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        riddles >> easy >> milk bottles
        
(Message started by: BenVitale on Jun 28^th, 2009, 1:23pm)

Title: milk bottles
Post by BenVitale on Jun 28^th, 2009, 1:23pm

A government program allows people to collect empty milk bottles and exchange them for bottles full of milk. Four empty bottles may be exchanged for one full bottle. How many bottles of milk can a family drink if it has collected 24 empty bottles?

Title: Re: milk bottles
Post by MathsForFun on Jun 28^th, 2009, 2:23pm

[hide]8. They trade 24 empty for 6 full, drink the milk, then they borrow 2 empty to make a total of 8 empty bottles. They trade these for 2 more full, they drink the milk, then they return the 2 empty bottles to their lender.[/hide]

Title: Re: milk bottles
Post by towr on Jun 28^th, 2009, 3:11pm

[hide]They can do that by lending just one bottle. If they're not allowed to lend, they can do 7.[/hide]

Title: Re: milk bottles
Post by Grimbal on Jun 29^th, 2009, 2:31am

Hehe...
I heard of that problem before, but it was a bum who can make one cigarette with four cigarette butts.
:D

Title: Re: milk bottles
Post by chronodekar on Jun 29^th, 2009, 3:27am

MathsForFun,

Thats a really good way of putting things.

[hide]Initially, I came to towr's answer. Of just 7 bottles. Considering at the end of your transaction, the original lender ends up with the 2 bottles that were borrowed, I think it's a good method. (Now, if they want to charge interest, ... its another matter entirely. [/hide]
::)

-chronodekar