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Topic: New puzzle site (Read 762 times) |
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Grimbal
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New puzzle site
« on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 12:54am » |
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Hello,
I have just been given the following link. It is a puzzle competition with 1 puzzle per week.
I don't know what it is worth yet, it just started, but the site looks well designed. I think it is worth having a look.
http://www.puzzleup.com/
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| « Last Edit: Jan 3rd, 2005, 12:55am by Grimbal » |
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towr
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #1 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 6:25am » |
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The first problem is rather easy, I hope that won't be a trend.
Regardless, I won't register to join. First of all they won't allow me to use my user name since it's too short for them. And besides that I'm not inclined to plaster my first and surname all over the internet (whatever use is it to them anyway? And where's their privacy policy statement)
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ThudnBlunder
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #2 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 11:08am » |
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Quote:| The first problem is rather easy |
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n(n-1)/2, yes?
where n is the number of players
Quote:| And besides that I'm not inclined to plaster my first and surname all over the internet |
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You can give your name as 'Donald Duck' if you like.
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THE MEEK SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH.....................................................................er, if that's all right with the rest of you.
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Sir Col
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #3 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 12:09pm » |
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on Jan 3rd, 2005, 11:08am, THUDandBLUNDER wrote:
n(n-1)/2, yes?
where n is the number of players |
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What a strange question! I would say that the maximum distance is indeterminate, as he may decide to take a tour of the universe between visiting each player. 
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towr
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #4 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 12:33pm » |
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on Jan 3rd, 2005, 11:08am, THUDandBLUNDER wrote:| You can give your name as 'Donald Duck' if you like. |
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Yes, I know, but I also don't like to lie..
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towr
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #5 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 12:38pm » |
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on Jan 3rd, 2005, 12:09pm, Sir Col wrote:| What a strange question! I would say that the maximum distance is indeterminate, as he may decide to take a tour of the universe between visiting each player. |
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Indeed, but often the problem is giving the answer they expect, rather than an answer which is right.
Also, although he may decide to take a tour around the universe; firstly he probably can't, seeying as we haven't develloped proper space travel yet. Secondly he can't finish handing out the medals if he could (as he or his players would be dead before he finished a proper sized tour of the universe).
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ThudnBlunder
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #6 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 12:45pm » |
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on Jan 3rd, 2005, 12:09pm, Sir Col wrote:
What a strange question! I would say that the maximum distance is indeterminate, as he may decide to take a tour of the universe between visiting each player. |
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You seem to be exhibiting the initial symptoms of an affliction causally related to thinking too hard and too long about too many puzzles!
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| « Last Edit: Jan 3rd, 2005, 8:42pm by ThudnBlunder » |
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Grimbal
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #7 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 2:13pm » |
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on Jan 3rd, 2005, 11:08am, THUDandBLUNDER wrote:
n(n-1)/2, yes?
where n is the number of players
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Yeah, that was my first guess also. For 4 players it gives 6, but you can do 7.
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towr
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #8 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 2:42pm » |
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hmmpff..
Well, had I participated in the competition, I'd have probably checked it better anyway 
At least it's more interesting than I thought..
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| « Last Edit: Jan 3rd, 2005, 2:44pm by towr » |
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towr
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #9 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 3:06pm » |
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For even n you can do at least as good as n2/2-1
(and for odd n, at least as well as for n-1 plus an extra (n-1) )
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| « Last Edit: Jan 3rd, 2005, 3:07pm by towr » |
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Sir Col
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #10 on: Jan 3rd, 2005, 3:58pm » |
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I get it to be n(n-1)/2+[n/2]-1, where [ ] is the integer part function.
It seems that the only way to increase n(n-1)/2 is to start in the middle instead of the end of the line. In doing this we travel [n/2] to get to one end of the line (going the futher distance if n is even), then proceed in the normal zig-zag fashion. However, there will be one less player to visit now in the middle, as we started at the player we would normally finish at.
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rmsgrey
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #11 on: Jan 4th, 2005, 7:27am » |
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It looks to me like there are multiple routes that maximise the length travelled - if you modify the problem to start and end at the center point of the line, then, provided you pass the center on each move, you will always cover the same distance (you can regard each move as starting and finishing at the center, and going out to a given point) Any solution to this revised problem will give a distance for the original problem that is less by the length of the first and last half-moves - in other words, the maximum for the original problem is found by starting as near the middle as possible...
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asterix
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Please keep in mind that this is a contest. In the spirit of competition, I don't think it's appropriate to be answering the questions on this forum. So let's just be sure we're talking about a completely different puzzle where there are 13 or 17 men. Then it's all copacetic.
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Grimbal
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #13 on: Jan 4th, 2005, 10:03am » |
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Sir Col, I agree with your formula, except for n=1. 
My formula (n^2-2)/2 works always. At least with the peculiar way a computer rounds integers.
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Sir Col
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #14 on: Jan 5th, 2005, 12:46am » |
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on Jan 4th, 2005, 10:03am, Grimbal wrote:| Sir Col, I agree with your formula, except for n=1. |
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Show me a line of one; and I thought that n represented the number of playerS.
on Jan 3rd, 2005, 11:08am, THUDandBLUNDER wrote:| where n is the number of players |
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Grimbal
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #15 on: Jan 4th, 2006, 11:52am » |
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The PuzzleUp competition is over.
Guess who is first? 
Anyway, a new one starts this year.
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towr
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #16 on: Jan 4th, 2006, 12:05pm » |
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on Jan 4th, 2006, 11:52am, Grimbal wrote:| Guess who is first? |
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Congratulations.
And by a decent lead too, I see.
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Barukh
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #17 on: Jan 12th, 2006, 9:17am » |
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Grimbal, Iwant to congratulate you too. It seems the problems were far from trivial.
Also, I noticed several puzzles that appeared at this forum. I wonder: who borrowed from whom?
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Grimbal
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Re: New puzzle site
« Reply #18 on: Jan 13th, 2006, 5:20am » |
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I am not sure.
OK, I posted here one or two of them.
For the rest, there are a few classical problems, but usually with a non-trivial twist that prevents people from just googling for the solution.
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