Hope some of you had a chance to solve the first puzzle (the firelog puzzle). If you have not seen it, please go to https://alokgoyal1971.com/2013/01/29/why-puzzle/

Here is the solution to the puzzle:

Mahesh gets Rs. 7 and Ramesh gets Rs. 1

Explanation:

Since Suresh has given Rs. 8 as his “equal” share, that means that the fair share for each of the three needs to be Rs. 8. Therefore a total of 8×3=Rs.24 has been spent on the firelogs (or the forelogs are worth this much money). Cost of each log therefore is Rs. 3.

Mahesh has spent Rs. 15 (5 firelogs x 3) and Ramesh has spent Rs. 9 (3 firelogs x 3). Therefore Mahesh has spent Rs. 7 (Rs. 15 – Rs. 8 which is his fair share) extra and Ramesh has spent Rs. 1 extra, which are the amounts they keep from the money given by Suresh.

A video version of the solution is available at: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcv6rxC4KErcxEtUX5NUslTMa__DuA4Rh

I was very happy to see many right responses, and also very happy to see many children writing to me. In particular, I thought that Shray solved the puzzle in a very unique way. I am including his answer verbatim:

Mahesh used 2 2/3 of his fire wood, so he gave Suresh 2 1/3 fire wood. Ramesh used 2 2/3 of his fire wood so he gave 1/3 fire wood. The ratio is 2 1/3 to 1/3 which is also 7:1 if you do 2 1/3 and 1/3 times 3. So Mahesh gets 7 rupees and Ramesh gets 1 rupee.

Why Puzzle?

All parts of our body need exercise to stay fit, and so does the mind. While growing up, my father would ask my brother and I puzzles pretty much every day. It will be fair to say that my brother and I were addicted to puzzles and looked forward to these puzzles. During high school days as well as during my undergraduate and my Masters, I would go to great lengths to find new puzzles, create puzzle groups and mingle with people with similar “puzzling” interests. I, however, forgot about this passion in the last 20 years. I do not think I am alone who has the excuse of a busy career, travel, kids, parents, ….as to why I could not continue with this passion.

Last year, during a class organized by Intellitots, I met with Abhinav who would ask a new puzzle every single week during these Sunday classes. His passion for puzzles rekindled my interest yet again, and I realized to my surprise how much my daughter (elder one, who is now 8 years) loved these puzzles the same way.

This blog is an attempt to share this passion with other people. I hope that you will participate and enjoy. Please remember that this is not a competition, but a way to exercise a part of our brain that seldom gets utilized. This is meant for people across all age groups. To the extent possible, I will categorize the puzzles for different age groups, but my judgment can be wrong from time to time.

There are no rules for this except one – Please do not post answers to this blog in the discussion thread, except asking for clarifications. We do not want to spoil the fun for others. You can send in your answers to alokgoyal_2001@yahoo.com. In case your child solves a puzzle, please do let me know his/her name and age, and I will highlight it when I send in the answers the following week.

Finally, if there is an interesting puzzle that you have, please send it to me, I will post it on behalf with due acknowledgments.

Happy solving!

Puzzle #1: Firelog Puzzle

There are three friends (Mahesh, Ramesh and Suresh) who go for hunting to a jungle and decide to camp near a village. It was cold and they needed to light a fireplace. Each of them go out in search of wood. After an hour Mahesh comes back with 5 logs and Ramesh comes back with 3 logs. However, Suresh could not get any logs, and offered Rupees 8 to Mahesh and Ramesh as his equal share. How should Mahesh and Ramesh divide the money?

Ages: 10 and above (though I would encourage 8 and 9 year olds to try this as well)

Source: I read this puzzle in a Russian book about 30 years back. I had bought this book in a book fair in IIT Delhi. I was delighted to find this book in my mother’s apartment after all these years.