April 28, 2014
Problem of the Week
for Tuesday, April 28, 2014
In the game of peanuts and chocolate chips, two players take turns removing food from one or two bowls. On every turn, a player may choose to remove as many peanuts from the peanut bowl or as many chocolate chips from the chocolate chip bowl as she wishes, or she can choose to remove the same number of pieces from each of the two bowls at the same time but she must remove at least one thing. The goal of the game is to be the last to be able to remove food from the bowls. If the game starts with 6 peanuts in the peanut bowl and 3 chocolate chips in the chocolate chip bowl, what move can Player One make to ensure that she can make the final move?