evergreen

1562 Evergreen Tree

/ ivasallay / Leave a comment

Today’s Puzzle:

An evergreen tree doesn’t drop its leaves in the fall or look dead in the winter. As it reminds us of everlasting life, it makes a lovely symbol of Christmas.

Write the numbers from 1 to 10 in both the first column and the top row so that those numbers and the given clues function like a multiplication table. Here is the same puzzle that won’t use as much ink to print:

Factors of 1562:

  • 1562 is a composite number.
  • Prime factorization: 1562 = 2 × 11 × 71.
  • 1562 has no exponents greater than 1 in its prime factorization, so √1562 cannot be simplified.
  • The exponents in the prime factorization are 1, 1, and 1. Adding one to each exponent and multiplying we get (1 + 1)(1 + 1)(1 + 1) = 2 × 2 × 2 = 8. Therefore 1562 has exactly 8 factors.
  • The factors of 1562 are outlined with their factor pair partners in the graphic below.

Another Fact about the Number 1562:

2(5⁴ + 5³ + 5² + 5¹ + 5⁰) = 1562

980 Christmas Factor Trees

/ ivasallay / Leave a comment

This level 4 puzzle has 12 clues in it that are products of factor pairs in which both factors are numbers from 1 to 12. The clues make an evergreen tree, the symbol of everlasting life which is so fitting for Christmas. Can you find the factors for the given clues and put them in the right places?

Print the puzzles or type the solution in this excel file: 12 factors 978-985

Now I’ll tell you a little about the number 980:

It has eighteen factors and many possible factor trees. Here are just three of them:

28² + 14² = 980, so 980 is the hypotenuse of a Pythagorean triple:
588-784-980 which is (3-4-5) times 196, but can also be calculated from
28² – 14², 2(28)(14), 28² + 14²

I like the way 980 looks in some other bases:
It is 5A5 in BASE 13 (A is 10 base 10) because 5(13) + 10(13) + 5(1) = 980,
500 in BASE 14 because 5(14²) = 980,
SS in BASE 34 (S is 28 base 10) because 28(34) + 28(1) = 28(35) = 980
S0 in BASE 35 because 28(35) = 980

  • 980 is a composite number.
  • Prime factorization: 980 = 2 × 2 × 5 × 7 × 7, which can be written 980 = 2² × 5 × 7²
  • The exponents in the prime factorization are 2, 1 and 2. Adding one to each exponent and multiplying we get (2 + 1)(1 + 1)(2 + 1) = 3 × 2 × 3 = 18. Therefore 980 has exactly 18 factors.
  • Factors of 980: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 10, 14, 20, 28, 35, 49, 70, 98, 140, 196, 245, 490, 980
  • Factor pairs: 980 = 1 × 980, 2 × 490, 4 × 245, 5 × 196, 7 × 140, 10 × 98, 14 × 70, 20 × 49 or 28 × 35
  • Taking the factor pair with the largest square number factor, we get √980 = (√196)(√5) = 14√5 ≈ 31.30495.