Friendly factors
Six friends, all keen mathematicians, met at a party. Each letter in their names – NED, PAT, ROD, RON, TIM and TOM – was replaced by a digit, with different digits used for different letters. In this way each of their names became a three-figure number. Whenever two of the friends were in conversation together, they calculated two things: a) the number of different primes that were factors of both their numbers; and b) the number of letters that occurred in both their names. For every pair of friends, their answer to both a and b was the same.
What number does PRINTED stand for?
WIN £15 will be awarded to the sender of the first correct answer opened on Wednesday 27 February. The Editor’s decision is final. Please send entries to Enigma 1734, Â鶹´«Ã½, Lacon House, 84 Theobald’s Road, London WC1X 8NS, or to enigma@newscientist.com (please include your postal address).
Answer to 1728 Problem tackling: Joe got within 7 feet of Ken
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The winner Bernard Ambrose of Little Melton, Norfolk, UK
