In the video below Matt introduces us to the Picture Hanging Puzzle: how can you hang a picture over some hooks so that if any one of the n hooks comes out, the picture will fall to the ground? Can your students find a solution when n=2, or when n=3?
As the number of hooks gets larger, the problem gets trickier. In the video, Matt and Steve present us with two different but equivalent solutions for n=7. And a third solution, different from both Matt and Steve’s solutions, is provided by YouTuber Up And Atom in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eVd2Ugk9BU
Can your students find a solution when n=2, or when n=3?
We’ve made a downloadable cheat sheet for teachers with the solution for n=2 and n=3.