Hungry Cows

Here's a riddle that Michelle heard at work and passed along.

"If a cow and a calf eat a pumpkin and a half in a day in a half, how many pumpkins will they eat in a week?"

 There are a few different ways to get the right answer. Share how you figured it out by posting a comment!

Mahjong Ratios and Percentages

One thing I hate most about losing a computer game like Solitaire or Mahjong is that I know my stats will take a hit. My computer keeps track of how many games I have played and won, and then it figures out the percentage of games I have won.

The more games I lose, the lower that percentage gets. If I win again later, the percentage will creep up, but after one loss, it will never again be 100%. It could get close though if I play 101 games and lose only one.

Let's say I lost another game of Mahjong...

1. What would be ratio of games won to games played be then?
2. What would be my percentage of wins?
3. When could I possibly have seen that same percentage before?
4. When may I see it again in the future?
5. How many games would I have to win to raise my stats above 50%?

Snakebite Statistics

When my freshmen class began discussing and googling poisonous snakes, we came across some interesting statistics at tennsnakes.org. 

"Tennessee is home to 32 species of snakes, only 4 of which are venomous."

1.  What is the ratio of venomous snake species in Tennessee to all snake species? 

2.  How many species in Tennessee are nonvenomous?

* Research: What are the four venomous snake species? How can you tell if a snake is venomous?

"Snakebite is extremely rare in the United States. And death from snakebite in the U.S. is even rarer. Of the 50,000 deaths that occur worldwide each year, only about 12-15 of those occur in the U.S. The top five states in which you are most likely to die from snakebite are Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Texas and Alabama. All of these states have species which are more lethal than those found in Tennessee."

3.  What is the percentage of deaths caused by snakebite that occur in the U.S.?  

* Research: What kind of venomous snakes live in the top five states where you are most likely to die from snakebite? What is their state's ratio of venomous snakes to all the species? How do they compare to Tennessee?

More Statistics:

• 8,000-10,000 snakebites are reported annually in the United States.
• Only 12-15 deaths occur each year in the United States, putting your chances of survival at roughly 499 out 500.
• Approximately 3000 of these bites are classed as illegitimate, meaning the victim was handling or molesting the snake when the bite occurred. See Prevention of Snakebite.
• 85% of bites are below the knee. See Prevention of Snakebite.
• 50% of bites are 'dry' bites where the snake has not injected any venom. Snakes can control the amount of venom they inject. They need their venom to subdue prey, and they do not prey upon humans. In fact, it is the humans who prey upon the snakes.

4.  What percentage of people die from snakebites in the U.S?

5.  What percentage survive?

6.  How does this compare to the ratio of your changes of survival (499 out of 500)?

7.  What percentage of the snakebites occurred when people were mistreating snakes?

8.  What are the chances of getting bitten below the knee? Write as a ratio.

9.  If you get bitten by a venomous snake, what are the chances that the snake did not release its venom? Write as a ratio.

Mathematical Models of Forgiveness

Here are some quotes from Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis.

"When you start mathematics you do not begin with calculus; you begin with simple addition. In the same way, if we really want (but all depends on really wanting) to learn how to forgive, perhaps we had better start with something easier... We might try to understand exactly what loving your neighbor as yourself means. ...

"I admit that this means loving people who have nothing lovable about them. But then, has oneself anything lovable about it? You love it simply because it is yourself. God intends us to love all selves in the same way and for the same reason: but He has given us the sum ready worked out in our own case to show us how it works. We have then to go on and apply the rule to all the other selves. Perhaps it makes it easier if we remember that that is how He loves us."