Maundy Money
How much money did the Queen give away in pence as a power of 2?
Age
11 to 14
Challenge level
Problem
Every Maundy Thursday, the reigning monarch distributes 'Maundy money' to equal numbers of men and women.
One year at Newcastle 64 men and 64 women each received 64p, one penny for each year of the Queen's life.
Written as a power of 2, what was the total amount distributed in pence?
If you liked this problem, here is an NRICH task which challenges you to use similar mathematical ideas.
Student Solutions
Answer: $2^{13}$
$$\begin{align} &\left(64 \text{ men }+64\text{ women}\right)\times 64\text{p}\\
2^3 = 8,\hspace{2mm} 2^4 = 16,\hspace{2mm} &2^5 = 32,\hspace{2mm} 2^6 = 64\\
&\left(\hspace{6mm}2^6 \hspace{8mm}+\hspace{8mm} 2^6 \hspace{6mm}\right)\times 2^6\\
=&\left(2^6\times2\right)\times2^6\\
=&2^6\times2^1\times2^6\\
=&2^{13}\end{align}$$