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Monday, March 30, 2009

Try or Cry

Games' Place wants to participate of this blog, showing you nice and interesting things, so this post is to give you a little challenge...I nice problem, and you can try to solve it... Put your answers on the comments place.


This problem is about Diophantus, known as the father of algebra. He was a greek citizen, lived in the third century a.C..
There is a text that is the most known thing about Diophantus' life:

Diophantus' teen lasted one sixth of his life. He became an adult after one twelfth os his life more. After one seventh more he married. Five years later, he and his wife had a son. His son has lived exactly one half as long as his father, and at last, Diophantus died four years after his son.

How many years have Diophantus lived?
answer on friday!

6 comment(s):

Unknown said...

I'm sorry! I can't take it!

Lucas Bittencourt said...

well, it's friday, and I'll show the answer...To solve this problem, the first thing you have to do is apply a letter to represents Diophantu's life, let's apply "X", so the first information is X/6, the second is X/12, third is X/7, fourth is 5, fiveth is different because his son lived one half of his life so is X/2, sixth and last is 4...so you can make an equation...
X = X/6 + X/12 + X/7 + 5 + X/2 + 4

After solve this equation, you'll find 84, and it's the age of Diophantus when he died..

Unknown said...

Hey! I didn't find 84!!!
I know that the MMC between 6-12-2-7 is 84 but I couldn't discover "X"!!!
Could you sove this equation,please??

Milinha

Lucas Bittencourt said...

Sure, there is:

we've:
X = X/6 + X/12 + X/7 + 5 + X/2 + 4

After change the denomitator to 84, we've that:

84X = 14X + 7X + 12X + 420 + 42X + 336

It results on:

84X = 75X + 756
9X = 756
X = 84

Where X is the age os Diophantus at the time of his death. That's it.

Unknown said...

WOW!!!
Thank you!!!
I did it wrongly!
I just put => X/6 + X/12 + X/7 + 5 + X/2 + 4

I forgot to put that it all is " =X".
Thanks very much!!!

I liked it a lot! Could you bring more problems like this?

Milinha

Lucas Bittencourt said...

Sure, I'll try to put a new problem every week...I'm cheer that you liked it..