Puzzle 273
Can you find the country hidden in the following paragraph:
At school, most of my friends learnt French. I learnt Chinese, mainly because I planned to visit the area when I grew up.
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
The country spans more than one word.
Answer
Chile.
At school, most of my friends learnt FrenCH. I LEarnt Chinese, mainly because I planned to visit the area when I grew up.
Puzzle 274
Alex likes soda very much. At the local convenience store, for every 5 empty soda bottles the reward is a full fresh bottle.
As part of a local recycling initiative, Alex collected 77 empty bottles.
How many bottles of soda could Alex drink in total?
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
The answer is not 15.
Answer
19 bottles.
Reasoning
From the initial 77 bottles, 75 bottles can be recycled for 15 new full bottles.
Once those are drunk, Alex will have 17 empty bottles (15 plus the 2 extra empty bottles).
From the 17 empty bottles, 15 bottles can be recycled for 3 new full bottles.
Once those are drunk, Alex will have 5 empty bottles (3 plus the 2 extra empty bottles), which can be recycled for one final full bottle.
Giving a total of 15 + 3 + 1 = 19.
Puzzle 275
Yesterday I was asked to buy some stamps.
In the land of BrainBashers, stamps are available in denominations of 3p, 9p, 11p, 17p, and 21p (just the five different values).
For three denominations of stamp I was asked to buy eight of each, and for the other two denominations I was asked to buy nine of each.
Unfortunately, I forgot which I was supposed to buy eight of, and which to buy nine of!!
Luckily I had been given the exact money required to buy the stamps, £5.00, so the shopkeeper was able to work out the stamps I needed.
Which stamps did I have to buy?
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
I bought at least 8 of each stamp.
Answer
Eight lots of 11p, 17p and 21p, and nine lots of 3p and 9p.
Reasoning
For three denominations of stamp I was asked to buy 8 of each, and for the other two denominations I had to buy 9 of each.
So I had to buy at least 8 of all five denominations.
This would be for a total of 8 x (3 + 9 + 11 + 17 + 21) = 488p = £4.88.
The remaining 12p has to buy the remaining 2 stamps, which must have been 3p and 9p.
Double-Checking
9 x 3 = 27
9 x 9 = 81
8 x 11 = 88
8 x 17 = 136
8 x 21 = 168
For a total of 27 + 81 + 88 + 136 + 168 = 500p = £5.
Puzzle 276
Which is larger:
inches in a mile
Sundays in a thousand years
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
There are 1,760 yards in a mile, 3 feet in a yard, and 12 inches in a foot.
Answer
Inches in a mile.
Reasoning
There are 1,760 yards in a mile, 3 feet in a yard, and 12 inches in a foot.
There are 1760 x 3 x 12 = 63,360 inches in a mile, and around 1,000 x 52 = 52,000 Sundays in a thousand years.
Depending on the day of the week the first day of the year falls, there are either 52,177 or 52,178 Sundays in a thousand years.
