This is an old puzzle that I think was first published in the early 1900’s.
An eccentric old woman, who ran a poultry farm outside of Baton Rouge, took her eggs to market one day. She always had a unique way of doing business and was a true lover of riddles. She was overheard talking with her friends about how she had dispensed the eggs. She sold half of her eggs to a customer and gave half an egg over. She then sold a third of the remaining eggs and gave a third of an egg over. To the next customer she sold a fourth of the remainder and gave a fourth of an egg over. The last customer was sold a fifth of the remaining eggs and was given an additional fifth of an egg. What was left after that she distributed evenly to thirteen of her friends.
What was the least amount of eggs that she could have taken to market?
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Prof. Templeton
This is an old puzzle that I think was first published in the early 1900’s.
An eccentric old woman, who ran a poultry farm outside of Baton Rouge, took her eggs to market one day. She always had a unique way of doing business and was a true lover of riddles. She was overheard talking with her friends about how she had dispensed the eggs. She sold half of her eggs to a customer and gave half an egg over. She then sold a third of the remaining eggs and gave a third of an egg over. To the next customer she sold a fourth of the remainder and gave a fourth of an egg over. The last customer was sold a fifth of the remaining eggs and was given an additional fifth of an egg. What was left after that she distributed evenly to thirteen of her friends.
What was the least amount of eggs that she could have taken to market?
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