"Exploring" is a magazine of science, art, and human perception, produced by Exploratorium in collaboration with other participating museums. This issue focuses on puzzles and problem solving. Brain teasers, puzzles, and the strategies for solving them are included. Features include: (1) "Homework Assignment #3" (Paul Doherty);…

This study investigated gender differences in preschoolers' problem solving. Ten boys and 10 girls from the same preschool class with a median age of 4 years 1 month from multicultural middle class families participated. Children were presented with a separate novel form board puzzle designed for young children each day for 3 days in a…

This book contains "math mind benders," puzzles that are worked like crossword puzzles except that each square is filled with a digit rather than a letter. Clues to the puzzles are interrelated with each other and a given story. Clear thinking and deductive reasoning must be used to find potential answers and eliminate those that fail to meet all…

THE AUTHORS HYPOTHESIZED THAT IF SUBJECTS WERE PRESENTED WITH "AMBIGUOUS" ANAGRAMS (THOSE WITH MULTIPLE SOLUTIONS), THE SOLUTION-WORD WITH THE HIGHEST NORMAL FREQUENCY OF OCCURRENCE WOULD BE DETERMINED FIRST, THE NEXT MOST FREQUENT SOLUTION-WORD WOULD BE DETERMINED SECOND, AND SO ON. SIXTY-NINE COLLEGE STUDENTS ATTEMPTED TO SOLVE 15…

Two mathematical brainteasers, with solutions depending on involved trial-and-error processes, are shown to have ingenious solutions. (MP)

CAPTCHAs are images used on the internet by companies that want to block computer programs from their site. This article presents a method for solving some of these puzzles.

This article describes a method of solution that Ramanujan may have used in solving the following puzzle: The number of a house is both the sum of the house numbers below it on the street and the sum of those above it. (The houses on a street are numbered consecutively, starting with 1.)

Children's problem solving while working by themselves or with a partner was investigated to explore whether young children are susceptible to social facilitation and social loafing. Five-year-olds were asked to complete easy or hard puzzles, either alone or with a partner. Half of the children were given instructions indicating that their…

Current thinking suggests that solving brainteasing puzzles uses the same critical thinking skills needed to solve difficult math, science, and business problems. This book is a non-intimidating exploration of the wonderful powers of the mind with an emphasis on the joy of thinking and learning. It contains 100 puzzles, presented in order of…

Calculation of the percentage of work completed when the edges of jigsaw puzzles have been assembled provides interesting problems. (SD)

Two important factors that influence problem solving are the nature of the task and the kind of knowledge brought to the problem by the solver. After a consideration of the definition of a problem, puzzle problems are discussed, as are problem representation and general processes of solution. Also discussed is the question of solving problems that…

Problems involving divisibility, the ten coin triangle, five times a week with 4 D, a nomogram for the lens formula, the box and ladder problem, chains of circles, tessellating hexagons, topological woggles, and numbers of triangles are discussed. (CT)

A technique is given for solving problems involving a balance scale and a number of coins which are to be sorted in a certain number of weighings. (MP)

Reports observations of the use of mental aerobics with 48 adults whose median age was 70. Provides examples of the group puzzles and logic, math, and word problems used to enhance cognitive functioning and creative thinking. (SK)