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Green Wall Challenge #1

This first problem comes in two parts, and a bit of mind reading. The parts are different in obvious ways. Solve them both, then read my mind, to do this you may have to ponder for a while the nature of the two parts of the challenge already completed. The winning solution will describe accurately what it is I am aiming for. It isn’t terribly deep, so give it a go in the spirit of fun and joy it is meant. First Problem The Lion, Llama, and Lettuce tri-lemma. There once was a farmer who was taking three items to ...
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Toothpick Puzzles

The Goalpost Puzzle

Posted on June 16, 2014 by Dave Youngs • 1 Comment

The Puzzle Corner activity this week is an adaptation of a classical matchstick puzzle from recreational mathematics. As has been noted before in this column, these puzzles date back to the nineteenth century when matches were first manufactured and began to proliferate. Most matchstick puzzles can be broken into two general categories: those that are geometric in… Continue Reading

Arrow Arrangements

Posted on April 22, 2014 by Dave Youngs • 0 Comments

This particular puzzle comes from The Moscow Puzzles. The puzzle is found in the section entitled “Geometry with Matches,” which offers a selection of matchstick puzzles as “geometrical amusements that sharpen your mind.” Arrow Arrangements is one of the more difficult puzzles in this section, and requires students to understand and apply some basic geometric… Continue Reading

Toothpick Puzzlers

Posted on January 13, 2014 by Dave Youngs • 2 Comments

This week’s activity consists of five related puzzles that should challenge students. Matchstick (I have substituted toothpicks) puzzles have been a staple feature of recreational mathematics for years. The puzzles presented here were adapted from some that appeared in The Moscow Puzzles by Boris Kordemsky (available from Dover Publications, Inc.) This type of puzzle often requires patience… Continue Reading

The 36 ‘Picks Puzzle

Posted on November 11, 2013 by Dave Youngs • 0 Comments

This puzzle comes from a rich historical tradition that dates back to the 19th century when matches were first manufactured. Invented in 1827 by the British chemist John Walker, matches soon replaced the tinder boxes and flints that people had formerly used to light fires. As matches grew in popularity and became ubiquitous later in… Continue Reading

The Three-to-Five Triangle Puzzle

Posted on October 7, 2013 by Dave Youngs • 4 Comments

This week’s Puzzle Corner activity comes out of a rich historical tradition that dates back to the 19th century when matches were first manufactured. Invented in 1827 by the British chemist John Walker, matches soon replaced the tinderboxes that people had formerly used to light fires. As matches grew in popularity and became ubiquitous later… Continue Reading

Reducing Squares

Posted on June 24, 2013 by Dave Youngs • 1 Comment

Reducing Squares belongs to a category of puzzles called “matchstick puzzles” which were very popular in America during the last century. Most adults in those days carried small boxes of matches with them to light the many candles or lamps in their homes. Many of these same people had a favorite repertoire of matchstick puzzles… Continue Reading

Flipping Fish

Posted on May 20, 2013 by Dave Youngs • 1 Comment

This puzzle has been around in various forms for a number of years. All forms begin with eight toothpicks or matches arranged in the shape of a fish. One version challenges you to move exactly three toothpicks to make the fish face the opposite direction. Another version challenges you to move just two toothpicks to… Continue Reading

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