Math Is Fun Forum

Mathivanan Palraj

Member

Registered: 2017-04-01

Posts: 1

Sam Loyd puzzles: Puzzle 1

I got an answer like, 10 hours 9 minutes 13 and 11/13 seconds. It seems there are two answers.

Bob

Administrator

Registered: 2010-06-20

Posts: 10,621

Re: Sam Loyd puzzles: Puzzle 1

hi Mathivanan Palraj

Welcome to the forum.

Well done for your answer.

I have looked at this for the first time today.  I just looked at cases where the minute hand is between 0 and 30 and the hour hand is between 6 and 12.  Altogether I found 6 solutions, including yours and the one given.  I cannot see why there shouldn't be another set of solutions where the minute hand is towards the right on the clockface. I suspect the given answer is the one from Sam Loyd himself.

I'll keep my spreadsheet in case anyone wants to ask about any of the other 4 answers. 

Bob

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Children are not defined by school ...........The Fonz
You cannot teach a man anything;  you can only help him find it within himself..........Galileo Galilei
Sometimes I deliberately make mistakes, just to test you!  …………….Bob

phrontister

Real Member

From: The Land of Tomorrow

Registered: 2009-07-12

Posts: 4,877

Re: Sam Loyd puzzles: Puzzle 1

Hi;

The hour and minute hands are at equal distance from the 6 hour, what time will it be exactly?

There are 12 solutions where the two hands are on different sides of the clock face, and the distance to the 6-hour mark for one is measured in the reverse direction to that of the other.

There are 11 solutions where one hand is on top of the other and the direction to the 6-hour mark for both hands is the same.

EDIT: I've had another think about this, and I reckon that although the puzzle wording doesn't say so, we're probably just meant to give the exact time of the clock hands shown in the image on the puzzle page (and reproduced below)...in which case there's only one solution. It doesn't really make sense otherwise, there being so many solutions.

Last edited by phrontister (2017-04-19 11:16:08)

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