In how many ways can you read OSLO in the diagram, using adjacent letters (vertically, horizontally, or diagonally)?
Any O can be the first and the last letter of the same OSLO.
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Solution to the Problem:
There are 108 ways to read the word OSLO.
In the diagram, Os appear in the center, at the corners, and on the sides.
When the first O is at the center:
The O touches 4 Ss, each of which touch 3 Ls, which each touch 3 Os, yielding 4 x 3 x 3 = 36 words.
For the Os at the corners:
Since there is no O that is adjacent to an S, no OSLOs can be formed.
For the Os on the sides:
Each of the 8 Os touches 1 S that touches 3 Ls, each of which touch 3 Os, yielding 8 x 3 x 3 = 72 words.
In all, there are 36 + 72 = 108 words.
Correctly solved by:
| 1. Colin (Yowie) Bowey | Beechworth, Victoria, Australia |
| 2. Ritwik Chaudhuri | Santiniketan, West Bengal, India |
| 3. Ivy Joseph | Pune, Maharashtra, India |
| 4. Kelly Stubblefield | Mobile, Alabama |