I feel like a bit of a fraud. I’m a member of the AARP, which stands for “American Association of Retired Persons,” but (sadly) I’m a long, long way from retirement (sob sob).
I also feel like an old fool (but where are we going to find one at this time of the day?). The thing is, just a couple of weeks ago as I pen these words, I celebrated the 33rd anniversary of my 33rd birthday (eeek!), which has caused me to cogitate and ruminate about the meaning of life and things of that ilk.
While I was out with my wife (Gina the Gorgeous) yesterday, we visited some store or other. When we came to the checkout, Gina asked if they would offer me a “senior discount.” O-M-G..oodness gracious me, is all I can say.
I was just perusing the June/July issue of the AARP magazine, which is jam-packed with all sorts of useful information I never expected to read or need. There was a small piece about Ray Romano (the star of Everybody Loves Raymond) who is now 65. As he says, “65? How did that happen? Mentally I feel like a stupid young goofball. Physically is another story.” I know just what he means.
Fortunately, I still retain at least some of my cognitive capabilities. The magazine included a “Brain Games” section with puzzles by Stanley Newman (a man who deserves a sound thrashing, if you ask me). One puzzle in particular caught my attention. Take a look at the following equation:
All we are told is the following: There are nine letters. Each letter represents a different numerical digit in the range 0 through 9. The digit 8 is not used. And, finally, S is three times L. Our mission, should we decide to accept it, is to determine which letters correspond to which digits and work out the unique sum.
This was a hard one. I’ve never really done a puzzle like this before. At first, it seemed impossible, but then I thought, “Hang on, if … then …,” and–step by logical step–I fought my way forward.
I didn’t time myself (I wish I had), but I think it took me around ten minutes to finally crack the result. I must admit that I was pretty darn pleased with myself once I had worked out the answer.
On the other hand, now I’m exhausted (I think I’ll take a nap). How about you? I’d love to hear how long it takes you to solve this little scamp.
I didn’t time myself either. It took one slice of toast at breakfast. I think my thought processes have been conditioned by playing thousands of rounds of a game called Kakuro which has a little in common with the puzzle in that it requires addition digits that (obviously) valued 0-9 with no repetition. It is styled as a mathematical crossword puzzle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kakuro
there are several versions online, but I have an iOS version that I have been playing for around 10 years.
No problem — the next time we meet I will time how long it takes you to eat a slice of toast LOL
I was probably about the same as Aubrey, about 4-5 mins interrupted by the time taken to fetch my wife a biscuit. I used to visit a site which had a lot of these, so I do have previous convictions…. The clues about S = 3xL and 8 not being used are actually more than I am used to 😁 There are more clues at the MSD end of the puzzle if you’re used to them, but I won’t repeat them here (this is a family site after all and the kids can work it out for themselves!!) Sometimes you are asked to find TWO solutions – don’t think this is possible here with your other clues though.
My wife has an annoying habit of buying puxxle magazines – there are about 2 or 3 in Aus, with some very nice prizes which I never win.I do love doing the code crackers – crosswords with numbers in each square corresponding to letters, and they usually give you 3 to start off. The other puzzles are just a PITA but I still do them…
All good exercise for the old grey matter….. now I saw this in the middle of the night so I’m off back to sleep!
Hi David, several folks (Aubrey, you, Steve Manley in the UK) said they did it in 5 mins or less (which made me feel slow and silly) — but you have all done things like this before — then I heard from a chum in Brazil who designs safety-critical embedded systems for nuclear power plants — he hadnt done one of these before — he said it took him all lunchtime (including dessert), so then I didn;t feel so bad 🙂
I’d go along with your thoughts abouit Stanley Newman deserving a good thrashing… these puzzles are addictive, and great exercise of the old grey matter but colossal time-wasters….
I don;t think they are time-wasters because it makes you better at solving other problems — some of which might have real-world implications.
I am not a fan of puzzles. That said, this one took me about 15 minutes. I was expecting to get about half way and then give up telling myself that: “I would have gotten it if I really wanted too.”
The thing is that one you’ve cracked one part of it, it’s hard to stop — I used to like doing that WORDLE puzzle, but I just don;t have any free time (sob sob)