During the recent BrainBashers Football Competition, 5 teams were competing.
Each team played each other just once, with 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, and 0 points for a loss.
However, the rain damaged the final scoresheet, and this is all that could be read of the final points after all of the matches:
Rugby 6
Grimsby 5
Hereford 4
Lichfield 2
Reading ?
Can you work out how many points Reading ended the season with?
Reasoning
There were 5 teams in the league, and every team played every other, so there were a total of 10 games played:
Rugby vs Grimsby
Rugby vs Hereford
Rugby vs Lichfield
Rugby vs Reading
Grimsby vs Hereford
Grimsby vs Lichfield
Grimsby vs Reading
Hereford vs Lichfield
Hereford vs Reading
Lichfield vs Reading
We know that 2 points were allocated for each game played. Which means that there were a total of 20 points over the 10 games.
Since the given results add to 17, the remaining 3 points belong to Reading.
?
Puzzle 202
Place letters into the grid such that every row, column, and 2 x 2 block has letters (in any order) that form a common word. Each letter is only used once, and no letter is repeated in the rows / cols / blocks.
Letters allowed: C O L U M B U S
D
K
P
E
T
E
L
A
Note: this puzzle is not interactive, and the squares cannot be clicked.
Answer
Eight lots of 11p, 17p and 21p, and nine lots of 3p and 9p.
Reasoning
For three denominations of stamp I was asked to buy 8 of each, and for the other two denominations I had to buy 9 of each.
So I had to buy at least 8 of all five denominations.
This would be for a total of 8 x (3 + 9 + 11 + 17 + 21) = 488p = £4.88.
The remaining 12p has to buy the remaining 2 stamps, which must have been 3p and 9p.
Double-Checking
9 x 3 = 27
9 x 9 = 81
8 x 11 = 88
8 x 17 = 136
8 x 21 = 168
For a total of 27 + 81 + 88 + 136 + 168 = 500p = £5.
?
Puzzle 204
As I was going to St Ives,
I met a man with seven wives.
Each wife had seven sacks,
Each sack had seven cats,
Each cat had seven kits.
Kits, cats, sacks and wives,
How many were going to St. Ives?
This is a very old puzzle, and appeared in a manuscript dated around 1730. It is thought to refer to a town in Cornwall, UK.
If we were to count everyone and everything, including all of the kits, cats, sacks and wives, we would have:
Me = 1
Man = 1
Wifes = 7
Sacks = 7 x 7 = 49
Cats = 7 x 7 x 7 = 343
Kits = 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 = 2401
