Interesting

This Math Question For Class 5 Students In China Has Stumped Adults

IANS, 02 Feb, 2018 04:22 PM

The world is divided into two kinds of people - those who love Math and those who don't. And this question meant for fifth graders in China will either reinstate your love for the subject, or make you hate it even more. But chances are you won't be able to look away from it until you've given it some thought.

11-year-olds at a primary school in China's Shunqing were asked to answer a question that many online have termed unsolvable, reports BBC. "If a ship had 26 sheep and 10 goats onboard, how old is the ship's captain?" asks the question. Pictures of the question have since created quite a stir on Chinese social media as many have been left utterly confused about the answer.

Before you think there was a misprint on the exam paper or that the question is incomplete, let us tell you, the question is absolutely fine. In fact, officials of an education department have defended the question saying it examines a student's critical awareness and ability to think independently, reports BBC.

The question received a varied number of answers from students as translated by South China Morning Post:

"The captain should be at least 18 years old because a minor is not allowed by law to operate a vessel," offered one student.

"The captain is 36 years old. He is quite narcissistic, so the number of animals corresponds to his age," suggested another.

"We cannot be sure of the captain's age. The number of the sheep and goats is irrelevant to the captain's age," concluded a third.

A Weibo user also offered this explanation for the question, reports BBC: "The total weight of 26 sheep and 10 goat is 7,700kg, based on the average weight of each animal. In China, if you're driving a ship that has more than 5,000kg of cargo you need to have possessed a boat license for five years. The minimum age for getting a boat's license is 23, so he's at least 28."

So can you solve this question without losing your marbles?

While this math problem has little to do with the subject, it has surely garnered a lot of attention. Something similar to when Donald Trump’s “Covfefe” made it to the ISI Kolkata question paper.

The second year students of the Master of Statistics programme at ISI Kolkata found a rather interesting question in their paper on Martingale Theory.

A question that read “Mr. Trump decides to post a random message on Facebook and he starts typing a random sequence of letters {Uk}k≥1 such that they are chosen independently and uniformly from the 26 possible english alphabets. Find out the expected time of the first appearance of the word COVFEFE.”

LOL. Today's exam at the Indian Statistical Institute. See Qn 5. pic.twitter.com/TrHHpyGCCP
— Grieve Chelwa (@gchelwa) December 1, 2017

Prev Next

MORE Interesting ARTICLES

British Man To Give Birth, Puts Gender Transition On Hold

A British man has put his gender transition on hold to have a baby after finding a sperm donor on social media and is expected to become the first UK male to give birth.

British Man To Give Birth, Puts Gender Transition On Hold

NRIs Seeks More Time To Exchange Old Notes

The Diaspora comprising Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) has sought extension of the deadline to exchange or deposit the banned notes till December 31.

NRIs Seeks More Time To Exchange Old Notes

This Kindhearted Indian Businessman Throws Grand Weddings for Fatherless Indian Brides

Most often than not, widowed mothers simply don't have the means to marry their daughters. That's where Indian real-estate tycoon Mahesh Savani comes in.

This Kindhearted Indian Businessman Throws Grand Weddings for Fatherless Indian Brides

WATCH: Stubborn Japanese Husband Finally Talks To Wife After Over Twenty Years Of Silence

Father-of-three Otou continued to live with his wife and family, speaking normally to his children, but he never uttered a word to his long-suffering wife Katayama Yumi for two decades.

WATCH: Stubborn Japanese Husband Finally Talks To Wife After Over Twenty Years Of Silence

Woman Falls In Love With 3D-Printed Robot, Wants To Marry It

The woman in question, known only as Lilly, or by her Twitter handle @LillyInMoovator, describes herself as a "proud robosexual" and told News.com.au via email that she is attracted only to robots and actually dislikes physical contact with human flesh.

Woman Falls In Love With 3D-Printed Robot, Wants To Marry It

Kissenger - The Smartphone Accessory That Lets You Kiss over Long Distances

There's no substituting human touch, yet, but rapidly-advancing technology already provides some intriguing alternatives. One such example is the Kissenger, a smartphone peripheral that allows users to kiss over long distances.