DAY 428

IT ALL ADDS UP
Credit: GAMES Magazine
July, 1985
Michael W. Ecker

You and an opponent alternate picking numbers from 1 to 6, and a running total is kept. If the object of the game is to make the score total exactly 50, and you go first, what number should you pick to force a win for yourself?

Answer:

1 .............. 50 is one more than a multiple of 7. If you pick 1 as your number, then, no matter what your opponent chooses, you say 7 minus that number. On your eighth turn, you will cause the score to hit 50 exactly.

DAY 427

THE RACE TO MECCA

A rich Arab who loved puzzles died. In his will he specified that his two sons race one another on horseback. They were to race to Mecca, 20 miles away.  The son whose horse finished last would inherit all his father's wealth.

The day of the race each brother rode his horse as slowly as he could. When night came, they had only gone one mile. At that rate, the race would last at least three weeks, and what would happen when they reached the finish line? That night they stopped at an inn. When they told the innkeeper about their problem, he thought for a minute. He then gave the brothers two words of advice, which they decided to follow.

Early the next morning, they rode off toward Mecca. But now they raced as fast as their horses would carry them. What were the clever innkeeper's two words of advice?

Answer:

"Switch horses."