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Asked by jessicalynch513 to Cathal on 12 Nov 2013.
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Cathal Cummins answered on 12 Nov 2013:
When I was in third year at school I took part in this mathematics competition (Irish Mathematical Olympiad) and I was asked to solve a problem relating to the coordinate geometry of the circle. The question is easy for me to do now but at the time I pretty much needed to make my own theorem on the spot! I was very happy with myself as I was only new to mathematics back then.
The problem with mathematics puzzles is that when you think back over them after you’ve solved them, they don’t seem so difficult anymore! 🙂
Here’s another problem that is mathematical:
There are three people: Ann, Barry, and Cathal. Ann is looking at Barry (but not at Cathal), Barry is looking at Cathal and Cathal is looking off into the distance. Now Ann is married, and Cathal is unmarried.
Question: is a married person looking at an unmarried person?
(a) yes;
(b) no;
(c) cannot be determined.The answer is straightforward but I love these kinds of puzzles!
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Comments
edison123 commented on :
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roygrealish commented on :
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Michael commented on :
I did the maths olympiad in 1992 and 1993 and it is still the hardest thing I have ever done in my life! The level that it operates at is still far beyond what I ever encountered since then and I gained a new admiration for mathematicians and how they have to think to solve problems.
After that the most difficult problem I had was modifying a Gaussian function so it did not go to infinity at zero radius – pah, easy 🙂
M