Fast_Blue_Scooby

One painter and a half paint a wall and a half in a day and a half. How
many walls can six painters paint in nine days?

Fosters

probably wrong, but 36

Fosters

err.. sorry, 54

KimA

Bl00dy hell - read that so many times it made my eyes go squiffy! (Finally) agree with Fosters' 54.

Jaggy Bunnet

Hmm. Thinking about it again ....

Yep. 54. Unless it's over a weekend, in which case they'd only manage 42 (painters don't work Sats & Suns. Or, if it's over the East Bank Holiday weekend, then they'd only manage 30 (won't do Fri or Mon either)

JB

[This message has been edited by Jaggy Bunnet (edited 11 April 2001).]

JohnS

iTrader: (1)

I think it's 36 as well.

1 1/2 painters can paint 1 1/2 walls in 1 1/2 days, so 1 1/2 painters can paint one wall in one day.

6 painters (4 x 1 1/2), can therefore paint 4 walls in one day.

Over 9 days, 6 painters should be able to paint 36 walls, at 4 per day.

Hanslow

Depends if they have enough paint

Also, where do you find half a painter

Fosters

This is why we're not in mensa

1.5p can do 1.5 walls in 1.5days, which equates to 1p can do 1w in 1d
=6 walls per day x 9 days

54
QED

fast bloke

Concur with JohnS. 36. It is probably more like 18 by the time they fill the cracks, have a cup of tea, get more pait, clean their brushes every three hours etc...

PeteC

The correct answer is 36, so JohnS you're right, and Fosters you should have stuck with your original answer. Muppet

Two different ways of looking at it:

1) If 1 1/2 painters can paint 1 1/2 walls in 1 1/2 days, then 1 painter will paint 1 wall in the same amount of time ie, 1 1/2 days. 6 painters will therefore do 6 walls in 1 1/2 days, and in 9 days will paint 6x9x2/3 walls, ie 36 walls.

2) 1 1/2 walls take 3/2x3/2 painter days. Therefore 1 painter day will do 3/2x4/9 walls. And 54 painter days (6 painters and 9 days) will do 54x3/2x4/9 , ie 36 walls.

Pete

[This message has been edited by PeteC (edited 11 April 2001).]

Fast_Blue_Scooby

36 is the correct answer, and the logic behind it is well described by JohnS and PeteC.
Caught a few out in my office and by the looks of it a few Scooby members that replied.

Maybe I should have re-phrased the question, that it takes one and half Subaru body shop employees to repair a Subaru in a day and a half. How many cars could 6 employees fix in nine days?

The answer from experience would be they that all six employees are still working on the first car as they used the wrong DBM colour coded paint!!!!!!