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Ponder This

June 2000

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Ponder This Challenge:

Two players play a game.

They start with an unlimited supply of coins, which have denominations 1, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100 cents. They take turns placing a coin into a pot, which is intially empty.

There is a target amount: $6.78 or 678 cents. The amount in the pot may not exceed this target.

The winner is the player who puts in the last coin, reaching the target.

Who wins?


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Challenge: 06/01/00 @ 11:48 AM EDT
Solution: 07/05/00 @ 1:00 PM EDT
List Updated: 06/27/00 @ 1:00 PM EDT

People who answered correctly:

Samantha Levin (6.2.2000 @ 11:23 AM EDT)

Tim Edmonds (6.2.2000 @ 4:37 PM EDT)
Ziad Mokhtar (6.2.2000 @ 5:10 PM EDT)
Ed Severn (6.2.2000 @ 5:45 PM EDT)
Jessica Lang Jones (6.2.2000 @ 10:37 PM EDT)
Mohit Sauhta (6.4.2000 @ 8:28 PM EDT)
Youngchul Park (6.5.2000 @ 3:41 PM EDT)
Bill Daly (6.5.200 @ 5:02 PM EDT)
Edward Lee (6.6.2000 @ 7:28 AM EDT)
msk (6.6.2000 @ 10:15 AM EDT)
Vincent Menu (6.7.2000 @ 7:23 PM EDT)
Ming Song (6.8.2000 @ 3:19 AM EDT)
Olivier Miakinen (6.8.2000 @ 9:42 AM EDT)
Jacques Willekens (6.9.2000 @ 7:54 AM EDT)
Tal Weiss (6.11.2000 @ 5:20 AM EDT)
Al Zimmermann (6.11.2000 @ 2:06 PM EDT)
Brian Schroeder (6.11.2000 @ 4:40 PM EDT)
Amos Guler (6.12.2000 @ 1:38 PM EDT)
Ilan Algor (6.13.2000 @ 4:50 AM EDT)
Alamuru Krishna (6.13.2000 @ 4:15 PM EDT)
Prithu Tiwari (6.14.2000 @ 12:25 AM EDT)
Howard Kaye (6.14.2000 @ 11:21AM EDT)
Markus G. Kuhn (6.14.2000 @ 1:40 PM EDT)
Jimmy Hu (6.14.2000 @ 2:45 PM EDT)
Philippe Fondanaiche (6.14.2000 @ 2:51 PM EDT)
Mark Lomas (6.15.2000 @ 4:07 AM EDT)
Bill Schwennicke (6.15.2000 @ 4:19 PM EDT)
Rocke Verser (6.16.2000 @ 5:08 AM EDT)
Shmuel Spiegel (6.16.2000 @ 12:04 AM EDT)
Paul Kahler (6.19.2000 @ 12:02 AM EDT)
Antoniu Melica (6.19.2000 @ 10:36 AM EDT)
Ether Jones (6.19.2000 @ 1:12 PM EDT)
Achava Nakhash (6.19.2000 @ 3:14 PM EDT)
Héctor Ferazza (6.19.2000 @ 5:25 PM EDT)
Christie Bolton (6.21.2000 @ 5:10 PM EDT)
DJ Chen (6.23.2000 @ 3:16 PM EDT)
Chris Keane (6.26.2000 @ 7:42 AM EDT)
Ionel Santa (6.29.2000 @ 3:38 AM EDT)


Attention: If your name is posted here and you wish it removed please send email to the ponder@il.ibm.com.