Selling an extra ticket – a math bargaining puzzle
I came across a fun puzzle at a brain teaser forum BrainDen.com. Here is the problem: Sean wants to attend a basketball game. Unfortunately, he could not get tickets before it was sold out, but he has located someone that has an extra ticket which he is willing to sell ...

What is the actual discount? Doing the math for coupons and sales that sound better than they actually are
image credit: CosmicKitty I remember when discounts were easy to understand. Most stores would have sales like "25 percent off" and that would be that. Even the foolish K-mart ad shown above of "0 percent off" can at least be praised for its transparency. Nowadays discounts come in a variety of coupons ...

Guess the number – a game theory puzzle
I came across a highly amusing puzzle in Impossible?: Surprising Solutions to Counterintuitive Conundrums. What distinguishes this brain teaser from other "guess my number" puzzles is the method of solution. The answer is not an arithmetic trick or a mathematical sleight of hand like in your age by restaurant math. The puzzle ...

Bundle roundup (4/16)
Today I wanted to share a little bit about something else I do on the web. As you may know, I am a community editor for Bundle, a site about how America spends its money. What makes Bundle unique is its tool Everybody's Money which visually illustrates how people spend money. ...

How to catch a baseball during batting practice using game theory – Youtube video
I have never caught a baseball during batting practice. I got really, really close once in the Oakland Coliseum but I lost out to a competing fan. Perhaps my problem was strategy, or lack thereof. Longtime reader William Spaniel once caught four balls, and his trick was using game theory. William ...

Gaming gift card bonuses – a math excursion
I'm not a fan of gift cards, but a recent promotion got my attention. A store was giving a bonus for gift card purchases. It worked like this: if you purchased a $50 gift card, then you would get a $10 gift card for free. I thought the 20 percent bonus ...