eat play math: Puzzles, Puzzles, Puzzles.

Sunday, March 26, 2017

Puzzles, Puzzles, Puzzles.

It's a good Sunday. A former colleague texted me this puzzle today.

Try it. It's a good one. You don't need to read Spanish to figure out what it's asking. I'm going to give this to my classes tomorrow. Will rich discussions take place? I am hoping so. And I don't think it will take up too much time. Try it, and THEN scroll down for a hint if you need it.

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What's cool about this problem is that all of the numbers are odd, and there is no way to add three odd numbers to get an even. An odd + an odd = even, and then an even + odd = odd. So there must be (as always) a trick. Should I give you the answer? Email me at lisa.winer@saintandrews.net if you want the answer.

I am hoping that in class, we can talk about why this is the case: that even numbers can be represented as 2n, and odds as 2n+1, and so on.

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Why else is it a good Sunday? A former student texted me this link today, which she said made her think of me: 11 Difficult Food Riddles That’ll Stump Pretty Much Everyone - Buzz Feed. She is a foodie and I am a puzzle freak, so this is truly the best of both worlds. I have blogged about giving a Plexer of the Day, and this would be fun to give when you have a few minutes left at the end of class. Here is the first one:

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It's also a good day because I love doing the Sunday NYT crossword puzzle. Here is a picture of Tiki and me working on it...

BUT YOU MUST LOOK BELOW FOR SOME COOL PROBLEMS from the NYT!! This came out last month: Are You Ready For Math Whiz Camp?

The question below is my favorite question, but all 5 were great class openers.

(Click here for a great article on BEAM, an experimental program in Manhattan for students with a high aptitude for math and who come from low-income populations).

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