mathNEWS BYOB #2

Break Your Own Brain - Twin Lobes of Utopia?

Round 2, FIGHT! Or, um... Think?! Do something, quick. Welcome back to BYOB, where we give you the opportunity to display your giant brain to get the respect you deserve. Or something like that anyway. Here are the answers from last issue:

34=P in T P

1. 1=Horn on a Unicorn
2. 1=Wheel on a Unicycle
3. 2=Number it Takes to Tango
4. 3=Blind Mice (See How They Run)
5. 4=Cups in a Liter
6. 6=Degrees of Separation
7. 6=Characters in a Postal Code
8. 7=Days of the Week
9. 8=Sides on a Stop Sign
10. 9=Planets in the Solar System
11. 9=Justices on the Supreme Court
12. 11=Players on a Football Team
13. 12=Signs of the Zodiac
14. 13=Stripes on the American Flag
15. 18=Holes on a Golf Course
16. 21=Dots on a Die
17. 24=Hours in a Day
18. 26=Letters of the Alphabet
19. 29=Days in February in a Leap Year
20. 32=Degrees Fahrenheit at which Water Freezes
21. 40=Days and Nights of Great Flood
22. 50=Ways to Leave Your Lover
23. 54=Cards in a Deck (with the Jokers)
24. 57=Heinz Varieties
25. 64=Squares on a Checkerboard
26. 80=Days to Go Around the World
27. 88=Piano Keys
28. 90=Degreees in a right Angle
29. 99=Bottles of Beer on the Wall
30. 101=Dalmations
31. 200=Dollars for Passing Go in Monopoly
32. 1000=Words that a Picture is Worth
33. 1001=Arabian Nights
34. 20000=Leagues Under The Sea

Fire Up Top

Simply list out all the possible sets of three integers whose product is 36 (there are only 8), eliminate those with unique sums (since knowing the sum didn't produce an answer), and you are left with 9, 2, 2 and 6, 6, 1. Once you know there *is* an eldest child, you know the answer must be 9, 2, 2. Any information could have been presented about the eldest child, maybe it's just that I have a thing for red hair.

A Tribute to Albert

In case you missed my pun there, I called the problem "A Tribute to Albert" and then mentioned that it is a-t(t)ributed to Albert Einstein, get it now? Anyway, the German owns the fish, probably swimming in green coffee with some golf balls, which is quite disturbing actually. Full solution from first to fifth house: Norwegian/Yellow/Water/Chess/Cats, Dane/Blue/Tea/Poker/Horses, Brit/Red/Milk/Tennis/Birds, German/Green/Coffee/Golf/Fish, Swede/White/Beer/Billiards/Dogs.

Six submissions this week, keep up the good work. Adam Weatherhead returned with his devious "submit to only one problem" paradigm, and gets 1/3 for it, as did Michael Cicconi, Frogg missed some of the number statements and gets 2.85/3. Scot Nyback, MGAJ and Catherine Hicks all aced last issue's puzzlers and gets the BYOB thumb of approval (which in reality isn't a thumb, you think about that). So it goes to tie breakers, and although Scot's made me laugh, it wasn't actually a problem. It seems Catherine's tiebreaker edges out MGAJ's (check out the winning tiebreaker for yourself in this week's problems) so Ms. Hicks, come on down to MC3038 (Mathie Rehab Center) to pick up your C&D gift certificate.

Since we often have ties (and I'm not talking about the kind tied to your bedposts) we need a tiebreaker. So: submit a riddle/puzzle/brain teaser along with full solution, and in the event of a tie, our favourite will win. This has the added benefit that we might use your puzzle, which means you'll be a real published author (appearing in the National Archives of Canada and everything). And the added added benefit of saving MY brain a little. So don't forget those tiebreakers!

Answers must be in by 6pm on Valentines day, so put down your significant other (gently) and get your answers in, then pick your significant other back up and perhaps replace the word put with go and add an on in there. You can submit to them or to me, your choice; be safe, submit to both. Drop off those answers at the BLACK BOX, between the C&D and Comfy, or email us at mathNEWS@student.math.uwaterloo.ca">mathNEWS@student.math.uwaterloo.ca, or play the ever fun game of Find the Snuggles to submit in person (tops optional). If you don't submit, I'll find someone who will! Now that I think about it, I'll do that anyway.

Hicks Insanity

Using all the numbers from 0 to 9 exactly once, create an equation in which two 3-digit numbers sum to a 4-digit number. (E.g.: 246+789=1035) For full marks give at least 10 more equations that satisfy those conditions. (there are 48 in total).

Phun with Fuzzics (It's like Physics, but better)

Please briefly explain why as well for each answer:

1. A man is in a canoe with some iron. He is floating in a lock and decides to throw the iron out of the canoe, into the water. What happens to the water level?
2. A van that is sitting on a giant scale contains some pigeons on perches. Then the evil clown of your nightmares scares the pigeons and they all begin flying inside the van. What happens to the total weight of the van?
3. The van manages to clean out all the pigeon leavings and decides to replace them with helium balloons painted grey. What happens to the freak pigeon-esque balloons when the van accellerates. (All windows are closed).

Word Play / Play Word

Each clue leads to two words (or phrases) that are phonetic reverses of each other. That is, flipping the syllables of the word phonetically gets you the second word. (E.g. Impertinent and Teeter totter become Saucy / Seesaw).

1. A clock and Period between wars (2 words)
2. Fabulous and Chase after
3. Have faith in and Not disturb
4. Mass measurement, informally and Understated (2 words-ish)
5. Student in a summer office job and Goto bed (2 words)
6. Fundamental and McCoy's room
7. Government assistance and Goodbye
8. Worst test score and Optimistic
9. Relevant and Plastic jesus' hangout
10. Sofa and Cups, Saucers, Sugar Bowl, etc (2 words)

That's it folks, enjoy the problems, don't forget to submit, and please, solve responsibly.

Mayor of Snuggles-town