The Chicken and Egg Problem
A chicken farmer has figured out that a hen and a half can lay an egg and a half in a day and a half. How many hens does the farmer need to produce one dozen eggs in six days?
This is a classic problem that many people get wrong because they reason that half of a hen cannot lay an egg, and a hen cannot lay half an egg. However, we can get a satisfactory solution by treating this as a purely mathematical problem where the numbers represent averages.
To solve the problem, we first need to find the rate at which the hens lay eggs. The problem can be represented by the following equation, where RATE is the number of eggs produced per hen·day:
1½ hens × 1½ days × RATE = 1½ eggs
We convert this to fractions thus:
3/2 hens × 3/2 days × RATE = 3/2 eggs
Multiplying both sides of the equation by 2/3, we get:
1 hen × 3/2 days × RATE = 1 egg
Multiplying both sides of the equation again by 2/3 and solving for RATE, we get:
RATE = 2/3 eggs per hen·day
Now that we know the rate at which hens lay eggs, we can calculate how many hens (H) can produce 12 eggs in six days using the following equation:
H hens × 6 days × 2/3 eggs per hen·day = 12 eggs
Solving for H, we get:
H = 12 eggs /(6 days × 2/3 eggs per hen·day) = 12/4 = 3 hens
Therefore, the farmer needs 3 hens to produce 12 eggs in 6 days.
Your Answer
More puzzles to try-
In you and around you
It is essential to life, yet it can take your breath away. It is both in you and around you. ...Read More »Funny vibration
What is at least 6 inches long, goes in your mouth, and is more fun if it vibrates?Read More »What happened with the remaining one pound?
It’s possible that you will figure out the solution of this puzzle before you even finish reading it but on ...Read More »Psycho killer
A building has 16 rooms, arranged in a 4×4 grid. There is a door between every pair of adjacent rooms ...Read More »Spine but no bones
What has a spine, but no bones?Read More »you can see the letter E in the empty space.
Some people only see three angled lines, but if you look carefully you can actually see the letter E in ...Read More »How to cross the river puzzle
A 50m wide river is flowing endlessly. Two boys are standing near the lakeside, wanting to cross the river. A ...Read More »Next in the Series
Find the next number in the series? 2, 12, 36, 80, 150, 252, 392, _ ?Read More »What is the minimum number of the tickets they need to buy ?
4 fathers, 2 grand-fathers and 4 sons went to watch the movie. What is the minimum number of the tickets ...Read More »Translate into words from rebus puzzle
Translate into words from rebus puzzle-Read More »Cuboid Shaped block
A cuboid shaped wooden block has 6 cm length, 4 cm breadth and 1 cm height. Two faces measuring 4 ...Read More »Clock Hands Together
How many times in a given day, minutes, and hour clock comes in a straight line?Read More »Millionaire Puzzle
Solve the rebus riddle in the picture below.Read More »Tossing Coin
Three fair coins are tossed in the air and they land with heads up. Can you calculate the chances that ...Read More »Weighing piles of coins
There are two kinds of coins, genuine and counterfeit. A genuine coin weighs X grams and a counterfeit coin weighs ...Read More »What is the total?
Take number 1000 and then add 20 to it. Now add 1000 one more time. Now add 30. Now add ...Read More »Ice cream flavour riddle
A vendor is handing out free ice cream cones in alphabetical order of flavor, each cone being a different flavor. ...Read More »Time to toast 3 breads puzzle
Julie has a toaster with two slots that toasts one side of each piece of bread at a time, and ...Read More »Memories
It is a stain in your memories, many times you question him. What is it?Read More »Frost on the Window
Mr. Joun was found dead in his study by Mr. Jacob. Mr. Jacob recounted his misty discovery to the police. ...Read More »