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Topic: Match Equations (Read 2065 times) |
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BNC
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Match Equations
« on: Jan 29th, 2003, 1:53am » |
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In each of the following three, move a single match to form valid equations. The = and + are composed of two matches each.
1. \/|+|=\/
2. \/|+|=\/|
3. \/|+|=|||
// title modified by willywutang 2:54 AM 2/4/2003
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| « Last Edit: Feb 4th, 2003, 2:54am by william wu » |
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BNC
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Re: Some more match riddles
« Reply #2 on: Jan 29th, 2003, 2:54am » |
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3. 6 - 2 = 3 
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wowbagger
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Re: Some more match riddles
« Reply #3 on: Jan 29th, 2003, 4:02am » |
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3. \/| / || = |||
which comes about by taking the horizontal match of the "+" and using it as a slash and the remaining vertical match forming a 2 with the match to its right.
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| « Last Edit: Jan 29th, 2003, 4:04am by wowbagger » |
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BNC
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Re: Some more match riddles
« Reply #4 on: Jan 29th, 2003, 4:52am » |
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on Jan 29th, 2003, 4:02am, wowbagger wrote:3. \/| / || = |||
which comes about by taking the horizontal match of the "+" and using it as a slash and the remaining vertical match forming a 2 with the match to its right. |
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Nice! I didn't think if that one...
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Phil
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Re: Some more match riddles
« Reply #5 on: Jan 29th, 2003, 6:17am » |
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3. But that requires moving two matches. Instead, take one of the ||| match sticks and lay it across the = to make an unequal sign, or angle one of the = matchsticks to make an awkward but readable > sign.
How about this one? (and no touching the equal sign)
V+I=IX
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wowbagger
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Re: Some more match riddles
« Reply #6 on: Jan 29th, 2003, 6:34am » |
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on Jan 29th, 2003, 6:17am, Phil wrote:| 3. But that requires moving two matches. |
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No, it doesn't. If the "+" in the original position lies near the "II", but quite far from the "VI", I'd say it works just fine.
Quote:| Instead, take one of the ||| match sticks and lay it across the = to make an unequal sign, or angle one of the = matchsticks to make an awkward but readable > sign. |
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What you end up with in this case is hardly an equation, is it?
Quote:How about this one? (and no touching the equal sign)
V+I=IX |
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Are you expecting \/ + | = \| / or something like that? (I assume the "one match only"-restriction applies)
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RexJacobus
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Re: Some more match riddles
« Reply #7 on: Jan 31st, 2003, 7:25am » |
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_
l_l
I can't quite get the top match to line up just right but I think you can probably imagine four matches set in a square. Move one and only one and form a completely different square.
Rex
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aero_guy
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Re: Some more match riddles
« Reply #8 on: Jan 31st, 2003, 11:43am » |
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hmm, puzzling. This isn't what you are looking for, but you can break one.
_ _| |
|_ _|
becomes
|_ |
|_|_|
Heck, I can make as many squares as you like, though there is the pesky leftover parts sticking out.
Other than that I thought of changing perspective when moving it out of plane, but can't quite make that work out to a square. Requires some more thought.
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Chronos
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Re: Some more match riddles
« Reply #9 on: Feb 3rd, 2003, 4:24pm » |
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Good one, RexJacobus, but I'm not sure it really belongs in the same thread as all of these others.
Incidentally, I just managed to get three physicists to stare at a square drawn on the board for five minutes. Fun stuff.
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Brett Danaher
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I got the equation problems above, but the square made of matchsticks, changed into a different square just by moving one stick....
In any convential sense that is not possible, since once you have three parts of a square the final part has only one possible location.
So I must not be thinking creatively enough, although I did try thinking in three dimensions. Any clues or answers from the peanut gallery here? Did the physicists get it or did they just decide after 5 minutes of trying that it was not as important as proving the Copenhagen interpretation of reality?
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poseur
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Think algebra, not geometry.
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Brett Danaher
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I'm an idiot. I can't believe I did not see that. Thanks for the help, though.
Not that this post will add any value, but since when has that stopped any of us?
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Pietro K.C.
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Re: Match Equations
« Reply #13 on: Feb 5th, 2003, 12:10pm » |
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Since no one posted this particular one-match solution to
3. VI + I = III,
here's an alternative:
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VI + I = II
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BNC
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Re: Match Equations
« Reply #14 on: Feb 5th, 2003, 12:17pm » |
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on Feb 5th, 2003, 12:10pm, Pietro K.C. wrote:Since no one posted this particular one-match solution to
3. VI + I = III,
here's an alternative:
<removed>
[/color] |
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That is what I had in mind.
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wowbagger
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Re: Match Equations
« Reply #15 on: Feb 6th, 2003, 2:06am » |
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on Feb 5th, 2003, 12:10pm, Pietro K.C. wrote:
Ouch! It took me over five minutes to figure out why it works! 
Oh well, I'll blame it on Pietro's artistic abilities. 
on Feb 5th, 2003, 11:44am, Brett Danaher wrote:| Not that this post will add any value, but since when has that stopped any of us? |
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ditto
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Pietro K.C.
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Re: Match Equations
« Reply #16 on: Feb 6th, 2003, 2:34pm » |
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You guys should have seen the performance a few of my friends gave when trying to solve a similar match puzzle. It was something like
VI = II,
the intended solution of which is (don't look if you don't want a hint for #3):
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VI = I
They came up with:
* VI != I
* I VI = I (where V is a sort of X for multiplication)
* IVI = I
* /I = III
* my friend's girlfriend tried taking a I from the II and making a gradient sign out of the V, so VI would become "gradient of 1", but couldn't find a convincing explanation of how I would represent the null vector 
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BehemothCat
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Re: Match Equations
« Reply #17 on: Apr 30th, 2003, 11:37am » |
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Another basic solution is
1. IV + I = V
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| « Last Edit: Apr 30th, 2003, 11:55am by BehemothCat » |
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Kitty
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Re: Match Equations
« Reply #18 on: Apr 30th, 2003, 11:53am » |
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To hide you answers:
[ hide ] [/ hide ]
Without the spaces. You better do it or Icarus will give the lecture about it 
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Icarus
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Re: Match Equations
« Reply #19 on: Apr 30th, 2003, 4:00pm » |
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I don't tell 'em to hide, just HOW to do it! (And point them to the FAQ forum so they can find answers to other questions.)
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mistysakura
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|Re: Match Equations
« Reply #20 on: May 1st, 2003, 12:59am » |
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Four matches different square (this is definitely not the intended solution)
_
\| | and imagine the leftmost three matches are a square root sign. sq. root of 1 = 1, which is a perfect square.
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Da_Stoph
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Re: Match Equations
« Reply #21 on: Jul 5th, 2003, 10:46pm » |
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im not sure if anyone said this yet, hoqever it doesnt appear that they have. the question merely asks for valid equations so you could simply take one stick in each problem and put it over the equal sign diagonally thus making it not equal. i dont know how to show that here in the post but im sure u all know what im talking about. it may seem like cheating but the question only says valid answers. PeAcE
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BNC
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Re: Match Equations
« Reply #22 on: Jul 6th, 2003, 4:25am » |
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on Jul 5th, 2003, 10:46pm, Da_Stoph wrote:| im not sure if anyone said this yet, hoqever it doesnt appear that they have. the question merely asks for valid equations so you could simply take one stick in each problem and put it over the equal sign diagonally thus making it not equal. i dont know how to show that here in the post but im sure u all know what im talking about. it may seem like cheating but the question only says valid answers. PeAcE |
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Look at posts 6,7 in this thread.
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