ROUND THE COAST.
(
Moving Counter Problem)
Here is a puzzle that will, I think, be found as amusing as instructive.
We are given a ring of eight circles. Leaving circle 8 blank, we are
required to write in the name of a seven-lettered port in the United
Kingdom in this manner. Touch a blank circle with your pencil, then jump
over two circles in either direction round the ring, and write down the
first letter. Then touch another vacant circle, jump over two circles,
and write down your second letter. Proceed similarly with the other
letters in their proper order until you have completed the word. Thus,
suppose we select "Glasgow," and proceed as follows: 6--1, 7--2, 8--3,
7--4, 8--5, which means that we touch 6, jump over 7 and and write down
"G" on 1; then touch 7, jump over 8 and 1, and write down "l" on 2; and
so on. It will be found that after we have written down the first five
letters--"Glasg"--as above, we cannot go any further. Either there is
something wrong with "Glasgow," or we have not managed our jumps
properly. Can you get to the bottom of the mystery?
Answer:
In order to place words round the circle under the conditions, it is
necessary to select words in which letters are repeated in certain
relative positions. Thus, the word that solves our puzzle is "Swansea,"
in which the first and fifth letters are the same, and the third and
seventh the same. We make out jumps as follows, taking the letters of
the word in their proper order: 2-5, 7-2, 4-7, 1-4, 6-1, 3-6, 8-3. Or we
could place a word like "Tarapur" (in which the second and fourth
letters, and the third and seventh, are alike) with these moves: 6-1,
7-4, 2-7, 5--2, 8-5, 3-6, 8-3. But "Swansea" is the only word,
apparently, that will fulfil the conditions of the puzzle.
This puzzle should be compared with Sharp's Puzzle, referred to in my
solution to No. 341, "The Four Frogs." The condition "touch and jump
over two" is identical with "touch and move along a line."
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