The nonzero numbers \(a\), \(b\), \(c\) are such that every two of the three equations \(ax^{11} + bx^4 + c = 0\), \(bx^{11} + cx^4 + a = 0\), \(cx^{11} + ax^4 + b = 0\) have a common root. Prove that all three equations have a common root.
Four children said the following about each other.
Mary: Sarah, Nathan and George solved the problem.
Sarah: Mary, Nathan and George didn’t solve the problem.
Nathan: Mary and Sarah lied.
George: Mary, Sarah and Nathan told the truth.
How many of the children actually told the truth?
The teacher wrote on the board in alphabetical order all possible \(2^n\) words consisting of \(n\) letters A or B. Then he replaced each word with a product of \(n\) factors, correcting each letter A by \(x\), and each letter B by \((1 - x)\), and added several of the first of these polynomials in \(x\). Prove that the resulting polynomial is either a constant or increasing function in \(x\) on the interval \([0, 1]\).
A monkey, donkey and goat decided to play a game. They sat in a row, with the monkey on the right. They started to play the violin, but very poorly. They changed places and then the donkey was in the middle. However the violin trio still didn’t sound as they wanted it to. They changed places once more. After changing places 3 times, each of the three “musicians” had a chance to sit in the left, middle and right of the row. Who sat where after the third change of seats?
There is a group of 5 people: Alex, Beatrice, Victor, Gregory and Deborah. Each of them has one of the following codenames: V, W, X, Y, Z. We know that:
Alex is 1 year older than V,
Beatrice is 2 years older than W,
Victor is 3 years older than X,
Gregory is 4 years older than Y.
Who is older and by how much: Deborah or Z?
Prove there are no natural numbers \(a\) and \(b\), such as \(a^2 - 3b^2 = 8\).
The numbers 25 and 36 are written on a blackboard. Consider the game with two players where: in one turn, a player is allowed to write another natural number on the board. This number must be the difference between any two of the numbers already written, such that this number does not already appear on the blackboard. The loser is the player who cannot make a move.
Consider a chessboard of size (number of rows \(\times\) number of columns): a) \(9\times 10\); b) \(10\times 12\); c) \(9\times 11\). Two people are playing a game where: in one turn a player is allowed to cross out any row or column as long as there it contains at least one square that is not crossed out. The loser is the player who cannot make a move. Which player will win?
Two people take turns placing bishops on a chessboard such that the bishops cannot attack each other. Here, the colour of the bishops does not matter. (Note: bishops move and attack diagonally.) Which player wins the game, if the right strategy is used?
There are two piles of rocks, each with 7 rocks. Consider the game with two players where: in one turn you can take any amount of rocks, but only from one pile. The loser is the one who has no rocks left to take.