Why even ask such a thing? I really have no way of knowing, but it just seems to me like you are trying to be assinine. Anyways, it's a math problem, not a physics one. It's obvious that the cylinders do not deform due to stress. In fact, there is no such thing as stress. There are only cylinders and the space in which they sit.
>Why even ask such a thing?
It was an (obviously failed) attempt at humor. I see that the "My take..." thread went similarily. Or perhaps you really did get it (and made a pun of ass and asinine).
I had an interview yesterday and I took a small written exam with several riddle-like questions on it.
For example, one said "You have two coins which add up to 55 cents. One of them is not a nickel. What are the two coins?" I won't spoil the answer for those who haven't seen this.
There is only one I couldn't figure out, and I wonder if someone here will.
Jon finished building his house, but decided there was something more he needed. He went to the department store and found what he was looking for. The clerk said "one for $1." Jon replied "I took 600, so here's $3." What did he buy?
I put an answer down, but it sure doesn't give me that "oh THAT'S what it is" feeling. Any ideas?
<Swordless> Go hug a tree, you vegetarian (I bet you really are one)
I think that's a rather unusual thing to happen at an interview. They really must have wanted to identify the people who "think outside the box." What was it for, if you don't mind telling us?
The interview was for a software developer position, which normally wouldn't give a test like this, but this was a very different place. In addition to the riddle test, I had a 2 minute "warm-up" test that just had 10 different questions you might find on a typical IQ test (such as "continue the pattern" or "which does not belong" questions), and also a test on an artificial programming language that they would teach to you one step at a time, then ask a question about.
<Swordless> Go hug a tree, you vegetarian (I bet you really are one)
The thing about the TASes is just a gag, I mean in a mathematic way only. Assuming all TASes are always of the same game and the TASer are all same fast in creating them no matter how many times.
This would mean that one TAS'er spends 2 days creating one TAS.
Assuming they are not in some way parallel-processing the runs, three TAS'ers would create 3 TAS's in the first two days, then each would do half a speedrun in the next day.
As such, the answer is not 4.5 speedruns, the answer is 3 completed and 3 half-done, assuming serial processing by the TAS'ers.
For a challenge in basic maths, solve "the ladder problem" without reducing the problem to a fourth degree equation and then solving that.
An alley is of width X. Two ladders are standing in the alley so that one end is in the corner of the alley, and the other in on the opposite wall. They are situated so they form an X within the alley. One ladder is leaning onto the left wall so it hits the wall 40 metres from the ground. The other one hits the opposing wall 30 metres from the ground. The point where the ladders intersect is 10 metres from the ground. Determine the width of the alley.
"We observe the behaviour of simple folk, and derive pleasure from their defects."
-Aristotle - Book of Humour