Some gas stations charge lower prices for customers who pay with cash instead of credit cards. Some credit cards give a cash back rebate for purchasing gas. Is gas cheaper with cash or credit card? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: How much do you…
You are trying to buy a toy that is sold out in all of your local toy stores. You decide to use the Toys R Us website’s store locator to find the nearest store location. Which stores are 5 miles or less from you? Which stores are 10 miles or less from you?…
Apple says its iPhone 5’s display “has a pixel density so high your eye can’t distinguish individual pixels.” What is the iPhone 5’s pixel density? What are other phones’ pixel density? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is pixel density and why does it…
Your friend is sick and has to take medicine five times a day for seven days. How often should your friend take the medicine? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that is too low? What is a guess that is too…
Sunspots create solar flares that can damage satellites in orbit, disable GPS systems, and cause power failures in cities. The larger the sunspot, the higher the chance of creating a powerful solar flare. How big is Sunspot AR 1476? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path:…
You are buying arts and crafts supplies from Michaels this Sunday and have the two coupons pictured below to choose from. Which coupon will save you the most money? How much would the higher-priced item in Scenario 2 have to be to make both coupons save the same amount of money? These…
Many theme parks like Disneyland and Universal Studios offer annual passes where customers can pay for the whole year in advance or pay a little in the beginning and make smaller payments each month for the rest of the year. Which payment option saves you the most money? These questions may be…
In 2010, an enormous sinkhole (pictured below) suddenly appeared in the middle of a Guatemalan neighborhood and swallowed a three-story building above it. How much material will they need to fill the sinkhole? How much will it cost to fill the sinkhole in? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem…
Chuck E. Cheese’s (and many other arcades) have a game called Skee Ball where you roll a ball up a ramp and into a hole to earn points. You earn more points when the ball goes into smaller holes. The more points you earn, the more tickets you get to buy prizes with. As…
A woman is playing poker on a video game machine that allows you to play 100 hands at a time. At the beginning of this hand she is dealt the five cards pictured below: She decides to hold only these four cards: When she presses the “DRAW” button, each of the hundred hands will…
NASA stopped painting its space shuttles’ external fuel tank because the paint did not improve performance and they wanted to reduce the shuttle’s overall weight. How much did the external fuel tank’s paint weigh? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that…
When Motel 6 opened for business in 1962 they only charged $6 per night, hence their name. They could not afford to keep that price forever, and since then their prices have continued to grow. What percent has their price increased since it first opened? (percent increase) What percent has the price increased…
How much does it cost to cover this classroom in aluminum foil? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that is too low? What is a guess that is too high? What is your best guess? What shape are the objects in…
You are training to run in a 5k (5000 meter) race and want to practice by running laps around a local park. How many laps around the park do you have to run to go 5k? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: How far are…
A man in Finland named Anssi Vanjoki’s received a speeding ticket for driving 46.5 mph in a 30 mph zone and he had to pay… €116,000 ($103,000)! The reason the penalty was so harsh is that traffic fines in Finland are based not just on the severity of the offense, but on the offender’s…
One type of toilet comes in two models: dual flush or single flush. The dual flush toilet has two buttons: one flushes “solids” with more water and “liquids” with less water. The single flush toilet always flushes with the same amount of water. When would both toilets use the same amount of water?…
Do four cheese Big Papa’s or one cheese Giant Sicilian give you more pizza for your money? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that is too low? What is a guess that is too high? What is your best guess? What…
Giant Sicilian pizza Giant Sicilian delivery box How many square inches is the Giant Sicilian pizza? How many square inches is the Giant Sicilian’s delivery box? These questions may be useful in helping students down the problem solving path: What is a guess that is too low? What is a guess…
Your family wants to buy a new Toyota Camry LE and is considering buying the hybrid version if the money saved on gas will be enough to pay the extra cost for the hybrid. How many years will it take from saved gas money to pay for the extra cost for a hybrid?…
What if the convenience store did not run out of hot dogs for rival competitive eaters Takeru Kobayashi and Sonya “Black Widow” Thomas to eat? How many hot dogs were on the grill before Kobayashi ordered the first hot dog? How many hot dogs would each person eat in Round 20? How many…
