"NUTS!"

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 49, 28 February 1927, Page 5

"NUTS!"

= • ~~ : {INTELLECT SHARPENERS| I No. XVII. 1 I (By T. L. Briton.) | I All rights reserved. I •■ "iillllililliliil iiiiiiiiiiuuiii iiiiini iiiiuir Headers with a little ingenuity will find in this column an abundant store of entertainment and amusement, and the solving of the problems should provide excellent mental exhilaration. While some of the "nuts" may appear harder than others, it .will be found that none will 1 require a sledge-hammer to crack them. . THE TOTALISATOR. I The reader will not need an apology for introducing a problem relating to betting, for, apart from the fact that the use of the totalisator is governed by law, there are really no morals in problems. Every man, woman, and child is daily confronteci with and reasoning out problems o£ some practical kind, though perhaps not aware of it; for all conversation is more or less based on logic and mathematics. Well, to the problem. Diogenes, His Eminence, and The Captain were three horses in the Derby. There were other starters, but the field: was not large enough for a second "tote" dividend. A visitor to the races, correctly estimating that one of the horses mentioned would win, decided to invest on each of them. Upon looking at the board, he found that the firstnamed would' pay £3 for every £1 invested.if ne won, the second-named £5, and the latter £7 10s. How much would the gentleman have to.invest on each of these horses in order to win £10, no matter which of them came first? CYCLING. '_■■'■ Whilst in the.sporting vein, I must relate an incident during the .visit of Lamb, the _ Australian expert cycle rider, because a problem hinges on it. Attending the meeting with my friend Hopkins, we arrived just as'the big race started, and in order to get a better view-stood up on 'our seats. "Which is Lamb?" I asked mm, "and how many are in the race?" as it was difficult to count them. Hopkins, enigmatic as usual, replied: "That is Lamb looking round over his left shouldder, arid one-half the riders in" front of him added to three-fifths of those behind him make up the number in the race." The track,, of course, was a circular one, and' whilst Hopkins was replying he frequently referred to his programme, to verify, I suppose, the handicaps. Can the reader tell how many were in the race? THE DUCK SHOOTERS. Two men, and their two sons went out for a day's duck shooting, and arrived at a rivef. late in the evening. Seeing game on the other sidej they decided to camp for-the night where they were and cross in the morning. They found, however, that the river was unfordable with the car; there was no bridge, and none of the party could swin. ■ After.'; a little searcuing, a canoe was found, but it would only hold two boys together or one of the r^en. How did they all get across

with it and leave the canoe where they found it? A REFERENDUM. In a certain referendum, the voting paper contained four issues, but what they. were does not concern the problem, and may be called A, B, C, and D. The total number of votes polled was 109,460, the issues being voted for and counted separately. B. topped the poll, having received 11,500 more than A, 2920 more than C, and 360 more than D. Mow many votes were polled for each issue? There is an excellent rule for this kind of problem, which, if followed, will save a deal of calculation and figuring. . , TENNIS. The endeavour is to make the problems ill this column of practical use, as well as affording a refieshing mental pastime. Here is a topical one, revealing a situation which often presents itself, and the solution of it will show how a desirable arrangement can be effected. Four ladies and the same number of gentlemen are to play m a mixed double tournament, and it is agreed that no person shall play either with or against any other person more than onci;. There are two,courts, and the necessary games are to be played on three successive days, each of the eight players taking part on each day. Can the reader arrange the games under these conditionii? It requires a little ingenuity to work this problem out. SOLUTIONS OF LAST WEEK'S PROBLEMS. The Royal Two.—The fewest number of moves that this problem can be solved in is 23, and are as follow:— Longer than he Thought.—The little boy had to travel 1012 yards to collect the discs and place them: in the basket, although the distance from the first, where the basket was placed, to the twelfth was only 121 yards. . A Weird Number.—The figures 1 to 16 should be arranged as shown, when a combination of four of them will add up 34 in seven different ways, as indicated in the problem. . • . 16 3 2 13 : ■ 5 10 -11 8 9 6 : 7 .12 4 15 14 \ 1 Poppy Day.—There were 20 ladies and 10 gentlemen present, not ■■ including the chairman, who' was only a buyer of the poppies. . .■■■"*.-■• • Sewing and Cutting.—To sew on 48 buttons A took 24 minutes, plus 30 seconds lost—24min 30sec., To cut 72 lengths B only had to make 70 cuts (2 rolls), which at 20 seconds each would be 23min 20sec, plus, 70 seconds lost time—24min 30sec. Therefore, the two tailors were a "deadheat.". . . ' - ; ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. As there must necessarily be delay in publishing replies to queries, answers will be sent by post if correspondents who desire early replies enclose- stamped envelope.v : . J.H.S., Lower Hutt.—lt applies to any ; circle. If one circle has a circumference double that of another, its area is four times that of the smaller one. C.M.;, Kilbirriie.—"The Typistes" explanation appeared in the issue of :isth January, 1927. ■ ■ -. .. - T.M.J., Hobson street.—lf the item sent had two solutions, one a negative,' it could not be used. '.-■..'.' -1