Recent meetings in New Delhi on a new school syllabus seemed to have identified ‘mathphobia’ among most students. Though a final statement on how to get over this problem and make mathematics education more attractive is still awaited, one news report tried to capture the mood of the discussions. It said that many teachers and researchers had suggested a disconnect between everyday reality and what was being taught was a source of this fear. I do not agree with that view. Mathematics is not a study of everyday life. So, by telling a student that we use mathematics from laundry bills to rocketry may not necessarily excite her. We need a method to make the language of mathematics ? a study of patterns in nature ? more accessible to students.

PUZZLE 1: Last weekend, the Summerset Symphony honoured Schubert and four other of its musicians for being named National Players. The musicians, each of whom plays a different instrument in the orchestra and has been with the group a different number of years, were treated to a surprise playing of For He'’ a Jolly Good ... during the symphony’s Saturday concert. From the information below, can you find each honoured musician’s full name, the instrument he or she plays in the Summerset Symphony, and the number of whole years he or she has been performing with the orchestra?

Handel has been with the group twice as long as Georgia, who has been a Summerset Symphony musician twice as long as the clarinet player. The flutist isn’t the honouree who has the shortest tenure with the orchestra. Walter has been performing with the symphony 12 years longer than Bach. The most-veteran musician has played for the group 18 years longer than the least-veteran performer. James has been a Summerset Symphony member three fewer years than the oboist. Wagner has been with the orchestra twice as long as the violinist, who has been a member three years longer than Maria.

Georgia and Bach both trained at Cozy Valley Conservatory. Ravel has been playing for the Summerset Symphony 12 fewer years than fellow honouree Yolanda has. The oboist has been with the group half as long as the cellist.

Solutions on July 4

CORRECT ENTRIES

June 6

Vishal Lama; Abhinandan Khan; Niraj Satnalika; Arkajyoti Roy Chowdhury; Abhishek Ray; Bikram P. Bhuyan; Saakallya Biswas; Gaurav Konar; Dipanjan Gupta; Tanmoy Sanyal; Ashim Debnath; Santosh Sahai; Sandeep Jain; Asmita Bhattacharya; Sayee ganesh.G; Subrato Ranjan; Dipangshu Dutta; Manisha Mukherjee;

CORRECT ENTRIES

May 30

S.K. Choudhary, Durgapur; Rajasree and Rajdip Hazra, Kulti; S.P.S. Jain, New Delhi; K. Sengupta, Cal-19; Anjana Sett, Cal-6; Achyut Bihani, Cal-6; Santosh Kumar Gupta, Rourkela; Debamitra Banerjee, B.E. College; Md. Sohail

PUZZLE CRACKED

We’re carrying Ravi Raja’s entry this week. His approach was quite flawless.

Solution 1: The Vicar was 36. Expressing 2,450 as a product of three factors in all possible ways:

2x25x49 (76; 38); 2x35x35 (72; 36)

5x5x98 (108; 54); 5x7x70 (82; 41)

5x10x49 (64; 32); 5x14x35 (54; 27)

7x10x35 (52; 26); 7x14x25 (46; 23)

The figures in the brackets are the sum of their ages and the Vicar’s age respectively. There is only one case where the Vicar’s age is the maximum and his age is 36.

Solution 2: Since no ‘ding’ could be rung exactly two chimes after another ‘ding’ and no ‘dong’ could be rung exactly three chimes after another ‘dong’, the longest sequence of chimes will consist of 2x3=6 chimes and that will be: “Ding, Ding, Dong, Dong, Ding, Ding.”