Chapter: Unicursal and Route Problems

"I see them on their winding way." REGINALD HEBER.

It is reasonable to suppose that from the earliest ages one man has asked another such questions as these: "Which is the nearest way home?" "Which is the easiest or pleasantest way?" "How can we find a way that will enable us to dodge the mastodon and the plesiosaurus?" "How can we get there without ever crossing the track of the enemy?" All these are elementary route problems, and they can be turned into good puzzles by the introduction of some conditions that complicate matters. A variety of such complications will be found in the following examples. I have also included some enumerations of more or less difficulty. These afford excellent practice for the reasoning faculties, and enable one to generalize in the case of symmetrical forms in a manner that is most instructive.

  1. Problem: A Juvenile Puzzle
  2. Problem: The Union Jack
  3. Problem: The Dissected Circle
  4. Problem: The Tube Inspector's Puzzle
  5. Problem: Visiting The Towns
  6. Problem: The Fifteen Turnings
  7. Problem: The Fly On The Octahedron
  8. Problem: The Icosahedron Puzzle
  9. Problem: Inspecting A Mine
  10. Problem: The Cyclists' Tour
  11. Problem: The Sailor's Puzzle
  12. Problem: The Grand Tour
  13. Problem: Water, Gas, And Electricity
  14. Problem: A Puzzle For Motorists
  15. Problem: A Bank Holiday Puzzle
  16. Problem: The Motor-car Tour
  17. Problem: The Level Puzzle
  18. Problem: The Diamond Puzzle
  19. Problem: The Deified Puzzle
  20. Problem: The Voters' Puzzle
  21. Problem: Hannah's Puzzle
  22. Problem: The Honeycomb Puzzle
  23. Problem: The Monk And The Bridges

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References

Project Gutenberg

  1. Dudeney, H. E.: "Amusements in Mathematics", The Authors' Club, 1917

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