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From: langer@lasspvax.UUCP (Stephen Langer)
Newsgroups: net.puzzle
Subject: Re: Monkey Puzzle
Message-ID: <724@lasspvax.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 27-Nov-85 10:42:57 EST
Article-I.D.: lasspvax.724
Posted: Wed Nov 27 10:42:57 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 29-Nov-85 10:47:49 EST
References: <53@nbs-amrf.UUCP> <149@bsdpkh.UUCP> <2484@pucc-h>
Reply-To: langer@lasspvax.UUCP (Stephen Langer)
Distribution: net
Organization: LASSP, Cornell University
Lines: 42
Summary: 

In article <2484@pucc-h> ags@pucc-h.UUCP (Dave Seaman) writes:
>In article <149@bsdpkh.UUCP> latham@bsdpkh.UUCP (Ken Latham) writes:
>>> A rope over the top of a fence has the same length on each side.
>>> Weighs 1/3 lb. per ft.  On one end hangs a monkey holding a banana
>>	.
>>	.
>>	.
>>> How long is the banana?
>>> 
>>> Ted Hopp	{seismo,umcp-cs}!nbs-amrf!hopp
>>
>>
>>the answer ,I believe, is 4.5 inches!
>
>I don't think you back-substituted to see whether your answer made sense,
>because it doesn't.  It works much better if the banana is 5.75 inches
>long.  Hint:  The monkey is 12 years old.
>-- 
>Dave Seaman	  {decvax|harpo|ihnp4|inuxc|seismo|ucbvax}!pur-ee!pucc-h!ags

No, you're all wrong. This is a physics problem. The rope has the
same length on each side; the weight on one side weighs the same as
the monkey on the other; the top of the fence is frictionless; the
system is in equilibrium; therefore the banana is massless, or the
system would not balance. The length of the banana is zero. I don't
know if this is consistent with the rest of the problem as stated.
I didn't try to work it out.

-- 

            0))
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        \   \  /
         ---||-
            ||         Steve Langer
            /\         Physics Department, Clark Hall
           /  \        Cornell University
         _\    \_	     Ithaca, NY 14853
       {ihnp4,decvax,allegra,vax135}!cornell!lasspvax!langer