Take a long rope; tie it to the bottom of the goal post at one end of a football field.
Then run it across the length of the field (120 yards) to a goal post at the other end.
Stretch it tightly, and then tie it to the bottom of that goal post, so that it lies flat against the ground.

Now suppose that I add just 1 foot of slack to the rope, so that now I can lift it off the ground at the 50-yard line. How high can I lift it up?

 

Solution to the Problem:


The answer is:   it will be 13.43 feet high at the 50-yard line!



John Funk Took it a step further when he wrote, "It's even more incredible when you figure that by adding only 1 inch, you can then lift it nearly 4' at the fifty yard line." Thanks, John -- now that really blows my mind, but he's right -- it is 46.48 inches!

Correctly solved by:

1. Misty Carlisle Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
2. Jeffrey Gaither University of Virginia
Charlottesville, Virginia
3. John C. Funk Ventura, California
4. Rhys dela Cruz New Jersey
5. Ben Swartz Stephens City, Virginia
6. James Alarie University of Michigan -- Flint
Flint, Michigan
7. Britney White Columbus, Georgia
8. Malin Fredriksson Tullängsskolan, Örebro, Sweden
9. Tom Robb Winchester, Virginia
10. Wictoria Widén Tullängsskolan, Örebro, Sweden
11. Erka Skoglund Tullängen, Örebro, Sweden
12. Jonas Arvidson Tullängsskolan, Örebro, Sweden
13. Marielle Clerissy Tullängen, Örebro, Sweden
14.Russell Beaty Columbus, Georgia
15. Johan Honk-Walensjo Tullängen, Örebro, Sweden
16. Mary Bailey Wickham Columbus, Georgia
17. Zaza Carlzon, Tullangsskolan, Örebro, Sweden
18. Krille Jansson Tullängsskolan, Örebro, Sweden
19. Magdalena Axelsson Tullängsskolan, Örebro, Sweden
20. Kalle Almstedt and Daniel Brunnberg Tullängsskolan, Örebro, Sweden
21. Niklas Lonnermo Tullängsskolan, Örebro, Sweden
26. Rickard Jansson Tullängskolan, Örebro, Sweden