Cool Contest But No Answer

If each of these piles was contorted into straightened columns, according to your count, you would have 100 in the tallest.

It appears that each stack is just one quarter taller than the others.

So, in effect, you have 16 stacks - the smallest having (100-15=) 85 and the tallest having 100.

Making it easier, you have 16 stacks of 85 (= 1,360) and the 1st column has 0 extra; the 2nd has 1 extra, the 3rd has 2 extra, the 4th has 3 extra, ..., the 15th has 14 extra, the 16th has 15 extra etc.

Let's employ an old trick for totaling the extras easily. Line the extras (only) from the columns up smallest to tallest; add the outermost + innermost stacks; and work our way toward the center - makes it easy to see total of extras will simply be 8 sets of 15:

Stack#......Extra coins.........Stack#...........Extra coins.............extra + extra = 15
1...............0.......................16.................15...........................0+15=15
2...............1.......................15.................14...........................1+14=15
3...............2.......................14.................13...........................2+13=15
4...............3.......................13.................12...........................3+12=15
5...............4.......................12.................11...........................4+11=15
6...............5.......................11.................10...........................5+10=15
7...............6.......................10..................9............................6 + 9=15
8...............7.........................9..................8............................7 + 8=15


So 8x15 extras + 1360 in each stack =
120 + 1360 = 1480

So if my meds did not hinder my clarity of thought - although it takes a lot of writing to explain, its not so hard to figure out when you untwist the stacks.

I count 17 columns
17th column = 100 coins
16th column = 99 coins
.
.
1st column = 84 coins
======================
should be 1564 coins = $391.00

Yeah there are 17 columns

Fuzzy and Earle are going to have to battle it out. They are off by one.

I am not even gonna try to figure out what yall said. That might cause me to have a pain.

I am just proud of myself for counting to 17. :)

Fuzzy was right - I typed an 8 instead of a 9 when I made my chart of extras. So I used the 8 for the math. His total and mine now are the same.

Figures - the real easy part I missed!

That is an ASTOUNDING work of art! I have an 'education' in Finance and I am not even able to come up with an equation to find the answer!

, augold!

When we sold beer cans, I'd make window displays like an inverted pyramid and my favorite, a rainbow. Very simple, but would stop people in their trax.

That's interesting and all, but more importantly, how many are pre-'64?