Mind-Boggling Puzzle: Solve How Many Parts Each Worker Got

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around a puzzle involving the distribution of work among five workers (A, B, C, D, and E) who plant a field. The problem includes conditions regarding their work rates, the time taken to complete the job, and the division of the field into parts based on a two-digit square number. The focus is on determining how many parts each worker received.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Mathematical reasoning
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant presents the puzzle and its conditions, noting that A, B, and C work at the same speed and that the field is divided based on their work rates.
  • Another participant references the original source of the puzzle, indicating that they have altered the wording but maintained the same answer.
  • A third participant provides a detailed mathematical breakdown of the problem, introducing variables for the number of parts each worker receives and their respective work rates, leading to a proposed solution of A=B=C=13, D=9, and P=49.
  • This participant also mentions the time it would take to plant the field based on their calculations.
  • A final post humorously comments on memory, suggesting a light-hearted tone amidst the technical discussion.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

There is no clear consensus on the solution, as one participant challenges the changes made to the numbers in the proposed solution. Multiple viewpoints and interpretations of the puzzle remain present.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes assumptions about the work rates and the conditions under which the workers operate. The mathematical steps and the enumeration of square two-digit numbers are not fully resolved, leaving some aspects of the problem open to interpretation.

Wilmer
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Found this challenging:

A,B and C work at same speed.
When all 3 of them plant a field with D, the job gets done in 5 hours.
When all 3 of them plant the same field with E, the job gets done in 6 hours.
The field was divided between the 5 workers in proportion to their 5 work rates,
into a 2digit square number of parts, with E getting only 1 part.
A, B, C and D all got an integer number of parts.
How many parts did each get?
 
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But... but... you changed the numbers in your solution. :eek:

Here's my solution.

Say $A,B,C,D,E$ are the number of parts each gets.
Let $a,b,c,d,e$ be their respective work rates in parts per hour.
And let $P$ be the square 2-digit number of parts.
Then it follows that:
\begin{array}{l}
A=B=C \\
a=b=c \\
A+B+C+D+E=P \\
E=1 \\
\frac Aa = \frac Bb = \frac Cc = \frac Dd = \frac Ee \\
5(a+b+c+d)=P \\
6(a+b+c+e)=P \\
\end{array}

We can simplify this to:
$$\left\{\begin{array}{l}
3A+D+1=P \\
\frac Aa = \frac Dd = \frac 1e \\
15a+5d=P \\
18a+6e=P \\
A,D \text{ whole numbers} \\
P \text{ square 2-digit number} \\
\end{array}\right.$$

By enumerating all square 2-digit numbers, we find $A=B=C=13,\ D=9,\ P=49$ as the only solution.
It will take them $\frac{234}{49} \approx 4 \text{ hours and }47\text{ minutes}$ to plant the field.
 
Last edited:
I have a good memory, but it's short(Nerd)
 

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