Brain teaser thread

[Tuberski]

It has to do with sales tax, they can chare you an extra penny in tax, but to the government they don't have to claim that penny.

Doesn't seem like a lot until you consider that McDonald's, for instance, is doing this to EVERY customer in EVERY store in the world that has a sales tax.

Sounds good to me anyway.



Who knows?

[Dauphin]

Originally posted by Immortal Wombat

I spend much of my Sundays pondering this. It struck me that if you price things just under an amount, people are likely to pay that amount. (eg. £4.99, people give you a fiver) you give a penny change.

This is a damn sight easier than pricing stuff at £5.01, and giving 99p change when they give you £6, or more likely, £4.99 change when they give you a tenner.

It is to do with change, think about what could happen in stores if things were priced in round pounds/dollars.

Oh, it has nothing to do with taxes.

[Immortal Wombat]

er... Pretty much obsoletes the smaller denomination of coins. People would get change solely in round £/$, and will be unable (or at least unwilling) to use vending machines.

[Dauphin]

You work at a till, or at least you did. Now assume you are an unscrupulous till operator. Someone wants to buy a £5 item, they give you a £5 note....

[Immortal Wombat]

...I give them the item, take the money, and oooh I see...

I think

[Dauphin]

To give customer change will require the till to be opened - thus ensuring the recording of a transaction.

[Immortal Wombat]

oooh, cunning.

Most till operators are too stupid to figure that out. They just lift it from the till.

Anyway, Paul Hanson's turn then?

[Urban Ranger]

Did he flee?

[Immortal Wombat]

^bump^

[Urban Ranger]

Alright, since that bugger Paul Hanson has fled the scene, I'll fill in with a silly question.

How do you divide a square into seven equal parts?

[Paul Hanson]

Oops, sorry. Didn`t realise. Not that I'd have come up with anything remotely taxing anyway, so it's probably beneficial to you all that I left when I did.

[Immortal Wombat]

Divide the perimeter by 7, and draw lines to the middle.

100*100 square, cut the perimeter into 57 pixel lengths (ish...) and draw lines to the middle. Each segment has the same area.

[Urban Ranger]

I suppose that can work, how about a simpler, more elegant way?

[Immortal Wombat]

What's not simple? My way works for every number as well, not just 7

[Urban Ranger]

Of course. So does the one I have in mind.