r/mathriddles 3h ago

Hard Prime number game

1 Upvotes

I'm going to teach you a game. Your goal is to find how far you can get.

You start with the numbers 1, 2, and 3. Using each number at most once, you may add or subtract any combination of them to obtain the next prime number.

Whenever you successfully obtain the next prime, that prime is added to your set of available numbers. You then repeat the process, always trying to generate the next prime number using each available number at most once.

How far can you go? What is the first prime number that you can no longer obtain?


r/mathriddles 20h ago

Easy This probability puzzle has a surprisingly simple solution.

0 Upvotes

Six points are arranged as the vertices of a regular hexagon. A bug starts at one vertex. Each move, it randomly chooses one of the two adjacent vertices and walks there. After exactly 4 moves, what is the probability that the bug is back at its starting vertex?

Source: numberthon.com


r/mathriddles 23h ago

Hard I created an original modelling mechanism for socially efficient levels of super profit by monopolies where innovation is like contained

Thumbnail gallery
0 Upvotes

Blah blah blah leading to endogenous variable monopolies profits becoming informational assets and then completeness of contracts under quota, no averse selection after negotiations ya da ya da dynamic programming and unforseen contingencies

Business cycle, product cycle, pricing cycle contained as barriers to market entry inter alia are quota equilibrium... It's difficult to explain but I worked on withstanding the monopoly until no more.

Want the math?