Kiss those Math Headaches GOODBYE!

Posts tagged ‘Fun Math Problem’

Fun Math Problem #2


Here is the second in my series of “Fun Math Problems.”

Feel free to try these problems. Share them with friends and colleagues. Use them however you see fit! I will post the answer to the problems two days later, after people have had time to respond.

To provide your response, simply send an email to me @ info@SingingTurtle.com
and make your Subject: Fun Problem.
Please show how you worked the problem. Thanks. I will post the names of the first three people who get this right.

The Problem:  Before you go out to lunch, you glance at the clock above your desk. When you come back from lunch, you glance at the clock again, and you notice something strange. The minute and the hour hand have exchanged places from the positions they had just before you went to lunch.

The question is:  how long were you away?

Rusting clock face

Image by The Hidaway (Simon) via Flickr

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Algebra, Challenge Problem, Formulas, FUN PROBLEM, Integers, Linear Equations, Making Math Fun, Practice Problems, Problem of the Month, Problem of the Week, Puzzles, Turtle Talk, Uncategorized

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FUN MATH PROBLEM — Circling the Square & Vice-Versa


From time to time I will post interesting math problems.

Feel free to try these problems. Share them with friends and colleagues. Use them however you see fit!

I will post the answer to the problems two days later, after people have had time to respond.

To post your response, simply send an email to me @ info@SingingTurtle.com
and make your Subject: Fun Problem.

The problem: Which provides the fuller fit? Putting a circular peg in a square hole, or putting a square peg in a circular hole? To get credit, show all work, and justify your answer by expressing each “fit” as a percent.

A few term-clarifications, to help you do this correctly:

a) By “fit,” I mean the ratio of the smaller shape to the larger shape, expressed as a percent. For
example, if a ratio is 4 to 5, that would represent a “fit” of 80 percent.

b) For the circular peg in the square hole, assume that the diameter of the circle equals the side of the
square. For the square peg in a circular hole, assume that the diameter of the circle equals the diagonal of the square.

c) By “fuller fit,” I mean the larger of the two ratios.

Have fun!

Category:

Area, Formulas, Formulas, FUN PROBLEM, Geometry, Making Math Fun, Math in General, Math Instruction Techniques, Practice Problems, Probability, Proofs, Proportions, Puzzles, Ratios, Uncategorized

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