People really like to twist the numbers and digits bringing fun into life. For example, someone asks, “how much is two and two?” : the answer should be four according to basic (decimal based) arithmetic. But the same  with base three (in ternary number system) equals to 11. Two and Two also equals to Twenty Two. Similarly there are many ways you can add them and get different results.

Dmitri A. Borgmann, the German recreationalist, puzzler and father of logology, noticed the following expression

11+2-1=12

which is valid in following four ways:

1. Usual Decimal Summation:
11+2=13 & 13-1=12 $\Rightarrow$ 11+2-1=12.
2. As Roman Numerals:
XI + II = XIII     & XIII – I = XII $\Rightarrow$ XI+II-I=XII.
3. As set of Characters:
11 added 2 = 112 & 112 removed 1= 12
4. As set of letters:
ELEVEN + TWO = ELEVENTWO
&              ELEVENTWO - ONE = LEVETW = TWELVE.

So, is there any other expression like this?

Feel free to ask questions, send feedback and even point out mistakes. Great conversations start with just a single word. How to write better comments?

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

## The Area of a Disk

If you are aware of elementary facts of geometry, then you might know that the area of a disk with radius $R$ is $\pi R^2$ . The radius is actually the measure(length) of a line joining the center of disk and any point on the circumference of the disk or any other circular lamina. Radius for a disk…

## Do you multiply this way!

Before my college days I used to multiply this way. But as time passed, I learned new things. In a Hindi magazine named “Bhaskar Lakshya”, I read an article in which a columnist ( I can’t remember his name) suggested how to multiply in single line (row). That was a magic to me.  I found doing multiplications this way, very faster –…

## Happy Holi! : The Village Tour

Holi, the festival of colors, was celebrated this year on 27th and 28th of March all over India. I decided to move to my own village, Kasturwa and then to Surya’s Village, Shiv Patti, on this occasion. Here are some images from the events  taken with my Nokia device, which I thought were worth sharing. Happy Holi! ENJOY READING! Err……

## The Mystery of the Missing Money – One Rupee

Puzzle Two women were selling marbles in the market place — one at three for a Rupee and other at two for a Rupee. One day both of then were obliged to return home when each had thirty marbles unsold. They put together the two lots of marbles and handing them over to a friend asked her to sell then…

## Calendar Formula: Finding the Week-days

This is the last month of the glorious prime year 2011. We are all set to welcome upcoming 2012, which is not a prime but a leap year. Calendars have very decent stories and since this blog is based on mathematical approach, let we talk about the mathematical aspects of calendars. The international calendar we use is called Gregorian Calendar,…

## Free Online Calculus Text Books

Once I listed books on Algebra and Related Mathematics in this article, Since then I was receiving emails for few more related articles. I have tried to list almost all freely available Calculus texts. Here we go: Elementary Calculus : An approach using infinitesimals by H. J. Keisler Multivariable Calculus by Jim Herod and George Cain Calculus by Gilbert Strang…