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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!houxa!qts
From: qts@houxa.UUCP (J.RAMMING)
Newsgroups: net.puzzle
Subject: pennies puzzle
Message-ID: <953@houxa.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 14-Feb-86 14:54:33 EST
Article-I.D.: houxa.953
Posted: Fri Feb 14 14:54:33 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 15-Feb-86 05:08:10 EST
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Holmdel NJ
Lines: 23

Keywords: round table, pennies

-----

All puzzles should have elegant solutions; the more elegant, the
better the puzzle.  This is an excellent puzzle.

Imagine a two-player game, in which each of the players begins
with an infinite number of pennies.  There exists a round table,
and each player in his turn places a penny on the table.  (Turns
are alternated).  The game ends when there is no more room on the
table for any pennies.  The person who last put a penny on the table
is declared the winner.

Question:  Given that one of these players has a winning strategy,
   	which player (the first, or the second) can always win?  
	Prove your answer by giving the strategy.

J. Christopher Ramming

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