April 2010
Problem of the Month

Applebee's Trios Problem

A TV advertisement for Applebee's Trios states that you can pick 3 favorites,
and that you have over 200 combinations to choose from!

What is the minimum number of items from which you could choose your three favorites so that you would have over 200 possible combinations?

Solution to the Problem:

The minimum number of items that would give you over 200 combinations is twelve.

Let n = the number of items to choose from, then the formula for the number of combinations is given by:

Correctly solved by:

1. David & Judy Dixon	Bennettsville, South Carolina
2. Scott Woody	Mountain View High School, Mountain View, Wyoming

Send any comments or questions to: David Pleacher