The minute hand of a clock was lost and had to be replaced. Unfortunately only some extra hour hands were available for use. At how many moments in a day did the repaired clock, with identical hour and minute hands, give an ambiguous time? (Assume AM and PM could be deduced by other means.)
Explanation: At noon (and midnight) the time was certain, even though the hands coincided. Also, a few minutes after these times, in fact at most other times, it can be deduced which is the minute hand. But there are certain hand positions where that's not possible. How many ambiguous moments occur in the time interval [Midnight, Next Midnight)?
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bonanova
The minute hand of a clock was lost and had to be replaced. Unfortunately only some extra hour hands were available for use. At how many moments in a day did the repaired clock, with identical hour and minute hands, give an ambiguous time? (Assume AM and PM could be deduced by other means.)
Explanation: At noon (and midnight) the time was certain, even though the hands coincided. Also, a few minutes after these times, in fact at most other times, it can be deduced which is the minute hand. But there are certain hand positions where that's not possible. How many ambiguous moments occur in the time interval [Midnight, Next Midnight)?
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