Martin has a garden with 100 poisonous flowers. He can destroy exactly 3, 5, 14, or 17 at a time, but if at least one flower survives, then the flowers also grow back based on how many were destroyed (3 die, 12 grow back; 5 die, 17 grow back; 14 die, 8 grow back; 17 die, 2 grow back). If the number of flowers is exactly 0, then the flowers never grow back. Can Martin ever get rid of all the flowers in his garden? Watch the video for a solution.
My blog post for this video
http://wp.me/p6aMk-53z
Problem Source
I based this puzzle on the dragon problem from here: http://webdocs.cs.ualberta.ca/~hayward/272/variants.pdf
The document cites this book: A. Engel, Problem-Solving Strategies, Springer-Verlag, New York, 1998. Problem 51.
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My Books
"The Joy of Game Theory" shows how you can use math to out-think your competition. (rated 3.9/5 stars on 26 reviews) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1500497444
"The Irrationality Illusion: How To Make Smart Decisions And Overcome Bias" is a handbook that explains the many ways we are biased about decision-making and offers techniques to make smart decisions. (rated 5/5 stars on 2 reviews) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1523231467/
"Math Puzzles Volume 1" features classic brain teasers and riddles with complete solutions for problems in counting, geometry, probability, and game theory. Volume 1 is rated 4.5/5 stars on 12 reviews. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1517421624/
"Math Puzzles Volume 2" is a sequel book with more great problems. (rated 5/5 stars on 3 reviews) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1517531624/
"Math Puzzles Volume 3" is the third in the series. (rated 5/5 stars on 3 reviews) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1517596351/
"40 Paradoxes in Logic, Probability, and Game Theory" contains thought-provoking and counter-intuitive results. (rated 4.7/5 stars on 10 reviews) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1517319307/
"The Best Mental Math Tricks" teaches how you can look like a math genius by solving problems in your head (rated 4.7/5 stars on 3 reviews) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/150779651X/
"Multiply Numbers By Drawing Lines" This book is a reference guide for my video that has over 1 million views on a geometric method to multiply numbers. (rated 5/5 stars on 2 reviews) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1500866148/
