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Problem Solving with Elephants and Water

The King of Siam asked his warriors to measure the weight of an elephant, but the elephant was too heavy for their largest scale. To solve this, the warriors came up with a plan based on Archimedes' principle: 1) Lure the elephant onto a boat and mark the water level, 2) Remove the elephant and add stones until reaching the same water level, 3) The weight of the stones equals the weight of the elephant. This allowed them to indirectly measure the extremely heavy elephant.

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Lydia Jia
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6 views2 pages

Problem Solving with Elephants and Water

The King of Siam asked his warriors to measure the weight of an elephant, but the elephant was too heavy for their largest scale. To solve this, the warriors came up with a plan based on Archimedes' principle: 1) Lure the elephant onto a boat and mark the water level, 2) Remove the elephant and add stones until reaching the same water level, 3) The weight of the stones equals the weight of the elephant. This allowed them to indirectly measure the extremely heavy elephant.

Uploaded by

Lydia Jia
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Lydia Yii Jia Jia

Tutorial Problem Solving


1. The Kings Elephant Problem
Once upon a time the King of Siam asked his warriors to measure the weight of an
elephant. However the weight of the elephant was too heavy to be measured by the
biggest weighing machine available. Your task is to help the warriors to solve the
problem.

Ste
p

Polyas model

Understand the problem

Devise a plan

Carry out the plan

To determine / to find out the weight of the heavy


elephant that cannot be measured by the biggest
weighing machine
Use Archimedes principal, such as the principle to use
the eureka can
1. To lure the elephant to a big boat.
2. When the elephant stand above it, mark the line of
the water level.
3. Then, lure the elephant out of the big boat.
4. Put the stones (ex. 1000 tan) onto the boat until its
weight reached the water level.
5. Add up the weight of the stones.
The weight of the stones = the weight of the elephant

Look back

This method can use to weight something that is very


heavy which is difficult to be measured.

Step

3-litre
contain
er

1
0
2
3
3
0
2. Abu Nawas Problem
4
2
5
In one of the stories in One 2Thousand
6
3

5-litre
contain
er

Notes
(total)

Lydia Yii Jia Jia

5
2
2
0
5 One Night,
7 litres
and
Abu Nawas would only allow
4

any traveller to fetch water from the only well in the dessert after solving the following
problem:

The travellers were given a 3-litre container and a 5-litre container. They have to
measure exactly four and seven litres of water using the above containers. You are
required to help the travellers solve the problem.

Ste
p
1

Polyas model
Understand the problem

Devise a plan

Carry out the plan

Look back

To measure exactly four and seven litres of water using


a 3-litre and a 5-litre container
Use addition and substraction method (guess and
check method) by pouring water in and out the
containers

This method can be used to get something or a


measurement from the things that we have.

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