Sums of pairs
Jo has three numbers which she adds together in pairs. When she
does this she has three different totals: 11, 17 and 22 What are
the three numbers Jo had to start with?”
Problem
Jo has three numbers which she adds together in pairs.
When she does this she has three different totals: $11$, $17$ and $22$
What are the three numbers Jo had to start with?
Can you describe a method that would enable you to work out the three numbers given any three totals?
Student Solutions
Here's some sound and efficient algebra from Conor from Queen Elizabeth's Hospital :
We have three numbers, $x, y$ and $z$.
$x + y = 11 \quad (1)$
$y + z = 17 \quad (2) $
$z + x = 22 \quad (3) $
Adding $(1)$ and $(2)$ gives :
$x + 2y + z = 28 $
Putting that another way :
$(x + z) + 2y = 28 \quad (4) $
Substituting $(3)$ into $(4)$ gives :
$22 + 2y = 28 $
So $y = 3$.
Substituting $y = 3$ into $(1)$ gives $x = 8$ and substituting it into $(2)$ gives $z = 14$.
But Eden has had an excellent approach too :
$11 + 17 + 22$ uses every number twice and makes a total of $50$
So the total of the three numbers that we need to find is $25$.
If two of them make $11$ together the one not used must have been $14$.
Two together made $17$, the one not used this time must have been $8$.
And finally, a pair have a sum of $22$, so the other number is $3$.
The three numbers are $3, 8,$ and $14$
And Mark used some deductive reasoning combined with an exhaustive approach:
The smallest number must be between $1$ and $5$ to make a smallest sum of $11$.If it is $1$ then to make $11$ the second number is $10$.
If the third number is $x$
Then $x+1= 17$
and $x+10 = 22$
This does not work.
I tried the smallest number as $2$, then the second number is $9$
Then $x+2= 17$ and $x+9 = 22$
This also does not work but the two values of $x$ are closer than last time so I think $3$ will work.
Trying the first number as $3$ and the second as $8$
Then $x+3= 17$ and $x+8 = 22$
This works.
The three numbers are $3, 8$ and $14$.
Teachers' Resources
See the Teachers' Notes to Arithmagons
for a possible approach to working with an essentially
identical problem.