (6th century B.C.) were fascinated with numbers and discovered many interesting facts about the set of counting numbers through the construction and analysis of models.

Examine this model of a tower. The tower is made of bricks. Each brick in the model is numbered.

A. For this model of a tower:

1. How many rows of bricks are there in the tower?

2. How many bricks are piled on top of a brick numbered 6?

3. What is the number on the middle brick of the 7th row?

4. How many bricks are there in the 5th row?

5. What is the sum of the numbers on the bricks in the 5th row?

6. What is the number on the 4th brick in the 6th row?


28

TOWERING NUMBERS

8. How many bricks in all are needed to build this tower?

9. How many bricks are numbered with the number4? .

. t

Consider a larger tower with 1,000 rows. The bricks in this tower are numbered in the same manner as in the smaller tower.

B. For this larger tower:


2. What is the number on the middle brick of the 1, OOOth row?


4. What is the sum of the numbers on the bricks in the 59th row?



7. What is the total number of bricks in this tower?

8. How many bricks have the number 13 on them?

29

JOCK IT TWO ms

30

Jack is so busy that he's always throwing his socks into his top drawer without pairing them. One morning Jack oversleeps. In his haste to get ready for school, (and still a bit sleepy), he reaches into his drawer and pulls out 2 socks. Jack knows that 4 blue socks, 3 green socks, and 2 tan socks are in his drawer.

What are Jack's chances that he pulls out 2 blue socks to match his blue slacks?

What are the chances that he pulls out a pair of matching socks?

THE IPIDER AnD THE FLY: THII ons BUGI mEl

/

A hungry spider settles down on the floor in the corner of a room for a midday nap. Suddenly he spies a fly resting on the floor in the opposite corner. "What a yummy snack the

fly would be," thinks the spider. The spider sets out to trap the fly. The spider is clever. He takes the shortest path without walking

on any part of the floor. (No chance of getting squished!)

What is the shortest path if the room is 6 meters long, 5 meters wide, and 3 meters high?

10 meters long, 6 meters wide, and 3 meters high?

31

ODD PRODUCTS

Make two sets of six cards, each set numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Arrange one set of cards in a horizontal line in this order: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Under these cards, place the second set of cards in a horizontal line. Arrange the second set so that when you subtract column by column and multiply the six differences, an "odd" product is produced.

Set I Q W GJ GJ GJ GJ

Setll -0 -00

Differences

? x ? x ? x ? x ? x ?

After you have solved the first problem, start over again using only cards 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Can an odd product be produced?

Can an odd product always be produced for any set of cards, 1, 2, 3, ... n (any number)?

When an odd product is produced for n cards, how many different arrangements of the second set of cards will produce the odd product?

32

GflIGH GRISE

Mr. Ridge, we have a very serious problem. The summer heat has caused the mile-long bridge you built for us last fall to expand 2 feet in length. This matter needs your immediate attention. Since the bridge is only supported at the end points, the bridge has buckled. The buckle is over 50 feet high!

Is Mr. H. Y. Perbole exaggerating?

_Approximately how high is the buckle?

33

KING OF THE ROAD

The illustration shows a highway system with 9 highways that connect 6 cities.

Can you find a route that will take the inspector over each highway only once.

The inspector may pass through tct~~~~~~~~~ the same city more than once.

Figure 1

A new highway inspector has been hired. He has been told that his department is to be on a tight budget. In order to save the taxpayers money, he decides to find a route that will take him over each highway only once.

The diagram in Figure 2 shows another highway system with 9 highways connecting 6 cities.

Can you find a route that will take the inspector over each highway only once?

Figure 2

34

KING OF THE ROAD

Examine the highway systems in Figures 3-18. Can you find in each system a route that will take the inspector over each highway only once? Can you predict, without tracing the route, when the inspector will return to his starting point? When will the highway inspector's plan not be possible?

Figure 4

Figure 3

Figure 7

Figure 11

Figure 15

Figure 16

Figure 8

Figure 12

Figure 5

Figure 9

Figure 17

Figure 13

Figure 6

Figure 10

Figure 14

Figure 18

35

36

DON'T BE SQUARE

The Poly-Gone Demolition team is brought in to demolishall squares in the five-meter by five-meter grid. Demolition charges are determined by the number of one-meter segments removed at $1.00 per segment. What is the minimum charge for demolishing all squares inthegrid?

The president of the Poly-Gone Demol ition Company has a formula for determining the minimum charge for demolishing all squares on any size square grid. What is his formula?

\

POOL -lnG InfORmATion

A simple game of pool may be played on a rectangular table with pockets at each of the four corners. The table's dimensions may vary, but they are always whole number values. The ball must always be 'shot' from the lower left corner, ata45°angle. When the ball hitsa sideofthetable, it rebounds, making a 45° angle with the side of the table .

•

Width = 4 units

(/J +-' C :J

(Y)

II 1: +-'

on c Q) _j

37

POOL-ING INFORMATION

o

5

1

c

The ball continues moving, rebounding from the sides of the table until it drops into a pocket. The illustration shows the completed path of the ball on a 4x3 table. The ball drops into pocket B, after bouncing off the sides five times.

4

(' ./f , /J'f "" C'J
, ,
, ,
, "
, " '~
, , ,
~, ", '" ,
,
, ,
, , , ,
, , , ,
, , , ,
" "
, , "" ""
' ,
, ,
" '"
(~' ',~ '~
~ 2

A

3

B

A. Consider tables with dimensions 2x3, 3x3, 4x6, 4x7, and 5x8. For each of these tables, determine the number of bounces the ball will make before dropping into a pocket, and identify the pocket.

B. Can you find three tables with different dimensions where the number of bounces that the ball makes will be the same and the final pocket will be pocket B? pocket C? pocket D?

C. Using grid paper, explore tables of other dimensions. Without drawing the path, can you formulate a rule for predicting the pocket that the ball will drop into?

Can you predict the number of bounces the ball will make before it drops into a pocket?

Use your pocket rule and bounce rule to determine the pocket and number of bounces for tables of each of the following dimensions (width by length):

5xll

7xlO

6x9

99xlOO

lOOx99

38

;I

•

I

CHOO CHOO

There are several freight cars at a train station. The freight cars are either long or extra-long. The extralong cars are twice the length of the long cars (2 long cars = 1 extra-long car). Long and extralong freight cars can be joined end-to-end to produce longer trains. How many different trains equal in length to 10 long cars can be formed from long and/or extra-long cars?

,

Different trains are formed

by using different combinations of long and extra-long cars, as well as by changing the order of the freight cars. For example,

39

.5TAmp-EDE TO THE PO.5T OFFICE

Phil Atalist has decided to keep postage stamps on hand for emergency use. Phil explains to the postal clerk that he has exactly $1.59 and wishes to purchase stamps so that he could mail any single article requiring $1.59 or less in postage. The postal clerk offers to sell 159 one-cent stamps to Phil.

"Oh, no!" exclaims Phil. "There must be a way to do this with fewer stamps. After all, I really don't want to have to lick that many stamps."

What is the minimum number of stamps the postal clerk should sell, so that Phil will be able to mail an article requiring exactly $.01, $.02, $.03, ... , $1.58, or $1.59 postage?

What could the denominations of these stamps be?

40

PAG InG ALL BOOKS

When books are printed, large sheets of paper are run through the printing presses. These sheets are then folded to form the pages of the book.

You are a bookmaker. Take a rectangular sheet of paper, 8" by 10", and fold it in half to form an 8" by 5" booklet. Number the pages in your booklet from 1 to4. Open the sheet of paper. Notice that 2 and 3 appear

# on one side of the paper, 4 and 1 on the other side. The sum of the 2 page numbers that appear on each side is 5. The sum of all page numbers is 1 +2+3+4= 10.

Now take 2 sheets of paper. Place one sheet on top of the other and fold as before to make an 8-page booklet. Number the pages in order from 1 to 8. Separate and open the sheets of paper.

What are the page numbers that occur on the same side of the sheet?

What is the sum of the 2 page numbers that appear on the same side of a sheet?

What is the sum of all page numbers in this booklet?

Record your data in a table like the one shown below.

41

PAGING ALL BOOKS

Number of Number of

Sheets Pages in

of Paper Booklet

1 2

4 8

3 4 5

10

12

Pairs of Numbers on Same Side

(1,4) (2,3) (1,8) (2,7) (3,6) (4,5)

Sum of Two Numbers on Same Side of Sheet

Sum of All Page Numbers

5 9

1+2+3+4=2x5

1+2+3 ... +7+8=4x9

Now take 3 sheets of paper and make a 12-page booklet. Number the pages, separate the sheets, and open them. Complete the entries in your table for this booklet.

Continue this procedure of making booklets and numbering pages using 4, then 5 sheets of paper.

Imagine that you have made a booklet with 10 sheets of paper. How many pages will the booklet contain?

What pairs of numbers will be on the same side of a sheet? What will be the sum of the 2 page numbers that appear on the same side?

What is the sum of all page numbers?

Suppose that you are designing a 120-page booklet. How many sheets of paper will you need?

What numbers will occur on the same side of a sheet?

42

!

Ofo

I

---- .. ;----

~f1j!J0

~

c§l CLASSY CASE OF 'WHO'S 'WHO

,

Allen, Baker, and Clark are athletes at Classy High School. Only one of these athletes plays on the football team; only one plays on the basketball team; only one plays on the baseball team. Coincidentally, there are three teachers on the faculty at Classy High with the same last names as the athletes. The teachers are identified in the following clues as "Mister."

Use the clues to determine what sport is played by Allen, by Baker, and by Clark. Alsodecidewhere Mr. Allen, Mr. Baker, and Mr. Clark each live.

1. Mr. Baker long ago forgot all the algebra he learned in high school.

2. The basketball player lives in Boston.

3. Mr. Clark lives in Springfield.

4. The teacher whose last name is the same as the basketball player's lives in Lynn.

5. Allen beat the baseball player at pool.

6. The basketball player and one of the teachers, a distinguished mathematician, live in the same city.

43

BED SIDE MANOR

Plans are under way for a new garden to be located adjacent to the famous Whirlby Manor House. A circular walkway will bound the garden area.

John, the grounds keeper, suggests that paths be constructed so that visitors can walk through the garden. These straight paths across the circular garden will also serve to section the garden into several planting beds. John tells the landscape architects that with only 4 paths, 11 planting beds can be formed.

The landscape architects return to their drawing boards and attempt to place the 4 paths to form 11 beds. Alas, they cannot find a way. John insists that this can be done. Can you do it?

One of the landscape architects becomes curious about the maximum number of beds that can be made if more paths are included.

What is the maximum number of beds formed when 5 paths are constructed?

6 paths?

7 paths?

n (any number) paths?

44

NUMBER JOTTO

Number Jotto is a 2-player or 2-team game. One player, the leader, thinks of a 3-digit number in which all 3 digits are different. Other players, by guessing, try to identify the selected number. To guess, a player proposes a 3-digit number in which all 3 digits are different. The leader then gives a response for each of the digits in the guessed number. A "T" response means that a digit in the guessed number is in the leader's number and is in the correct position; a "P" response means a digit in the guessed

number is in the leader's number but is in the wrong position; "F" means that a digit in the guessed number is not in the leader's number.

t7iJ

o

o

For example, suppose that the leader is thinking of 375 and the first player guesses 435. The leader then responds, "TPF." This response indicates that one of the digits in the guessed number (not necessarily the first digit) is correct; one of the digits in the guessed number is correct but in the wrong position; one of the digits in the guessed number is incorrect.

Play Number Jotto.

45

SECTION II-DISCUSSION

THE PROOF IS

IN THE PUDDING *

Content Areas

The host at a party turned to a guest and said, "I have three daughters and I will tell you how old they are. The product

of their ages is 72. The sum of their ages is my house number. Howald is each?"

The guest rushed to the door, looked at the house number, and informed the host that he needed more information.

The host then added, "The oldest likes strawberry pudding." The guest then announced the ages of the three girls.

What are the ages of the three daughters? (All ages are whole numbers. It is possible that there may be twins.) Explain your answer.

Logic

Arithmetic

Mathematical Skills

Basic arithmetic operations

Problem Solving Strategies

Arranging data

Deductive logic

DISCUSSION OF THE PROBLEM

There are three pieces of information presented in the problem:

1. The product of the three ages equals 72.

2. The sum of the ages is equal to the house number.

3. Clues 1 and 2 do not provide sufficient information in order to deduce the three ages. The statement "The oldest likes strawberry pudding" is thus the third critical clue.

Considering clue 1, a list of combinations of three numbers whose product is 72 may be compiled.

(1, 1, 72) (1, 2, 36)

(2, 2, 18) (2, 3, 12)

(3, 4, 6) (3, 3, 8)

(1, 3, 24) (2, 4, 9)

(1, 4, 18) (2, 6, 6)

(1, 6, 12)

(1, 8, 9)

With respect to clue 2, the sums of these combinations may be computed. The sums would be 74,39,28,23, 19, 18, 22,17, 15, 14, 13, 14. At this point the guest knows the house number but is unable to determine the ages of the three girls. This occurs because the house number is produced by more than one combination of ages. The number must be 14 (the only repeated sum). When the guest is presented with clue 3, that there is an OLDEST daughter, he can then announce the ages: 3, 3, and 8. The combination 2, 6, and 6

does not identify an "oldest" daughter. (The three-year-olds were probably twins.)

VARIATIONS

A. Problem-Variation 1

A father presented this problem to his son: "I have 3 boxes. Each box contains a number of dollar bills. If you can guess the total amount contained in all three boxes, the money is yours. I will give you 3 clues:

1. The product of the 3 amounts is 6300.

2. Two of the boxes contain the same amount.

3. The sum of the digits in the total is equal to your only brother's age.

I will allow you to ask only one yes or no question. If you choose the correct question, you should have no doubt about the total."

The son then asks, "Does any box contain fewer dollars than my brother's age in years?" "No," the father answers.

*The original problem was created by Professor George Polya, Stanford University.

49

The son can now determine the correct total. What is the total amount of money in the three boxes?

B. Discussion of Variation 1

It is known that 2 boxes contain equal amounts. All possible combinations of three numbers (where two are equal) whose product is 6300 may be listed.

(3, 3, 700) (5, 5, 252) (15, 15, 28) (2, 2, 1575)

(6, 6, 175) (10, 10, 63) (30, 30, 7)

The sum of each combination of three numbers is: 706, 262, 58, 1579, 187, 83, 67.

Each of these sums has a unique total when its digits are added, except for 706, 58, and 67 (digits sum to 13). The brother's age is 13. Since no box contains fewer than 13 dollars, (15, 15, 28) is the correct combination and the total amount in the three boxes is $58.

C. Problem-Variation 2

A priest and a sexton are taking a walk. They see 3 persons approaching. The sexton says, "How old are those people?" The priest replies, "The product of their ages is 2450. The sum of their ages is twice your age." The sexton thinks for a moment, then says, "I need more information." The priest says, "By golly, you're right. It is enough for you to know that I am older than any of them." The sexton then proceeds to figure out all of the ages. How old are the three people?

D. Discussion of Variation 2

The processes used to solve this problem are identical to those used in the previous problem. The first step is to determine the combination of 3 numbers whose product is 2450. The second step is to compute the sum for each combination. Two combinations produce identical sums (64): (50, 7, 7) and (10, 49, 5).

Since the priest insists that the information, "I am older than any of them" is sufficient to uniquely solve the problem, the sexton then concludes that the priest must be 50 years old and the ages of the three persons are 10, 49, and 5. If the priest were 51+ years old,

then both solution sets would still be possible. Since the solution is unique, the priest must be 50 and the others must be (10, 49, 5).

50

A - MAZING

Content Area

A rat is put into a square maze that has a feeding station at one corner. The rat can move along corridors to the feeding area. The corridors are represented by the horizontal and vertical lines.

Number theory Mathematical Skills

Basic arithmetic computation

r---T""---r--"'T""""""'"Ig

"_+--+-f--t Feed i ng Station

A

Permutation formula (optional)

Recognizing Fibonacci numbers

Problem Solving Strategies Simplifying the problem Identifying patterns and generalizing

The rat may on Iy travel upward and to the right toward the feeding station. How many different routes can the rat travel to get to the feeding station from corner A?

• "Different routes" means that at least one section of each route is not the same. For example:

~
~ ...
__..
~
~~ ... A

Feeding Station

~
~ Feeding Station

is different from

A


A. Initial attempts at solving this problem may involve drawing all possible routes. This

" procedure is tedious and difficult to record. The need for a more systematic, less tedious approach leads to solution process II.

B. Decompose the problem by considering the number of different ways of travelling to each of the points of intersection. For example, there is only 1 way to get to each of the points X, B, C, D, E, F, G, H. There are 2 ways to get to point J (one way by continuing from point D, and one way by continuing from point E). There are 3 ways to get to point K (one way by continuing from point C, and two ways continuing from point J).

The number of possible routes to any intersection point is equal to the sum of the number of different routes at the points of intersection immediately to the left and immediately below the new point.

#

51

x

K
J Q

Feeding Station

B

c

D

A

E

F

G

H

Completing the entire grid from point to point until the feeding station is reached indicates that 70 different routes are possible from point A.

5

15

35

70~ Feeding Station

1

4 10 20
3 6 10
2 3 4 35

1

1

15

1

5

A

1

1

1

1

Note: By turning the configuration diagonally as shown below, a familiar pattern appears, that of Pascal's Triangle.

•

• 2 •

• 3 • 3 • 4 • 6 • 4

• 10 • 10 •

20 •

6 •

21 • 7 •

8 •

36 • 9 •

• 7 • 21

• 8 • 28 •

• 9 • 36 • 84 • 126

• 10 • 45 • 120 • 210 • 252 • 210 • 120 • 45 • 10 •

52

C. The most direct solution can be found by using the permutations formula:

The minimum path is 8 units in length: 4 horizontal + 4 vertical moves. The total number of different routes is equal to the number of permutations of the 8 units of which 4 are horizontal and

4 are vertical.

For this problem,

n=p+q=8 p = 4

q = 4

p = ~ = (4 + 4)!

p!q! 4!4!

8!

70

4!4!

VARIATIONS

A. Problems

1. Increase the dimensions of the maze.

2. Change the configuration of the maze to a non-square rectangle.

3. Eliminate sections of the square-maze configuration as illustrated below.

__.,.___.,.. ...... e Feeding Station

Start

4. Limit direction of movement as on one-way streets. Suppose that a city has the following streets. The arrows along each street indicate the single direction you must follow when driving along that street .

•

Start

53

How many different routes are there from A to L?

B. Discussion of the Variations

When this problem is simplified and the number of routes for intermediate points is determined, the sequence 1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,55,89,144 is obtained. This sequence is the Fibonacci sequence. There are 144 routes from A to L!

CD 0 ® @ ® 8
B ¢> 0 ¢> F ¢> H ¢> J ¢> L
~~~~~~~~~~~
A ¢> C ¢> E ¢> G ¢> I ¢> K.
Start CD CD @ @ @ 54

t

AN OPEN AND SHUT CASE

Content Areas

The new high school has just been completed. There are

1,000 lockers in the school and they have been numbered from 1 to 1,000. During recess, the students decide to try

an experiment.

When recess is over, each student will walk into the school

one at a time. The first student will open all of the locker doors. The second student will close all of the locker doors with even numbers. The third student will change all the locker doors with numbers that are multiples of three. (Change means closing lockers that are open and opening lockers that are closed.) The fourth student will change the position of all locker doors numbered with multiples of four; the fifth student will change the position of the lockers that are multiples of five, and so on. After 1,000 students have entered the school, which locker doors will be open?

Arithmetic

Number theory

Mathematical Skills

Identifying multiples and factors of a counting number

Recognizing square numbers

Prime factorizations (variation)


Simplifying the problem

Arranging data-making a table Identifying patterns and generalizing

Making a tree diagram (variation)

A. Simplify the problem by considering what happens to the first 20 locker doors. Make a table
} of the results.
f
Locker Student
Number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
1 a
2 a c
3 a c
4 a c a
5 a c
6 a c a c
f# 7 a c
8 a c a c
9 a c a
10 a c a c
11 a c
12 a c a c a c
13 a c
14 a c a c
15 a c a c
16 a c a c a
17 a c
18 a c a c a c
19 a c
20 a c a c a c
55
J Patterns Observed in the Table:

1. All the locker doors are opened by the first student. After the first student has opened the first locker door, this door will not be touched again. Once the second student changes the position of the second locker door, it remains in this position. When the nth student goes in, he adjusts the nth locker door and the position of this locker door will not be altered further. The diagonal entries indicate the final position of the locker doors.

2. The only entries on the diagonal that are open are locker doors 1, 4, 9, and 16. If this pattern continues, the next lockerthat will be left open is 25. This conclusion can be checked. Locker 25 will be opened by the first student, closed by the 5th student, and opened finally by the 25th student. The numbers 1, 5, and 25 are the only factors of 25.

The following lockers will be left open: 1,4,9, 16,25,36,49,64,81, 100, 121, 144, 169, 196,225,256,289,324,361,400,441,484,529,576,625,676, 729,784,841,900,961.

B. For each locker door, consider which students will be opening or closing that door. The only students to change a locker door are those students whose numbers are factors of the locker door number. For example, locker number 12 will only be changed by students 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 12.

If attention is now turned to the corresponding factors of a number and the changes that occur to the locker door, then it can be seen that all locker doors with numbers that have an even number of factors will be left closed.

The reason for this is that for every person who opens a locker, there is another person to close the locker.

For locker number 12: 1 2 o c <:»

3 4 o C \....J

6 12 o c <:»

The factors of 12 may also be paired as:

1

2

3 4

L___)

6

12

In this pairing, each pair of distinct factors when multiplied produces the locker number. Pairing of distinct factors implies an even number of factors.

Only locker numbers with an odd number of factors will be left open. A square number has a factor (its square root) which when multiplied by itself gives the square number. Thus all square numbers have an odd number of factors. The only lockers left open will be the lockers with square numbers.

Square Numbers 1

4 9 16 36

Factors 1

l®1 109

l )

1 208 16 l ~ J

56

VARIATION

A. Problem

The number 28 has 6 factors. The number 624 has 20 factors. The number 737 has 2 factors. Some numbers have many factors. Some numbers have only two factors. Can you tell how many factors a number has without listing all of the factors (and maybe forgetting some)?

Use your method to determine the number of factors of 64, 72, and 1,176.

B. Discussion of the Variation

Crucial to the solution of this problem is the fact that any counting number other than 1 is a prime number or can be expressed uniquely as a product of prime numbers.

,

.t (f

Prime Number of
Number Factorization Factors Factors
1 1 1
2 21 1, 2 2
3 31 1, 3 2
4 22 1,2,4 3
5 51 1, 5 2
6 21 X 31 1, 2, 3, 6 4
7 71 1, 7 2
8 23 1, 2, 4, 8 4
9 32 1,3,9 3
10 21 X 51 1, 2, 5, 10 4
11 111 1, 11 2
12 22 x 31 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 12 6
13 131 1, 13 2
14 21 x 71 1, 2, 7, 14 4
15 31 x 51 1, 3, 5, 15 4
60 22 X 31 X 51 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 12
12,15,20,30,60
64 26 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64 7
72 23 x 32 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, 72 8
180 22 x 32 X 51 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 12, 15, 18
18, 20, 30, 36, 45, 60, 90, 180 f

When a number has been expressed as a product of its primes in the form pa X qb X t= x ..• X s", where p, q, r, ... s are unique primes (see "Prime Factorization" column), the number of factors will equal (a + 1) x (b + 1) x (c + 1) x ... (d + 1). Each prime factor can be used in forming a new factor from 0 times up to the number of times indicated

by its exponent.

57

When forming the factors of 64, 2 can be used as 2° (yielding the factor 1), 21 (the factor 2), 22, 23, 2\ 25, or 26 for a total of

6 + 1 = 7 factors.

When forming the factors of 72, the prime factor 2 can be used as 2°, 21, 22, 23, for a total of 4 ways (one more than the exponent). The prime factor 3 can be used as 3°, 31, or 32 for a total of 3 ways (one more than the exponent). The number of ways that both primes can be used is

(3 + 1) x

exponent

of 2

(2 + 1) exponent of 3

12 ways.

Note: 2° x 3° yields the factor of 1.

The total number of factors is (3+1) x (1+1) x (2+1) = 24.

Note: 2° x 3° x 7° yields the factor of 1.

The reason for multiplying to find the total number of factors (permutations) can be illustrated by means of a tree diagram. To determine the number of factors of 1176:

Ways to
select 2: 2° 2' 22 23
Ways to it!" -, it!" '" it!" '" it!" '"
select 3: 3° 3' 3° 3' 3° 3' 3° 3'
it!" ~ '" it!" ~ '" it!" ~ '" it!" ~ '" it!" ~ '" it!" ~ '" it!" ~ '" it!" ~ '"
Ways to
select 7: 7° 7' 72 7° 7' 72 7° 7' 72 7° 7' 72 7° 7' 72 7° 7' 72 7° 7' 72 7° 7' 72
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
1 7 49 3 21 147 2 14 98 6 42 294 4 28 196 12 84 588 8 56 392 24 168 1176 The number of branches at the end of the tree indicates the number of ways of selecting the prime factors and hence the number of different factors.

58

" ,.

..

#

FROSTING ON THE CAKE

Content Areas

Mr. B. Acre had just finished baking a cake for the mathematicians' banquet. The cake was specially designed in the shape of a cube. In the process of carrying the cake to the frosting table, Mr. B. Acre suddenly slipped and the cube-cake went sailing into the vat of chocolate frosting.

Mr. B. Acre thought quickly, then yelled, "FIRE!" (He knew that no one would come to help if he yelled, "CHOCOLATE".)

Almost immediately help arrived and the cake was fished out of the chocolate. Fortunately, the cube-cake was still in one piece, but was now frosted on all sides.

Mr. B. Acre proceeded to the banquet hall with his unusually frosted cake in hand.

The mathematicians were del ighted when they saw the cube-cake with all of the frosting. They asked Mr. B. Acre to stay and cut the cake.

One of the mathematicians, D. Liteful, suggested that the cake be cut into cube-shaped pieces, all pieces the same size. Mr. B. Acre agreed, but before cutting the cake he turned

to D. Liteful and asked how many mathematicians would like a piece without frosting, a piece with on Iy one side frosted,

a piece with exactly two sides frosted, a piece with three sides frosted. Being a mathematician, D. Liteful responded, "Cut the cake so that the number of pieces without frosting is equal

to eight times the number of pieces that have frosting on

three sides. You will then have enough of each type of piece to satisfy everyone, with noth ing left over."

Algebra

Geometry

Mathematical Skills


Recognizing square and cubic numbers

Problem Solving Strategies Working backwards


Identifying patterns and generalizing

Making a diagram (or a 3-dimensional model)

How many mathematicians attended the banquet? How many mathematicians were served a piece of cake without frosting?

I How many mathematicians requested a piece with only one

#> side frosted? ... with exactly two sides frosted? ... with

~ three sides frosted?

,
~
" 2x2x2
(8 cube pieces)
;
.".
• I

,


Since the number of pieces without frosting is equal to 8 times the number of pieces with

3 sides frosted, Mr. B. Acre must first identify those pieces that will have 3 sides covered with frosting. By considering models of cube-cakes cut into various-size cube pieces, it may be observed that only corner pieces have 3 sides frosted. Since all cubes have 8 corners, there are 8 pieces that have 3 sides frosted. Thus the number of pieces without frosting is equal

to 8 x 8 = 64.

To determine the total number of cube pieces to be cut, the models of cakes cut into various-size cube pieces may be examined further.

/ / /
/ / /
/ l/
/
/l/
// / / / /
/ / / /
/ / / / /l/
/ / / /
/l/ /l/
/l/ l/l/
/l/ //
1,1/ 3x3x3

(27 cube pieces)

59

Observations:

1. Each cube-cake has 8 corners. Only the corner pieces have 3 sides covered with frosting.

2. Each cube-cake has 12 edges. The edge pieces that are not corners have 2 sides covered with frosting.

3. Each cube-cake has 6 faces (sides). The face pieces that are not corner or edge pieces have 1 side covered with frosting.

4. Each cube-cake may have interior cube pieces which are completely surrounded by other pieces. The interior pieces are not frosted.

Cut-Cake 3 Sides 2 Sides 1 Side o Sides Total Number
Dimensions Frosted Frosted Frosted Frosted of Pieces
(8 corners) (12 edges) (6 sides) (Interior)
2x2x2 8 0 0 0 8
3x3x3 8 12 6 1 27
4x4x4 8 24 24 8 64
5x5x5 8 36 54 27 125
Patterns Observed in the Table: 1. The number of pieces that have 3 sides covered with frosting is always 8.

2. The number of edge pieces (that are not corners) is a multiple of 12. This piece does

not exist unless each edge consists of more than corner pieces (dimensions greater than 2). The number of pieces that have 2 sides covered with frosting is equal to the product of 12 times 2 less than the dimensions of the cube.

3. The corner and edge pieces form a border around the sides (faces) of the cube-cake.

The pieces with 1 side frosted form a square on each face of the cube-cake with dimensions 2 less than the dimensions of the original cube-cake.

4. The interior pieces form a cube. This cube is covered by a layer of cube pieces, 1 unit thick. The dimensions of the interior cube (unfrosted pieces) are 2 units less than the dimensions of the original cube-cake.

The 64 unfrosted pieces form a cube, 4x4x4. The dimensions of this cube (4x4x4) are

2 less than the dimensions of the original cube-cake. The original cube-cake must be cut into 6x6x6 = 216 pieces.

There were 216 mathematicians present at the banquet, 8 mathematicians received a

piece of cake with 3 sides frosted, 48 received a piece with exactly 2 sides frosted, 96 received a piece with only 1 side frosted, and 64 received a piece without frosting.

60

i

TABLE TOP TEASER

As an expert on table arrangements, you are presented with the following problem:

A large banquet hall contains 427 tables. All tables have square tops and all square tops are congruent. You are to move all of the tables together (no tables against the walls) to make an arrangement that will seat the fewest number of people.

The manager of the banquet hall provides you with a set of rules for joining tables.

Content Areas

Algebra

Geometry

Mathematical Skills

Counting


Rules:

1. Joined tables must share at least one complete side.

Estimating square roots




yes

no

Arranging data-making a table

2. Table tops must form a continuous region. (Example with 5 ta bles)

Making models and diagrams

•

yes

no

3. Exactly one person must be seated at each exposed side of a table.

,j

x

x.x

x

For 1 table, the minimum seating capacity is 4.

(Examples with 5 tables) x x x x x

x ItllllmtlIilllrlllllIllllIlllllIllIl~ x

x x x x x

Seats 12

x x x

:tt'lir~!fjx

x x Seats 10

The minimum seating capacity is 10.

If the table arrangement surrounds an open area, people must be seated in the interior, one at each exposed side of a table.

61

(Example with 8 tables) ){ x x

x

x

x

x_x

x x x

The x's show that 4 people must be seated in the center. This table arrangement seats a

total of 16 people.

With 427 joined tables, what is the fewest number of people that must be seated?


A. Simplify the problem by considering fewer numbers of tables. Determine the minimum seating capacities and tabulate the data as shown below.

Number of Tables

Minimum Seating Capacity

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

4 6 8 8

10 10 12 12

Patterns Observed in the Table:

Number of Tables

Minimum Seating Capacity

1 2 3

4 > 1 6 > 1 8 8>21

4xY4= 4x2=8

4

62

Number of Tables Minimum Seating Capacity
5 10> 2
6
10
7 12
12 }3
8
9 12 I 4 x V9 = 4 x 3 = 12
10 14)
11 14 3
12 14
13 16
14 16
15 16
16 16 4 x VI6 = 4 x 4 = 16
17 18
4 18 18
if 4
19 18
20 18
21 20
i
22 20
23 20
24 20
25 20 4 x v'25 = 4 x 5 = 20
26 22
27 22
28 22 5
29 22
30 22 63

1. The seating capacity is always an even number.

2. When the number of tables (N) is a square number, the minimum seating capacity is equal to four times the square root of N. (4\IN)

3. When N is a square number, the minimum seating capacity is the same for N, (N-1),

(N-2), ... , [N- (\IN - 1)] tables. For example,

for N=25, the minimum seating capacity is 20. The seating capacity for consecutive decreasing "Number of Tables," 25, 24, 23, 22, 21 (5 "Number of Tables") is 20.

4. When N is a square number, the minimum seating capacity is the same for consecutive "Number of Tables" greater than N, beginning with (N+1) tables and including (N+2), (N+3), ... (N+YN). The minimum seating capacity is equal to (4VN +2). For example,

when N=25, the minimum seating capacity for N's of 26, 27, 28,

29, 30 is equal to 4\125 + 2 = 22.

Generalization:

1. When N = square number, the minimum seating capacity (MSC) = 4 v7V.

2. When N =I- square number, let a = the square number nearest to N.

a. If a > N, the MSC = 4 Va.

b. If a < N, the MSC = 4 Va + 2.

Solution to the Given Problem:

Given: N=427 tables.

Find: Minimum seating capacity using all 427 tables.

1. 427 is not a square number.

2. 427 is between 400 (202) and 441 (212).

3. The nearest square number to 427 is 441.

4. Let a = 441.

5. 441 > 427 (a > N).

6. MSC = 4 V44T = 4 x 21 = 84.

7. The minimum seating capacity is 84.

B. The problem may be simplified by considering fewer number of tables and constructing the table arrangements that produce the minimum seating capacity (MSC).

(4) N=12

(3)N=11

(l)N=9

(2) N= 10

]I

MSC=4V9=12

MSC=4V9+2=14 gain 2

seats

MSC=14-2+2=14

lose gain

2 seats 2 seats

MSC=14-2+2=14

64

(5) N=13

•

MSC=14-1+3=16

(8) N= 16

MSC=16-2+2=16

(6) N=14

(7) N= 15

MSC=16-2+2=16

(9)N=17

MSC=16-2+2=16

MSC=4V 16+2= 18

Observations and Generalizations:

1. For N, where N is a square number, the MSC = 4v'N.

2. For N, where N is one greater than a square number, the MSC increases by 2.

3. Increases in seating capacity occur only after the completion of a square, dimensions S x S, or after the completion of a rectangle, dimensions S x (S + 1). For example,

when N = 10 (one more than the completed 3x3 square)

when N = 13 (one more than the completed 3x4 rectangle).

Solution to the Given Problem:

Given: N=427.

Find: The minimum seating capacity.

1. The greatest square arrangement less than 427 is the 20x20 square.

2. The seating capacity for the square, dimensions 20x20, is 4 x 20 = 80.

3. Forming the rectangle, 20x21 (using 420 tables), increases the seating capacity by 2, for a minimum seating capacity of 80 + 2 = 82.

65

20

20

~i-r"""_-_-_-_ -_-_.--_'::..:..:.=::;,

MSC=4x20=80

r~--------'"

...... N

MSC=4x20+2=80

'-L- ___,J

400 tables

420 tables

4. The remaining seven tables increase the seating capacity by 2 more. 20

,,1 - ,
=
-
=
=
~( MSC=84 427 tables

5. The MSC for 427 tables is 84.

VARIATIONS

1. Determine the maximum seating capacity for N tables (2 N + 2).

2. Use tables with different polygonal configurations (e.g., triangles, other quadrilaterals, ... , figures that tessellate).

66

ElEMENTARY, MY DEAR WATSON

Content Area

The morning after a big football game, the school guard found the goal posts missing! With better than average luck, the guard had three red-hot suspects by midmorning. The suspects, Andy, Dandy, and Sandy, were questioned and made the following statements:

Logic

Problem Solving Strategies Deductive Logic

Andy: 1. I didn't do it!
2. I never saw Dandy before.
>! 3. Sure I know the football coach.
Sandy: 1. I didn't do it!
2. Andy lied when he said he never saw Dandy
before.
3. I don't know who did it.
Dandy: 1. I didn't do it!
2. Andy and Sandy are both pals of mine.
3. Andy never stole anything. One and only one of the three suspects is the prankster. One and only one of each of their statements is false. Who lifted the posts?


Assume, in turn, that each suspect is guilty.

Case I: Assume Andy is guilty. If Andy is guilty then:

Andy's statements are:

1. F

2. T

3. T (if only one of

his statements is false)

Sandy's statements are:

1. T

2. F (since Andy's second statement is true)

3. T (only one of his statements is false)

Dandy's statements are:

1. T

2. F (since Andy's second statement is true)

3. F (if Andy is guilty)

Conclusion: If Andy is guilty then two of Dandy's statements are false, which contradicts the given information that each suspect made only one false statement. Therefore, the assumption that Andy is guilty is incorrect.

Case II: Assume Sandy is guilty. If Sandy is guilty then Sandy's first and third statements are false.

Conclusion: If Sandy is guilty, then two of his statements are false, which contradicts the given information that each suspect made only one false statement. Therefore, the assumption that Andy is guilty is incorrect.

67

Case III: Assume Dandy is guilty. If Dandy is guilty then:

Dandy's statements are:

1. F

2. T

3. T (if only one statement is false)

Andy's statements are:

1. T

2. F (if Dandy's second statement is true)

3. T (if only one statement is false)

Sandy's statements are:

1. T

2. T (if Andy's second statement is false)

3. F (if only one statement is false)

The assumption that Dandy is guilty does not lead to a contradiction of given information. This does not establish that the assumption is correct. What establishes that this assumption is correct is that assumptions I and II are incorrect and one of the three is guilty.

Conclusion: Dandy lifted the posts!

VARIATIONS


In a certain mythical community, politicians always lie and non-politicians always tell the truth. A stranger to the community meets three natives. He asks the first native if he is a politician. The first native answers the question but the stranger does not hear his response. The second native reports that the first native denied he was a politician. The third native then reports that the first native is really a politician. How many of these natives are politicians?


Crucial to the solution of this problem is that all natives-politicians and non-politicianswill answer no to the question, "Are you a politician?" To determine how many politicians are among the three natives, consider two cases.

The first native is either a politician or a non-politician.

Case I Case II
If the first is a politician: If the first is a non-politician:
First: Politician First: Non-politician
Second: Non-politician Second: Non-politician
Third: Non-politician Third: Politician 68

Reasoning
1. First is a politician. 1. First is not a politician.
2. Second said first denied being 2. Second said first denied being
a politician. a politician.
3. Second is telling the truth since the 3. Second is telling the truth since the
first, being a politician, would deny this. first, being a non-politician, would deny
4. Second, telling the truth, is a he is a politician.
non-politician. 4. Second, telling the truth, is a
5. Third is telling the truth since he says non-politician.
the first is really a politician. 5. Third is not telling the truth since he
6. Since third is telling the truth, he is a says first is really a politician.
non-politician. 6. Since third is not telling the truth, he is
a politician. These are the only two possible solutions. In either case, there is only one politician in the group.

If the problem had asked specifically which native was a politician, it would be impossible to determine. The only specific information that can be concluded from either case is that the second native is a non-politician.

,

c. Problem-Variation 2

A father wished to leave his fortune to the most intelligent of his three sons. He said to them: "I am going to blindfold each of you and place a white or a red hat on your head.

I will then remove your blindfolds so that you can see the others' hats but not your own. If you see two red hats, you are to laugh. As soon as you know the color of your own hat, raise your hand. If you can tell me how you determined the color of your hat, you will become my heir."

When the three sons had agreed to the conditions, they were blindfolded and the father placed a white hat on each of them.

When the blindfolds were removed, there was silence for some time. Then the youngest of the three raised his hand, and said, "I am wearing a white hat."

What explanation did the youngest son give to his father?


The youngest argues: Suppose I am wearing a red hat. Since neither of my brothers laughed, there cannot be two red hats. Each of my brothers would then reason that there are two white hats and my red hat. Each of my brothers would then know that he was wearing a white hat. But neither of my brothers raised his hand. Hence, I am not wearing a red hat, but a white hat.

The youngest's reasoning assumes that either of the two brothers is sufficiently intelligent to reason in the manner indicated by the youngest. If this assumption is unjustified, the failure of either brother to raise his hand has no significance and there is no possible solution. Therefore, the youngest son has nothing to lose and everything to gain by making this assumption.

69

NUMBER NEIGHBORS

You may have thought that only people have neighbors. Numbers have neighbors too! Consider the counting numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, .... The first neighbors of 2 are 1 and 3 because 2 differs from both 1 and 3 by one. The first neighbors of 3 are 2 and 4.

The second neighbors of 3 are 1 and 5 because 3 differs

from both 1 and 5 by two. What are the second neighbors of 4?

What are the third neighbors of 5?

Content Areas

Arithmetic

Number theory

Mathematical Skills

Counting


A new housing development in the city of Futurama is being planned. To allow for plenty of parks and other recreational sites, houses will be constructed on only one side of each street. The streets wi II be ca lied First Street, Second Street, Third Street, and so on. Each street must have more than one house. If there are five houses on a street, then the numbers

1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 must be used as house numbers. If there are seven houses on a street, then the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 must be used as house numbers.

The city planners of Futurama have predetermined the number of houses on each street and how each house is to be numbered.


Trial-a nd-error


Recognizing patterns and generalizing

Writing an equation

A. First Street: On this street, no house may be numbered so that it is next door to its first number neighbor.

Thus, the house numbered 2 cannot be next door to either the house numbered 1 or the house numbered 3.

What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on First Street if no house can be numbered such that it is next to its first number neighbor? (Remember, there must be more than one house on the street.) What is the order of the house numbers?

B. Second Street: On this street, no house can be numbered so that it is next to either its first number neighbors or its second number neighbors. (Remember that the house numbered 3 cannot be next door to the houses numbered 1 or 2 or 4 or 5.) What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on Second Street? What is the order of the house numbers?

C. Third Street: On this street, no house can be numbered so that it is next to either its first, second, or third number neighbors. What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on Third Street? What is the order of the house numbers?

D. Fourth Street: What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on Fourth Street if on this street no house can be numbered so that it is next to its first, second, third, or fourth number neighbors? In what order wi II the houses be nu mbered?

E. The Futurama development will also have a Fifth Street, Sixth Street, and so on. Can you predict the fewest number of houses that can be built on Tenth Street? What is the order of the house numbers on this street?

F. What is the fewest number of houses that can be built on K Street, where K is any number?

Show the city planners a scheme for ordering the house numbers on K Street.

70

G. The city planners decide that they will stop development when there are 100 houses on a single street.

What will be the number name of this street? How many streets will there then be in the new housing development?

i


Trial-and-error methods may be used extensively to determine the numbering of houses on First, Second, Third, and Fourth Streets. Each proposed numbering scheme should be tested against the conditions presented in the problem.

Not all the numbering schemes for the First Street problem will result in the fewest number of houses. For example, the numbering schemes 4-1-3-5-2 and 2-6-4-1-5-3 do satisfy the condition of separating first number neighbors, but are not minimal solutions. There are two possible solutions that result in the fewest number of houses on First Street: 3-1-4-2 and 2-4-1-3. (Notice that the difference between the solutions is only the direction in which one reads the numbers, from left to right or right to left.)

Numbering schemes for Second, Third, and Fourth Streets are presented in the table. Also tabulated is the minimum number of houses for each of these streets.

Street Name First

Second Third

Fourth

House Numbering

3-1-4-2

4-1-5-2-6-3 5-1-6-2-7-3-8-4 6-1-7-2-8-3-9-4-10-5

Fewest Number of Houses 4

6

8

10


1. The house numbered 1 is always the second house on the street.

2. Consecutive counting numbers are separated by one other number. For example, on Fourth Street: 617 2. 8 ~ 9 4102

3. The number of the last house on the street is one more than the street name. For example, on Fourth Street, the house at the end of the street is 5.

4. The highest-numbered house is the second to the last house on the street. For example, on Fourth Street the highest number is 10 and the house numbered 10 is the second

to the last house on this street.

5. The highest number on a house, which corresponds to the number of houses on a street, is equal to twice the number of the last house on the street.

These observed patterns may be used to determine the ordering of the house numbers

~ on Tenth Street.

Leave a blank for the first house number, followed by the number 1; leave a blank for the third house number, followed by the number 2; continue in this fashion until the last house is numbered 11 (one more than the street name).

_1_2_3_4_5_6_7_8_9_10_11

•

The first house on the street is then numbered 12. Following the pattern of consecutive counting numbers separated by a single number, the remaining houses are numbered from left to right until the next to the last house is numbered 22.

71

At this point the table should be extended to include data for Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth Streets.

The least number of houses on K Street will be 2K +2 as generalized from the specific examples in the table. The ordering on K Street will be:

~

~ ~ ~ _...._----.

K + 2 1 K + 3 2 K + 4 3... K + (K + 1) + 1 K + 1

If the city planners stop development when there are 100 houses on a single street, then the street will be Forty-ninth Street (2K+2=100; 2K=98; K=49). There will be 49

streets in the development.

72

THE FRENCH CONNECTION

Content Areas

There is a train depot in each of the following cities in France:

Paris, Marseilles, Fountainbleu, Nice, Cannes, Versailles, Orleans, Bayonne, Lyon, and LeMans. Each train depot must have a direct line of communication to each of the other depots.

Algebra

Number theory

Mathematical Skills

How many direct lines are there between the depots in these ten cities?

Counting


If a communication system is to be constructed between 100 cities, how many direct lines will be needed?

Technique of finite differences (optional)

How many direct lines will be needed for any number of cities?

Formula for computing the number of combinations (optional)



Making a diagram

Arranging data-making a table Identifying patterns and generalizing

Writing an equation

•


Simplify the problem to consider the number of lines of communication between two cities, three cities, four cities, and five cities. Using diagrams, cities may be represented by points. The lines of communication are then the line segments connecting pairs of points.

,

/

2 cities 1 line

3 cities 3 lines

4 cities 6 lines

5 cities 10 lines

Tabulate the results.

Number of

Cities (n) 1

2

3

4

5

Number of

Direct Lines (L) o

1

3

6

10

73


1. When a second city is included, the number of lines of communication increases by one (0 + 1). When a third city is included, the number of lines increases by two (1 + 2). When a fourth city is included, the number of lines increases by three (3 + 3).

2. This analysis yields a recursive pattern. The number of direct lines for a given number of cities can be determined if the number of lines for the preceding number of cities is known.

Techniques for Determining the Formula for the Number of Direct Lines Between n Cities:

1. Each city will be connected to every other city. If there are n cities, each city will be connected to (n - 1) cities. Since pairs of cities share the same direct line, the total number of distinct lines will be

n x (n-1)

2

For the ten cities, each city will be connected to nine others. The total number of lines originating from all ten cities is 10 x 9 = 90. Each of these 90 lines is shared by two cities. Thus, there are 90/2=45 distinct communication lines.

For 100 cities to be in direct communication with each other, there will be

100 x 99 4 950 . t' I'

=, cornrnuruca Ion meso

2

2. The total number of lines may be expressed as a sum of consecutive whole numbers. For ten cities, this sum will be:

L = 0+1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9 Note that there are ten terms in this sum.

Frederick Gauss's (1777-1855) method for summing consecutive numbers requires rewriting the series in decreasing order. Thus,

L = 9+8+7+6+5+4+3+2+1+0 L = 0+1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9

2L = 9+9+9+9+9+9+9+9+9+9=10x9 L = 10x9 = 45

2

and Adding

Thus:

Using this technique for 100 cities:

L = 0 + 1 + 2 + 3 + + 98 + 99 (100 terms)

L = 99 + 98 + 97 + 96 + + 1 + 0

2L = 99 + 99 + 99 + 99 + ... + 99 + 99 = 100 x 99

L = 100 x 99 2

Generalizing for n cities:

L = 0 + 1 + 2 + L = (n-1) + (n-2) + (n-3) +

9900 = 4950

2 '

+ (n-2) + (n-1) (nterms) + 1 + 0

2L = (n-1) + (n-1) + (n-1) +

+ (n -1) + (n - 1) = n x (n -1)

L = n x (n-1) 2

74

r

3. For students familiar with the formula for combinations, the original problem with 10 cities may be viewed as a problem requiring the combination of 10 things taken 2 at a time.

For 10 cities:

C (10) = 10 ! = 10x9x8! = 10x9 = 45

2 (10-2) ! 2 ! 8 ! 2 ! 2

For 100 cities:

C (100) = 100!

2 98! 2 !

100x99x98 !

98! 2!

100x99 = 4950

2 '

For the general case of n cities:

C (n) = n ! = n x (n - 1) x (n - 2) ! =

2 (n - 2) ! 2 ! (n - 2) ! 2 !

n x (n -1) 2

4. The technique of finite differences may be used to generate the formula. This method requires that consecutive differences of the L values be taken until a constant difference

is obtained. If a constant difference is obtained after taking differences d times, the

equation is a polynomial of degree d. The coefficient of the nd term is given by: _£_ where c

is the constant difference. d !

For this problem a constant second difference is obtained, as shown in the table.

,

Number of

Cities (n)

1

2

3

4

5

Number of Direct Lines (L)

First Difference

Second Difference

The constant on the second difference indicates that the polynomial is of degree 2 and the coefficient of the n2 term is _£_ = _!_ = !

d ! 2 ! 2

Each value of n is substituted into n2 and this result is compared with the corresponding 2

L value.

;

n2

Since - =I L, the function is not complete. The difference between 2

n2

and L is shown in the table below.

2

75

Number of Number of Direct n2 (L _ n2) First
Cities (n) Lines (L) 2 2 Difference
1 0 1/2 -1/2~
-1/2
2 1 2 -1~
-1/2
3 3 9/2 -3/2~
-1/2
4 6 8 -2~
-1/2
5 10 25/2 _21/2 Differences are now taken on the values in the (L - n2) column. A constant first 2

difference of -1/2 indicates that a first-degree term must be included in the function. The

coefficient of the first-degree term is

C _1/2 = -1/2.

d! 1 !

Each of the n values is now substituted into n2 - '2 and the result compared with the 2 2

corresponding L value. Since n2 - '2 = L, the function is now complete. 2 2

-

2

n x (n - 1) 2

n2

L=- 2

n

VARIATION

A. Problem

Fifteen people have been invited to a party. The hostess greets all guests as they arrive and insists that each guest say hello to every other guest. How many hello's will

be exchanged?


This problem is analogous to THE FRENCH CONNECTION problem except that both parties involved in the interaction say hello. The data include twice the values obtained in the previous problem. Each of the 15 guests says hello to the 14 other guests for a total of

15x 14=210 hello's.

76

AMUSEMENTS

Content Area

Geometry

.R

.C

Mathematical Skills

B

W

Identifying congruent triangles and congruent line segments

Plans for the new amusement park include a re+eshment concession which will be located on the boardwalk, BW. The boardwalk is located near the roller coaster (R) and the carousel (C). Where should the refreshment stand be built so that the distance from the roller coaster to the refreshment stand and then to the carousel will be as short as possible?

Measuring lengths


Trial-and-error

Model-building (paper-folding)


A. Select several points along the boardwalk, BW. For each point selected, measure the total distance from R to the selected point and from the selected point to C. This method demonstrates that the total distance will vary as different locations for the refreshment stand are selected. However, it is unlikely that the position of the refreshment stand will be correctly located by this method.

B. Trace the diagram on a piece of waxed paper. Fold and crease the paper along the line segment BW. On the unmarked half of the paper, trace the point C. Label this new point D. Unfold the waxed paper.

With a straight ed~raw the line segment that connects C and D. The intersection of segment CD with segment BW is point E. Now draw the segment RD. The intersection of segment RD with BW is point S. S is the desired position for the refreshment stand.

R

B

C

E

W

D

To establi~.b._that S___§ the desired point, select another point on BW, such as point F. Draw segments RF, FC, SC, and FD. Since the shortest direct distance between two

points is a straight line, RSD is shorter than RFD. Since SC = SD and FC = FD (corresponding parts of congruent triangles), RSC is shorter than RFC. This proof

applies for any point F on BW.

R
C
, _-
B F --_ - __ E W
D 77 C. Construct a perpendicular from point C to line segment BW. Extend the perpendicular below BW so that CE = ED. Draw segment RD. The intersection of RD with BW is

the desired point.

D. A Mira* is a plastic plate made of a material that both reflects and transmits light. If a Mira is available, point D can be located by positioning the Mira along BW and locating the image of point C behind the Mira. Line segment RD is drawn. The intersection of RD

with BW produces the desired point S.

VARIATIONS


The amusement park has a miniature golf course. The green around each hole is bounded by a wooden frame. You are playing a game and are now at hole #3. Point B represents the location of the ball; point H the position of the hole. Can you make this hole in one? Show the path the ball will take.

Hole

B·
I.

#3 H *Available through Creative Publications

78


A direct shot into the hole is not possible. The ball must bounce off the wooden frame. To determine where to aim the ball, consider the top edge of the frame as if it were a mirror. Find the "mirror" image of the hole. Aim the ball toward the image of the hole (see diagram below). If the ball were further to the left of the L-shaped protrusion, two or more bounces would be necessary in order to make a hole in one.

AH' /

/

/

/

/

/

/

/

/

Bt!

• H

c. Problem-Variation 2

A policeman at station A wishes to leave the station, check traffic on Independence Avenue, and then drive to Freedom Lane to check traffic there. After he has checked the traffic on these two streets, he must go to the county seat located at point B. What is the shortest route he can take?

Q) .A
:l
c
Q)
>
c::(
Q)
o
c
Q)
"'C
c
Q)
c.
Q)
"'C
c • B Freedom Lane

79


This problem requires two "reflections"; one about Independence Avenue and one about Freedom Lane.

Since 8 is the final destination, reflect 8 about the line Freedom Lane. Call this image 8'. Locate the image of 8' about the line Independence Avenue. Call this image 8". The policeman should start cruising toward 8". The path he should follow for the shortest route is shown in the diagram below.

8

.8"

• 8'

80

PATIENCE'S PATIENCE PAYS OFF

Content Area

Patience Fortitude has just accepted a new position. The pay scale, very low at first, changes each week. But Patience has patience! She will be paid 1¢ the first week, 2¢ the second week, 4¢ the third week, and so on. Each successive week her salary will be twice the amount of the previous week.

Algebra

Mathematical Skills

Understanding exponential notation

How much money in total will Patience have earned after working 4 weeks? 8 weeks? 20 weeks?

Basic arithmetic computation

Problem Solving Strategies Arranging data

Making a table Identifying patterns and generalizing


Writing an equation


A. The problem may be simplified by considering total earnings at the end of 1 week, 2 weeks, 3 weeks, 4 weeks and 5 weeks.

Weeks of Work 1

2

3

4

5

Weekly Salary 1¢

2¢

4¢

8¢

16¢

Total Earnings

1 1¢

1+2 3¢

1+2+4 7¢

1+2+4+8 15¢

1+2+4+8+16 31¢


1. The salary for each week may be expressed as a power of 2. The weekly salary is equal to 25 where s is one less than the week number. For example, the 4th week's salary is 8¢, which may be written 25 = 2(4-1) = 23.

2. Total earnings is a sum of powers of two, beginning with 2° (or 1) up to and including 2(n-1), where n is the week number. The sum will contain n terms. For example, the total earnings (T) for 4 weeks of work may be written as:

T = 2° + 21 + 22 + 23 = 15¢

3. The total earnings for n weeks is 1¢ less than the salary for the (n + l)st week. For example, the total earnings for 3 weeks (7¢) is 1¢ less than the salary for the 4th week (8¢). Similarly, the total earnings for 4 weeks (15¢) is 1¢ less than the weekly salary for the 5th week (l6¢).

Extending these patterns, the total earnings for 8 weeks will be 1¢ less than the salary for the 9th week. The total earnings for 8 weeks will be 28-1, or 256-1, or 255¢.

81

To determine the total earnings for 20 weeks, the total will be 1¢ less than the salary for the 21st week. Thus the total earnings will be 22°-1 (220=210x210= 1024x 1024= 1048576; total earnings for 20 weeks of work=$10,485.75).

B. The total salary can be expressed as a sum of powers of 2:

T = 2° + 21 + 22 ... + 2n-1

2T = 21 + 22 . .. 2n -1 + 2n

T = 2n - 2° = 2n - 1

2T, or twice the total salary, is obtained by multiplying the sum T by 2. Subtracting T from 2T yields an alternate form for Tor 2T -T =T =2n-1.

VARIATIONS

A. Problems-Variation 1

John Dobetter accepts a job which also requires some patience and close budgeting. His job pays him 1¢ for the first week, 3¢ for the second week, 9¢ for the third week, and so on. Each successive week his salary is three times the amount of the previous week. How much does John earn in total after 5 weeks? 8 weeks? 10 weeks?


Weeks of Work 1

2

3

4

Weekly Salary 1¢

3¢

9¢

27¢

Total Earnings

1¢ 4¢ 13¢ 40¢

1

1+3 1+3+9 1+3+9+27

Let T be the total earnings for n weeks of work.

T = 3° + 31 + 32 ... 3n-1

3T 31 + 32 ••• 3n-1 + 3n

2T = 3n -1 and T = 3n-l

2

For 5 weeks: T = 35-1 = 243-1 = 121¢ = $1.21

2 2

For 8 weeks: T = 38-1 = 6561-1 = 3280¢ = $32.80

2 2

31°-1 (35 x 35)-1 59049-1 = 29524¢ = $295.24

For 10 weeks: T = --

2 2 2

82


Doubling processes lead to rapid growth. Take a sheet of paper and fold it into two parts. Tear the paper along the fold and put one part on top of the other to form a pile of paper two layers thick. Fold this pile into two parts, tear the papers on the fold and put one part on top of the other to form a pile of paper that is four layers thick. Continue this process until it is physically impossible to continue tearing. After 6 tears, how many layers of paper are in the pile? After 20 tears, how many layers of paper are in the pile? If each sheet

of paper is .001 inches thick, approximately how thick will the pile be after 20 tears?


After 1 tear, the pile is 2 layers thick; after 2 tears, 4 layers thick; after 3 tears, 8 layers thick. After the nth tear, the pile is 2n layers thick. After 6 tears the pile will be 26 or 64 layers thick. (In actuality, this is probably the maximum number of tears possible.) Theoretically, after 20 tears the pile will be 220 or 1,048,576 layers thick! If each sheet of paper is .001 inches thick, the pile will be approximately 1,048 inches or 87 feet high!

83

Sandy:

Jan:

Sandy:

Jan:

Sandy:

Jan:

THE QUESTION IS:

WHAT IS THE QUESTION?

Content Area

Logic

I'm thinking of a number. Bet you can't guess it. Bet I can.

It will take a lot of guesses to think of this one. The number I'm thinking of is somewhere in the range

of 1 through 100.

Oh, that's not hard. I'm sure that I can guess that number.

Well, I'll only answer yes or no to your questions. How many questions do you think that you will have to ask?

Hmmmm! That depends on how lucky I am. But, I'm not going to take chances. I am sure that I can

guess your number with at most _

questions.

Mathematical Skills

Identifyi ng powers of 2

Identifying powers of 3 (variation)





How many questions does Jan tell Sandy she will ask? What are the questions and in what order should they be presented?

Forming a decision structure (Partitioning the decision space)

Suppose that Sandy's number were in the range, 1 through 1000. What is the least number of questions Jan would have to ask to correctly identify Sandy's number without taking chances?


A. If questions referring to a specific number are asked (such as, Is it the number 81 ?), it

may be necessary to ask 100 questions before correctly identifying the number. A good question is one that eliminates the most candidates, regardless of whether a yes or a no response is given. This type of question partitions the decision space into two equal parts, or as nearly equal parts as possible. Thus, the question, Is it a multiple of 10? is not a

good first question to ask. If the response is yes, the number of candidates is narrowed down to 10 (the numbers 10, 20, 30, ... , 100). However, if the response is no, the number of candidates is narrowed down to 90. The chance of getting a yes response is only 10 out of 100; the chance of getting a no response is 90 out of 100. (You have to be lucky to get a yes response!)

The question, Is it an even number? is an example of a good first question. Regardless of the response, the number of candidates is narrowed to 50. There is the same chance

(50 out of 100) for a yes response as for a no response.

Suppose that the first question posed is, Is the number less than or equal to 50? and that the answer is no. (The candidates are now 51 through 100.) Then, an example of a good second question is, Is the number greater than 75?

To determine the fewest number of questions necessary to correctly identify a number, consider simpler cases involving 2, 3, 4, ... , 20 candidates. Use the technique of partitioning the decision space in half (or as close to half as possible). Organize data

in a table.

84

Number of Candidates

Minimum Number of Questions

2 (21) 1

-------------------------

3 2

4 (22) 2

-------------------------

5 3

6 3

7 3

8 (23) 3

-------------------------

9 4

10 4

11 4

12 4

13 4

14 4

15 4

16 (2~ 4

17 18 19 20

5 5 5 5


1. The number of questions necessary when there are 3 or 4 candidates is the same; the number of questions necessary when there are 5 to 8 candidates is the same; the number of questions necessary when there are 9 to 16 candidates is the same. If this pattern continues, the same number of questions (5) is necessary when there are 17 to

32 ca nd idates.

2. The number of questions increases by one whenever the number of candidates becomes one more than a power of 2. For example, one more question is necessary when the number of candidates increases from 4 to 5; from 8 to 9; from 16 to 17.

3. If the number of candidates is a power of 2, then the exponent indicates the minimum number of questions necessary. For example, 8 = 23, and 3 questions are necessary to correctly identify the number from eight candidates; 16 = 2\ and 4 questions are necessary.

4. Consider numbers that are not powers of 2. For example, 3 is between 21 and 22, and with three candidates, 2 questions are necessary; 11 is between 23 and 24, and 4 questions are necessary. If the number of candidates is between the nth power of 2 and the (n + 1) power of 2, (n + 1) questions are necessary to correctly identify the number.

With 100 candidates:

100 lies between 26 (64) and 27 (128). Therefore, 7 questions are necessary. Jan will be able to identify Sandy's number with 7 questions, without taking chances.

With 1,000 candidates:

1,000 lies between 29 and 210; thus 10 questions are necessary. Jan will be able to identify Sandy's number with 10 questions, without taking chances.

85

B. If questions of the "greater than" or "less than" type are asked, then at each stage of questioning the number of candidates is divided in half, or nearly in half.

With 100 candidates:

1st question narrows the number of candidates to 50. 2nd question narrows the number of candidates to 25. 3rd question narrows the number of candidates to 13. 4th question narrows the number of candidates to 7. 5th question narrows the number of candidates to 4. 6th question narrows the number of candidates to 2. 7th question identifies the number.

A total of 7 questions is necessary. The assumption here is that when the question partitions the decision space into unequal parts with nand (n+1) candidates, the correct number belongs to the larger (n + 1) group. For example, suppose that the decision space has been narrowed down to the numbers from 26 through 50 (25 candidates). The question, Is it less than 3B? would be a good next question. Depending on the response, the decision space will be narrowed down to 12 or 13 candidates. The response that results in the 13 candidates is slightly more likely to occur (13 out of 25). Therefore, in the analysis this is the assumed response.

With 1,000 numbers:

1st question narrows the number of candidates to 500. 2nd question narrows the number of candidates to 250. 3rd question narrows the number of candidates to 125. 4th question narrows the number of candidates to 63. 5th question narrows the number of candidates to 32. 6th question narrows the number of candidates to 16. 7th question narrows the number of candidates to B. Bth question narrows the number of candidates to 4. 9th question narrows the number of candidates to 2.

10th question identifies the number.

A total of 10 questions is necessary.

VARIATION (THE COIN CAPER)

A. Problem

There are 9 coins of which B are identical and one is counterfeit and weighs less than each of the others. The identity of the counterfeit coin is unknown.

With a balance scale and the 9 coins, what is the least number of weighings necessary to correctly identify the counterfeit coin?

Suppose that there are 20 coins, 19 identical and one counterfeit. What is the least number of weighings necessary to correctly identify the counterfeit coin?

For 100 coins, one of which is counterfeit, what is the number of weighings necessary?

86


Partition the set of 9 coins into 3 subsets, each containing 3 coins. Place 2 of these sets on the balance, 3 coins on each side. Based on the weighing, the set containing the counterfeit coin can be determined. If the 2 weighed sets balance, then the counterfeit coin is in the set of coins left off the balance. If the 2 sets do not balance, the coin is in the set weighing less. Thus, in one weighing it is possible to narrow the number of candidates

from 9 to 3.

From the set of 3 coins containing the counterfeit, place 2 of the coins on the balance, 1 on each side. Based on this weighing, the counterfeit coin is identified. For 9 coins, 1 of which is counterfeit, only 2 weighings are necessary.

By simplifying the problem to consideration of cases involving 2, 3, 4, ... , 13 coins, certain patterns can be observed.

If the number of coins is a power of 3, then the exponent is equal to the least number of weighings. With 81 coins, four weighings are necessary (81=34).

Number of Coins

Least Number of Weighings

2 3

1 1

4 2

5 2

6 2

7 2

8 2

9 2

----------

10 3

11 3

12 3

13 3

If the number of coins is between the nth and the (n + 1) power of 3, (n + 1) weighings are necessary.

With 20 coins:

20 lies between 32 and 33; three weighings are necessary.

With 100 coins:

100 lies between 34 and 35 five weighings are necessary.

If the coins are partitioned into three sets-two sets with n coins and one set with (n + 1) coins-then:

For 20 coins:

1st weighing narrows the number of candidates to 7. 2nd weighing narrows the number of candidates to 3. 3rd weighing identifies the counterfeit coin.

For 100 coins:

1st weighing narrows the number of candidates to 34. 2nd weighing narrows the number of candidates to 12. 3rd weighing narrows the number of candidates to 4. 4th weighing narrows the number of candidates to 2. 5th weighing identifies the counterfeit coin.

87

TOWERING NUMBERS

The ancient Greeks (6th century B.C.) were fascinated with numbers and discovered many interesting facts about the set of counting numbers through the construction and analysis of models.

Examine this model of a tower. The tower is made of bricks. Each brick in the model is numbered.

Content Areas

Arithmetic

Algebra

1 121 12321 1234321 123454321

12345654321

1234567654321

A. For this model of a tower:

1. How many rows of bricks are there in the tower?


3. What is the number on the middle brick of the 7th row?


5. What is the sum of the numbers on the bricks in the

5th row?



8. How many bricks in all are needed to build this tower?

9. How many bricks are numbered with the number 4?

Row 1 Row 2 Row 3


Counting






Recognizing patterns and generalizing

Writing an equation (optional)

Consider a larger tower with 1,000 rows. The bricks in this tower are numbered in the same manner as in the smaller tower.

B. For this larger tower:


2. What is the number on the middle brick of the 1, OOOth row?

3. How many bricks are thtere in the 484th row?

4. What is the sum of the numbers on the bricks in the

59th row?



7. What is the total number of bricks in this tower?

8. How many bricks have the number 13 on them?


A. The questions posed for the 7-row tower can be determined directly from the illustration.

Solutions: 1. 7; 2. 5; 3. 7; 4. 9; 5. 25; 6. 4; 7. 4; 8. 49; 9. 7.

·88

From the diagram of the tower, certain patterns may be identified and generalized:

1. The number of bricks piled on top of any given brick numbered n is one less than the brick number (n -1).

2. The number of the middle brick in a row is equal to the row number.

3. Each row contains an odd number of bricks. The number of bricks in a row is equal to twice the row number minus 1.

Row Number

Number of Bricks

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

1 3 5 7 9

11 13

n

2n - 1

4. The sum of the numbers on the bricks in a given row (n) is a square number. This sum is equal to the square of the row number.

Sum of the Numbers
Row Number in the Row
1 1
2 4
3 9
4 16
5 25
6 36
7 49
.,
n n2 89

5. The total number of bricks in the tower may be determined by considering towers with fewer rows, and collecting and arranging the data in a table. The total number of bricks in a tower is equal to the square of the number of rows in the tower.

Number of Rows in Tower

Total Number of Bricks in Tower

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

1

1+3

1+3+5

1+3+5+7 1+3+5+7+9 1+3+5+7+9+11 1+3+5+7+9+11+13

1 4 9

16 25 36 49

n

1+3+5 ... + (2n-1)

B. For the 1,000-row tower:

1. 744 bricks are piled on top of a brick numbered 745.

2. The number on the middle brick of the 1,000th row is 1,000.

3. In the 484th row there are 967 (2 x 484 - 1) bricks.

4. The sum of the numbers on the bricks in the 59th row is 592 = 3,481.

5. The number on the 24th brick in the 59th row is 24.

6. The number on the 87th brick in the 59th row is 31. The 87th brick is 28 bricks to the right of the middle brick numbered 59 (87 - 59 = 28). Since brick numbers decrease to the right of the middle brick, the number on the 28th brick to the right of the middle brick is 31 (59 - 28).

7. The total number of bricks in the tower is 1,000 x 1,000 = 1,000,000.

8. The number of bricks numbered 13 is 1,975. The number 13 appears once in the middle of row 13 and twice in each of the rows 14 through 1,000. There are 987 rows from row 14 through row 1,000; and 1 + (2 x 987) = 1,975.

90

SOCK IT TWO ME!

Jack is so busy that he's always throwing his socks into his top drawer without pairing them. One morning Jack oversleeps. In his haste to get ready for school (and still a bit sleepy),

he reaches into his drawer and pulls out 2 socks. Jack knows that 4 blue socks, 3 green socks, and 2 tan socks are in

his drawer.

Content Area

Algebra-proba bi I ity Mathematical Skills

Computing probabilities

What are Jack's chances that he pulls out 2 blue socks to match his blue slacks?

Formula for computing combinations and permutations (optional)

Simplifying fractions

What are the chances that he pulls out a pair of matching socks?

Basic operations with fractions

Converting fractions to decimals (variation)

Problem Solving Strategies Arranging data

Deductive logic


A. To distinguish the blue socks, label them b1J b2, b3, and b4. Label the green socks g1, g2, and g3, and the tan socks t, and t2. In this problem, the order in which the socks are pulled is not important. List all possible ways that two socks can be pulled from the drawer.

b1,b2 b2,b3 b1,g1 b2,g1 b3,g1 b4,g1 b1,t1 b3,t1 g1,t1 g1,t2 e.s- t1,t2

b1,b3 b2,b4 b1,g2 b2,g2 b3,g2 b4,g2 b1,t2 b3,t2 g2,t1 g2,t2 s.s,

b1,b4 b3,b4 b1,g3 b2,g3 b3,g3 b4,g3 b2,t1 b4,t1 g3,t1 g3,t2 e.s,

b2,t2 b4,t2

There are a total of 36 ways that Jack can pull 2 socks. Of these 36, there are 6 in which both socks are blue. Therefore, the chance of pulling 2 blue socks is 6/36 or 116.

Of the 36 combinations of pairs of socks, 10 of these pairs have both socks the same color. Jack's chance of pulling a matching pair is 10/36 or 5118.

B. The formula for determining the number of combinations may be used.

Total possible outcomes: C (92) = 9! 7!2!

= 9x8 = 36 2

Outcomes with 2 blue socks: C (4) = 4!

2 2!2!

4x3

=-= 6

2

Probability of selecting 2 blue socks: 6/36 or 116

There are 3 mutually exclusive ways for Jack to get a matching pair of socks. He can pullout 2 blue socks or 2 green socks or 2 tan socks.

91

Outcomes with 2 green socks: C (3) = 3! = 3

2 2!

Probability of selecting 2 green socks: 3/36 = 1/12

Outcomes with 2 tan socks: C (~) = 1

Probability of selecting 2 tan socks: 1/36

Thus, the probability of selecting 2 same-color socks is:

1/6 + 1/12 + 1/36 = 6/36 + 3/36 + 1/36 = 10/36 = 5118

VARIATIONS


John gets up one morning and pulls out a blue sock from his drawer. What are his chances of pulling out a second sock that is also blue? (There are 4 blue socks, 3 green socks, and 2 tan socks in the drawer.)


1. There are 32 possible pairs of socks in which the first sock is blue. Of the 32 possibilities, 12 have a second blue sock. Therefore, the chance of pulling a second blue sock is 12/32 or 3/8.

b1,b2 b2,b1 b3,b1 b4,b1 b1!g1 b2,g1 b3,g1 b4,g1 b1,t1 b3,t1 b1,b3 b2,b3 b3,b2 b4,b2 b1,g2 b2,g2 b3,g2 b4,g2 b1,t2 b3,t2 b1,b4 b2,b4 b3,b4 b4,b3 b1!g3 b2,g3 b3,g3 b4,g3 b2,t1 b4,t1

b2,t2 b4,t2

2. One blue sock has been removed from the drawer. There are now 8 socks remaining in the drawer, of which 3 are blue. Hence, the chance that the second sock is blue is 3/8.

3. There are 4 blue socks in the drawer. Anyone of these may be Jack's first selection. Once the first blue sock has been selected, there are 8 socks remaining in the drawer. Anyone of these may be the second sock selected. Thus there are a total of 32 (4 x 8) ways of selecting any two socks where the first is blue.

Once a blue sock has been selected, there are only 3 blue socks left in the drawer. The number of ways of selecting a blue sock followed by a second blue sock is 4 x 3 = 12. Thus, the probability of selecting one blue sock followed by a second blue sock is 12/32 or 3/8.

4. This situation is an example of a conditional probability. The probability of pulling a second blue sock, given the fact (conditional upon) that the first sock is blue, is:

92

P (second sock blue/first sock blue)

P (both socks blue) P (fi rst sock bl ue)

The probability that both socks are blue was calculated in the original problem as 116. The probability that the first sock is blue is 4/9.

Therefore, P (second sock blue/first sock blue)

116

9

3

4/9

24

8


In a certain state lottery, each ticket has a 6-digit number. If your ticket has all 6 digits in the order corresponding to the winning number, you win the grand prize of $50,000. If your ticket has the last 5 digits in the correct order, you win $10,000. If your ticket has the last 4 digits in the correct order, you win $5,000. If your ticket has the last 3 digits in the correct order, you win $1,000.

1. With one ticket, what are your chances of winning $50,000?

2. What are your chances of winning $10,000?

3. What are your chances of winning $5,000?


1. There are a total of 999,999 different 6-digit numbers ranging from 000001 to 999999. Only one ticket is the winning ticket. Thus the chance is 1/999999 or .000001 of winning $50,000.

2. There are 10 different tickets where the last 5 digits will be the same. (These tickets will differ only in the first digit, which may be a 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9.) One of these 10 first digits will match the grand prize number. Therefore, there are 9 second prize winners. The chance of winning $10,000 is 9/999999 = 11111111 = .000009.

3. To win $5,000, it does not matter what the first 2 digits are. There are lOx 10 = 100 ways the first 2 digits can occur. Ten of these are first or second prize winners. Therefore, of the 100, 90 are third prize winners. The probability of winning $5,000 is 90/999999 = 101111111 = .00009.

93

THE SPIDER AND HIE FLY:

THIS ONE BUGS ME!

Content Areas

Geometry

Algebra Mathematical Skills

I I I

}-- ---- ------- - - - Spider

I I I

Applying the Pythagorean Theorem

Fly

Extracting square roots


A hungry spider settles down on the floor in the corner of a room for a midday nap. Suddenly he spies a fly resting on the floor in the opposite corner. "What a yummy snack the fly would be," thinks the spider. The spider sets out to trap the fly. The spider is clever. He takes the shortest path without walking on any part of the floor. (No chance of getting squished!) What is the shortest path if the room is 6 meters long, 5 meters wide, and 3 meters high? 10 meters long,

6 meters wide, and 3 meters high?

Making a model (3- and 2- dimensional)



The shortest direct path between the positions of the fly and the spider is the straight line segment that connects the two corners. This is the diagonal of the rectangular floor. This path, however, is not available to the spider since he does not desire to walk on the floor. The strategy is to find an alternate way of viewing the problem so that a line segment between the two positions may be constructed with the line segment not touching the floor. *

Path 1:

Consider the room as if it were a rectangular cardboard box. By cutting along the edges joining adjacent walls, the walls and the ceiling can be flattened. The flattened room would look like the diagram in the figure below.

Wall :S'
t'+h

I /
Ceiling /
/
/
..c:: /
<"0 + /
~ <"0
~ / ~
/
/
//
/ h
/
/
/ Wall
Fly /
t- der

w

A line segment can now be drawn connecting the spider's position to the position of the fly. Notice that by following the path indicated by the line segment, the spider will travel over part of his wall, part of the ceiling, and part of the adjacent wall. The length of

this path = V (t' + h)2 + (w + h)2

c

* See AMUSEMENTS, page 77, for other problems that use the strategy of finding an equivalent situation where a straight line solution is possible.

94

Path 2:

Again consider the room as if it were a rectangular cardboard box. By cutting along three edges, the wall (w x h) can be rotated 90° as if it were a door to the room.

The shortest distance between the fly and the spider is indicated by the line segment joining the two positions. The spider would travel a path along the extended wall (along the two walls) a fraction of a centimeter above the edge connecting the floor to the walls.

I

i ~

j_ '-'-'-'-'-'-'-'-'-" Spider

I -~--.--- ~~~

11.--------_.- ._._._._.~

The distance he would travel by this route is (w + 1') + 2E where E is the distance the spider moves above the floor's edge so that he does not touch the floor. E is greater than zero but can be very small. To determine the shorter of these two paths, the actual room dimensions must be considered.

A. Consider Paths 1 and 2 for the room that is 6 meters long, 5 meters wide, and 3 meters high.

Path 1:

The distance along the walls and ceiling will be Y(5+3)2 + (6+3)2 = Y82+92 = V64+81 = V1'45 "'" 12.04 meters.

Path 2:

The distance along the walls, slightly above the floor, will be 6+5+2E = 11+2E meters. For any 2E< 1.04 meters (12.04 - 11), or E < .52 meters, this path is the shorter of the two paths. It is certainly possible for the spider to select E less than .52 m. He's a very clever spider.

B. Consider Paths 1 and 2 for the room that is 10 meters long, 6 meters wide, and 3 meters high.

Path 1:

The distance along the walls and ceiling would be V (10+3)2 + (6+3)2 = V 132+92 =

V 169+81 = V25"() "'" 15.81 meters.

Path 2:

The distance along the walls, slightly above the floor, is greater than 16 (10+6) meters, regardless of the size of E. For these room dimensions, the shortest path requires moving up one wall, across the ceiling, and down another wall.

95

VARIATION

A. Problem

A living room is 10 meters long, 4 meters wide, and 3 meters high. A lamp is hung on one wall, .3 meter from the ceiling and 2 meters from each corner. Unfortunately, the only electrical outlet in the room is on the opposite wall, .3 meter from the floor and 2 meters from each corner. An electrical cord connected directly from the lamp to the outlet would be hazardous to the occupants of the room.

What is the shortest length of cord needed if the cord must be taped to the walls and/or ceiling, and/or floor? (Don't worry about anyone tripping over the cord if it is taped to the floor.)


There are four ways that a model of the room can be flattened so that a line segment can be drawn between the outlet and the lamp. Only two of these ways produce line segments of different lengths. These are shown below.

w
Wall 3
Lamp .j:::.
t , Ceiling 3
-
- ,
ro I ,
3: ,
I ,
I "',
I ........ w
....
7 I Wall , 3
1 l .... , 3m
,
,
, ro
Floor ' .... , 3:
~------------- ..
. 10.6 Outlet
(1)

(2)
Lamp. Outlet
--------------- ---- ..
13.0 _J 10 m

In the first case, the cord will be taped to a part of the lamp wall, a part of the ceiling, a part of one of the long side walls, a part of the floor, and a part of the outlet wall. From the diagram, it can be seen that the length of cord needed in this case is V 72 + (10.6)2 =

V 49 + 112.36 = V 161.36 "" 12.70 meters.

In the second case, the cord will be taped to part of the lamp wall, the ceiling, and part of the outlet wall. The length of cord needed in this case is .3 + 10 + 2.7 = 13 meters.

For a room of these dimensions, the first case requires a shorter cord. For rooms of other dimensions with different placements of the lamp and outlet, the second case requires less cord.

96

ODD PRODUCTS

Content Area

Make two sets of six cards, each set numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Arrange one set of cards in a horizontal line in this order:

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Under these cards, place the second set of cards in a horizontal line. Arrange the second set so that when you subtract column by column and then multiply the six differences, an "odd" product is produced.



Formula for computing the number of permutations

Set I

Q~~QGJ~

-0 -00



Differences

Arranging data Identifying patterns and generalizing

Set II

After you have solved the first problem, start over again using only cards 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Can an odd product be produced?

Can an odd product always be produced for any set of cards,

1, 2, 3, ... , n (any number)?

When an odd product is produced for n cards, how many different arrangements of the second set of cards wi II produce the odd product?


An odd product can only be achieved if all factors are odd numbers. To produce an odd number difference (a-b), 1 of the 2 numbers (a or b) must be even, the other odd.

The arrangement that will produce an odd product is one in which there is a "pairing" of odd with even numbers. Pairing implies an equal number of odd and even integers. Thus an odd product can only be produced for n cards if n is an even number.

To determine the number of different arrangements for n cards when n is an even number, collect data for n's of 2, 4, 6, and 8.

n=2

n=4

Set I [!] 0

Set II (0) (~)

Set I CD QJ IT] 0

Set II (~) (~) (~) (~)

Number of arrangements=1

Number of arrangements 2·2·1·1=4

97

n=6

n=8

Set I ITJ 0 IT] [I] [II [I]

Setilmmmmm m

Set II

Number of arrangements 3·3·2·2·1·1 =36

Number of arrangements 4·4·3·3·2·2·1·1 =576

Notice that the possibilities from Set II are the same for cards 1, 3, and 5 of Set I. There are three possible matches for card 1: cards 2, 4, and 6. Once one of these has been used, only two possibilities remain in Set II to match with card 3 of Set I. When one of these two possibilities is used, only one card from Set II remains to be matched with card 5 from Set I.

Table

Number of Cards (n)

Number of Arrangements

2 4 6 8

1 = 12 = (1)2 = (1 !)2

4 = 22 = (2·1)2 = (2 !)2

36 = 62 = (3·2·1)2 = (3 !)2 576 = 242 = (4·3·2·1)2 = (4 !)2


1. The numbers in the "Number of Arrangements" column are square numbers. Further 24 = 4·3·2·1 or4!; 6 = 3·2·1 or3!; 2 = 2·1 or2!; and 1 = I!.

2. Given two cards, the number of arrangements equals (1 !)2; given four cards, the number of arrangements equals (2 !)2; given six cards, there are (3 !)2 arrangements, and for eight cards, there are (4 !)2 arrangements. Thus, for ten cards, the number of arrangements would be (5 !)2, and for n (any even number) cards, the number of arrangements will be

(~!Y .

98

HIGH RISE

Content Areas

Mr. H. Y. Perbole: Mr. Ridge, we have a very serious

problem. The summer heat has caused the mile-long bridge you built for us last fall to expand 2 feet in length. This matter needs your immediate attention. Since the bridge is only supported at the end points, the bridge has buckled. The buckle is over 50 feet high!

Mr. B. Ridge: It sounds as if you're exaggerating again. Mr. H. Y. Perbole: Believe me, this time I'm not.

Mr. B. Ridge: OK, prove it to me and I'll be over.

Is Mr. H. Y. Perbole exaggerating?

Approximately how high is the buckle?

Algebra

Geometry

Trigonometry (optional)

Mathematical Skills

Application of the Pythagorean Theorem

Computing square roots and solving quadratic equations

Using the formula for the difference of two squares (optional)

Definition of the radian measure of an angle (optional)

Definition of sine and cosine functions (optional)



Making a diagram

Writing an equation

Estimating

Generalizing


A. The first step in solving the problem is to make a diagram showing the bridge before and after the expansion.

5282 feet

C_~

(new length = 1 mile + 2 feet)

5280 feet

(old length = 1 mile)

99

Carol E. Greenes, Rika Spungin, Justin M. Dom Brow Ski - PROBLEM-MATHICS (Mathematical Challenge Problems With Solution Strategies) - Creative Publications, 1977 - 141p

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Carol E. Greenes, Rika Spungin, Justin M. Dom Brow Ski - PROBLEM-MATHICS (Mathematical Challenge Problems With Solution Strategies) - Creative Publications, 1977 - 141p

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