19 February 2013

Ten digit number

It is only Tuesday and I am already flying back home! I asked two of my colleagues who are traveling with me to give me a puzzle for my FB friends – they were of no help!! So, here goes one from me…

Form a ten digit number comprising of two 4’s, two 3’s, two 2’s, two 1’s and two 0’s such that the two 4’s are separated by 4 digits, the two 3’s are separated by 3 digits, the two 2’s are separated by 2 digits, the two 1’s are separated by 1 digit and the two 0’s are separated by 0 digits.
(as always send me a personal message when you crack it)

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14 February 2013

Valentine’s day. Did you know?

Feb 14th is Valentine’s day. No doubt you know that. But if you are not from India, you may not know that Nov 14th is celebrated as Children’s Day in India. This is to celebrate India’s first prime minister Nehru’s birthday who was a great friend of children.
The discerning amongst you no doubt have realized that there is exactly 9 months between Valentine’s Day and Children’s Day in India! 🙂

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14 February 2013

Rope puzzle…..

Today Linda Michelson Sandler reported that her husband – who is not a FB friend of mine – but should be – has been wondering why I have not posted any more puzzles. You know you have created a problem when people are asking around why you are not posting puzzles 🙂

I had to quickly think of this one. If you know it send me PM.

You are given a bunch of ropes and a few match sticks. What you know about the ropes is that they all burn at very different rates at different segments but each one of them burns off completely in exactly 1 hour (60 minutes).

How can you measure 45 minutes? What is the minimum number of ropes and match sticks you need and how would you do it?

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5 February 2013

We are the lions!

I actually saw this on Facebook a few days back… I cannot locate it anymore (one of those friend-likes-funny-group posts). So I recreated the cartoon myself – but the credit goes to somebody else who I do not know!

That said, here is to all my Detroit friends!!!

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1 February 2013

Easier one…

Puzzle time: The last puzzle given by my brother in law – I am still trying to decipher the answer from three of my friends – one of whom is the brainy-types and has changed his mind thrice….

But today is Thursday and I should be flying home…. so here is one that is easier …

How do you get 100 using one “1” and four “7”s. You can use plus, minus, multiple, divide symbols and parentheses.

e.g. 177-77

Now give me another answer…

If you have cracked it, send me PM. I will recognize you publicly…

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26 January 2013

Caught in a circle!!

New puzzle!! Like every other responsible brother-in-law, I called up my BIL this morning to check on him and his family. As is his wont, he immediately rewarded me with a puzzle which has stumped me ever since. (I think he is trying to give me a hint 🙂 ). Anyways, I got to the answer intuitively (and I am assuming it is the correct answer since he confirmed it) but for the life of me, I cannot come up with a proof for the answer.
So, here it is: Think of a circle. Now think of all the n-sided regular polygons that can fit in it (all the vertices of the regular polygon will touch the circumference of the circle). Which figure (i.e. for what value of “n” – triangle, square, pentagon, hexagon, heptagon, octagon etc etc ) will have the maximum value for the sum of squares of the sides.
As always, if you know or crack it, send a PM. I will acknowledge in the common forum.

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25 January 2013

Man on the moon

“Today Russia announced plans to send a probe to the moon by the year 2015. Russian scientists say they’re excited to see what they could discover on the moon’s surface. I’ll tell you what they’re going to discover – an American flag!” –Craig Ferguson

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18 January 2013

Updates on the Bomb Squad

A few more details are trickling in… (you have to read the previous post to get the context).

After finishing up my office work, I called India back to get more details of the incident. Funnily enough, nobody admitted that they were the first to suggest it might be a bomb. When I talked to my dad upstairs, he said it was my sister’s idea. When I talked to my sister downstairs, she suggested it was the niece who got afraid it might be a bomb!!! My mom claims that right from the beginning, she had a hunch that it might be a nice package from me! And of course, the niece claims she knew all along it had to be books!!! 🙂

Everybody seemed to remember that all the neighbors agreed that those burglars whose attempt to rob was thwarted a few days back must have been so enraged that they sent a bomb!!

An outstanding moment occurred  when the neighbors came. Picture this – there is a small brown packet in the middle of the parking lot in the ground floor. And a bunch of neighbors and my parents, sister et al. are circling it from a safe distance completely confused what to make of it. At that time of “You first” mentality, one brave gentleman stepped forward a little and was able to decipher some letters on the package from that distance. Petrified, he yelled “It says, HANDLE WITH CARE”. Everybody simultaneously jumped back three feet and a half convinced that their worst fears had come true!!! For, as you undoubtedly know, terrorists always take care to warn you to handle with care 🙂 🙂

At the end, I asked them – So, all of you and your neighbors and the police were at the police station with the package? And who was going to fend off the burglars that had attempted a robbery a few days back if they came during that time?

There was pin drop silence on the other side. I kept the phone down 🙂