PROBLEM SET

Due 10.11.2022

1. Adam works with a company that uses square-bottomed milk crates. A square number of milk
cartons can fit in a crate using dividers. Using 2 dividers, he can fit 4 cartons into a crate. Using 4
dividers, he can fit 9 cartons in another sized crate.

a) How many cartons can fit into a square crate if 50 dividers are used?
b) How many dividers are needed for a square crate that can hold 400 milk cartons?
c) If he has 2n dividers, what is the maximum number of cartons that he can put in the crate?
d) If he wants to fit c2 cartons in a square crate, how many dividers does he need?
2. Take any five numbers between 1 and 99 inclusive. Write them in ascending order. Now add the first
and the second; the second and the third; the third and the fourth; and the fourth and the fifth. Score
points as follows: every square number is worth two points; every cube number is worth 3 points;
every prime number is worth 2 points. (Numbers that are both squares and cubes only get 3 points.)
a) What is the highest score that you can get? In how many ways can you get it?
b) What is the lowest score that you can get? In how many ways can you get it?
3. Suzie is solving a math problem. By mistake, she multiplied by 12 then divided by 8 instead of
multiplying by 8 and dividing by 12. If she got 2 as an answer, what should have been the correct
answer?

4. Four people on one side of a river need to cross the river in a boat that can carry a maximum load of
180 pounds. The weights of the people are 80, 100, 150, and 170 pounds.
a) Explain how the people can use the boat to get everyone to the opposite side of the river.
b) What is the minimum number of crossings that must be made by the boat?

5. The skyboxes at a large sports arena are equally spaced around a circle. The 84th skybox is directly
opposite the 70th skybox. Find out how many skyboxes there are in the sports arena.
6. What is the greatest value of the expression (𝑎𝑏+𝑏𝑐+𝑐𝑑+𝑑𝑎) if 𝑎,𝑏,𝑐,𝑑 have values 3,5,7,9 (not
necessarily in that order)?

7. Give a procedure on how to measure 9 liters of water from a 12-liter and 5-liter unmarked containers.

8. Only 3 ships dock on a remote port. One ship docks every other 8 days, the second ship every other
10 days, and the last ship every other 15 days. Each ship leaves the port on the same day it arrives.
If three ships were present on January 1, how many days of the year (365 days) is the port empty?