We are thrilled to continue the Problem Of The Month series, hosted by the Mathematics Department at Boise State University!
How Does it work? Each month we'll present a new problem. The following month we'll present a solution or solutions, and through it we'll learn more about mathematical fields, and how math is being used in our world today!
Who's it for? YOU! The problems and articles are for anyone interested. Whether you're in school (any grade!), college, or you just enjoy thinking about cool problems and learning interesting things - The Problem Of The Month is for YOU!
How do I participate? Have fun thinking about the problems and trying to solve them! If you'd like, you can send your solutions to mathoutreach@boisestate.edu for the possibility to have your solution mentioned and win some prizes!
Are there any prizes? Yes! We ask school students submitting solutions to write down the name of their school, their grade and the name of their math teacher. We will celebrate unique and creative solutions at the end of the month and and those solutions will win their senders some cool prizes.
Is there a mailing list? Yes! Scroll this page all the way down in order to join and stay informed. All are welcome to join the list and receive the problems and articles directly - students, teachers, parents, grandparents and anyone else!
Who's behind the scenes? This series is now continued by its third contributor, Josie Derrick. Hi! I joined the Mathematics Department at Boise State in December 2024, and am continuing the Problem Of The Month series. I hope that thinking about our problems will stimulate your imagination, and will be fun and interesting!
This month's problem comes focuses on "Counting Out" games and where to stand if you don't want to be the person "eliminated" in the process (e.g. where to stand if you want to be "it"!)
In March, we explored a question originally posed by Jonah. How do we create the equation of the curve that forms as many lines are drawn like those shown in the image above?
Check out some of the methods to approach this complex problem
Note: There are more great problems from 2024 and earlier, but there has been recent legislation updating the accessibility requirements of public content affilitated with government agencies, which includes this website. As such, these resources which do not meet the accesibility requirements have been removed from the website. Feel free to reach out to mathoutreach@boisestate.edu if you would like to see these earlier problems.
Do you want to get updates when new problems and solutions are posted? All are welcome to join the list and receive the problems and articles directly - students, teachers, parents, grandparents and anyone else!