Editor’s Note: The Department of Mathematics at Gettysburg College hosts a problem of the week challenge to determine each semester’s Paul Mugabi problem-solving award recipient(s). Each week’s entries are scored by a faculty judge, and winner(s) from each week will receive a Problem Of the Week (P.O.W.) button. The Gettysburgian is not involved in or responsible for accepting or evaluating students’ submissions to this contest.
Solutions Due: Friday, September 22, 5:00 p.m.
Send solutions to bkennedy@gettysburg.edu.
The contest is open to all Gettysburg College students. Up to three people may work together on a submission. Make sure your name is on your submission and that any sources are properly cited. Weekly winners will receive a POW victory button, and the best-performing students of the semester will receive the Paul Mugabi problem-solving award.
C.S.I. Kindergarten
I was teaching a kindergarten class and we were studying rocks. One day I put my students in random order and asked Student 1 to bring in one rock the next day, Student 2 to bring in two rocks the next day, Student 3 to bring in three rocks the next day, and so on.
The next day, a single student forgot to bring their rocks, but everyone else brought theirs. We had 37 rocks.
How many students did I have, and which student forgot their rocks?
