536 Puzzles and Curious Problems

(Elliott) #1

Match Puzzles



  1. A NEW MATCH PUZZLE


I have a box of matches. I find that I can form with them any given pair of
these four regular figures, using all the matches every time. Thus, if there were
eleven matches, I could form with them, as shown, the triangle and pentagon
or the pentagon and hexagon, or the square and triangle (by using only three
matches in the triangle); but could not with eleven matches form the triangle


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and hexagon, or the square and pentagon, or the square and hexagon. Of
course there must be the same number of matches in every side of a figure.
What is the smallest number of matches I can have in the box?



  1. HURDLES AND SHEEP


This is a little puzzle that you can try with matches. A farmer says that four
of his hurdles will form a square enclosure just sufficient for one sheep. That


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