Lenny Conundrum #137

[deadlypker]

Don't ask me what the answer was, I didn't win. But I saw that the stuff was given out to the winners, so here's the board for the next one. Ok I know the np prize was 486 nps, Kess won by the way, he just didn't post the answer, just the neomail.

[Chriso999]

The answer was 139.

[deadlypker]

thank you

[neomania]

I know the answer was 139 but they should have also accepted 138 due to the wording of before.

[XenaAndGabrielle]

I know the answer was 139 but they should have also accepted 138 due to the wording of before.

If they accepted 138, they would have been forced to accept any answer lower than 138, as well.

There was an "easy" way to figure it out (I was happy with myself to come up with it). Start with a block with volume 1. After 1st swing, volume is 0.995. After 2nd swing, volume is 0.995 * 0.995. After n swings, the volume will be 0.995^n.

So, just need to find how big n must be to get 0.5

(0.995)^n = 0.5
log(0.995^n) = log (0.5)
n * log(0.995) = log (0.5)
n = log (0.5) / log (0.995)

You'll get 138.28 ... which means you'll have to swing a 139th time before it is less than half.

I was sad I didn't get the item prize, just the NPs ... and I thought I had answered quite quickly. Anyone end up with the item prize?

[freddyflinstone]

I just got the np's - np prize - i answered it pretty easy and early as well just using excell

[XenaAndGabrielle]

I just got the np's - np prize - i answered it pretty easy and early as well just using excell

Yeah, I used EXCEL to begin with ... my "neat" solution didn't occur to me until later.

[sillygurl]

I got it wrong too I said 138 because the wording tricked me. Oh well I heard you just got 468 np anyways.

[Kess]

I got the item and the NP. Whoo 468 NP. I might try to go buy 468 volcanic rocks with that.

I got the answer in really quick, I was hoping I'd get the gold trophy FINALLY but no. Poop.

[Jez]

*kicks TNT* No item.....

While sitting around waiting for interior decorators to finish up in the scroll repository, a bunch of bored and mischievous workers decided that they'd build a catapult. When they finally finished, it was able to shoot a projectile straight up into the air. So. in a move which they later regretted, they decided to launch one of the pyramid blocks, which had a density of 2400 kilograms per cubic meter.

When the block crashed back into the catapult, smashing it to pieces, it was determined to have a velocity of 20 meters per second. Assuming that gravity in Neopia is exactly 9.90 meters per second squared, the block hit the catapult at the same elevation as it was launched from the catapult, and there was, miraculously, no air resistance acting on the block, how high, in centimeters, did the block fly above the catapult? Please round to the nearest centimeter and please, do not try this at home.

[XenaAndGabrielle]

Physics!

You can solve this LC a variety of ways ... but I really don't know how to give a hint on it. It is just physics.

I'll be around a little bit, if you want to confirm your answer.
Edit: I'm now going back to bed. Good luck!

[Medusa]

Got on early-ish this time and asked my brother who takes Physics to work the answer out for me. Hopefully I'll be lucky enough to get in the first lot of people so I can get the avatar that I still haven't received.

[acerimusdux]

I always come here after answering to try and figure out what time it was posted. I get confused because the time is in GMT until I sign in, then it's in my local time. In any case, it looks like I answered about 2 hours after it was posted. I think I was seven hours late last week - not good enough.

They do a good job of mixing up the times they post this, presumably to give people in different time zones a chance.

So hopefully I was quick enough for the top 250; whether I got the answer right is another question. I got the last couple of math ones pretty easily; but I'm less certain here. I THINK I had a pretty quick way to do it - if I understand it correctly - so I went for quick instead of being sure this time. I don't want the 400 np - I want the TCG card!

As for last weeks, it was easy for me because I'm used to compound interest rate problems, which are basically the same thing - it's a compounded rate. Just .995**n until your less than .50. I just started plugging in numbers in a calculator until came up with the one that worked. .995**138= .5007; .995**139=.4982, so it's 139 to get to less than half.

I wonder how many players there are in Europe & other parts of the world? In the US this was posted in the middle of the night, which could keep the number of answers in the first couple of hours down a bit.

[mousapelli]

i can't even believe how much physics i just did! It was like high school all over again, LOL.

Good thing i was shadowing a student the other day for a case study and ssat in on his physics class, this was exactly what they were learning!

[Elric]

Can I confirm with someone?