1. Determine, by any convenient method, the value of each of the forty-three variables as defined on the next
page. Though some of the definitions might be considered tricky, we feel confident that there is one and only
one correct value for each variable. Do not strain to find unusual ways to interpret
any of the definitions; the intended meanings are the literal and straightforward ones in all cases.
For example, a "landlocked" country is one not bordering on any ocean; and such a country
should still be considered landlocked, for the purposes of this contest, even though it might have access to an ocean
by river or treaty.
2. Substitute the value for each variable into the right-hand side of the equation (some variables appear more than
once) and perform all indicated arithmetic operations. Standard mathematical usage is in effect, except: Where square
root radicals are used, only the positive root should be considered. For example, the square root of 49 should be evaluated as 7 for the purpose of solving the equation, and not as -7 even though both numbers are square roots of 49.
THE QUESTIONS
a = Street number of the White House
b = Number of landlocked countries in South America
c = Number of gills in a gallon
d = Number of U,S. presidents that preceded Pierce
e = Smallest three-digit palindromic number not ending in 0
f = Number of counties in Rhode Island
g = A.D. Year in which the Alamo fell
h = Number of moons of Mars
i = Cube root of 4,913,000)
j = Number of colors in the flag of Mauritius
k = Number of "Best Actress" Oscars won by Katharine Hepburn
m = Number of Superbowls held to date (as of DEC 1978)
n = Number of Books that precede Ruth in the Old Testament
p = Number of black keys on a standard piano
q = Number of carbon atoms in a molecule of nitroglycerine
r = James Bond's number, backwards
s = MCDLXIV
t = Number of humps on a Bactrian camel
u = Reciprocal of 0.0625
v = Number of signers of the U.S. Declaration of Independence
w = First three digits of the zip code of Fairbanks, Alaska
y = Number of playing cards (in a standard deck) which depict one-eyed faces
z = Number of times the word "ten" is spelled out on a $10 Federal Reserve Note
= Number of zeros in one octillion (American system)
= Smallest positive number that rhymes with plenty
= Number of years referred toby Lincoln at the beginning of his Gettysburg Address
= Hardness of gypsum on Mohs' Scale
= Most recent non-leap year (in 1978) that was divisible by 4
= Number of purchasable properties in a Monopoly game
= Number of lines in a Shakespearian sonnet
= Between midnight and noon, the number of different readings containing at least
two 3s (hours and minutes only)
that will appear on the face of a digital clock
= Number of letters in the U.S. state capital with the longest name
= Number of hours difference (expressed as a positive number) between Pacific
Standard Time and Atlantic Standard Time
= Number of edges on one face of a parallelepiped
= pH of H2O
= Number that completes this sequence:
0, 2, 6, 12, 20, 30, __
= Sum of the atomic numbers of wolfram, quicksilver, and tritium
= 23 dgerees F. in degrees Celsius
= Number of times a bell rings on a ship at noon (under standard maritime practice)
= Number of U.S. states whose names begin and end with the same letter
= Geometric mean of 19 and 304
= Sum of all primes betWeen 55 and 65, between 85 and 90, and between 200 and 215
= Smallest perfect number greater than 6
ANSWER KEY:
