Mind your Ps and Qs
I applied for a job and had two interviews. The two interviewers had to decide independently whether or not I was suitable. Only after both interviews were the two decisions announced and the approval of both was needed to get the job. Apparently the first interviewer approved one in every P applicants (where P is a whole number) and decided that the rest were unsuitable. Then, for any of the first interviewer’s decisions, there was only a one in Q chance that the second interviewer agreed with the first (where Q is a larger integer). After the second interview, the interviewer told me that he had approved my application. However, he warned me not to get too excited because there was only a one in P+Q chance that I had got the job.
What are the values of P and Q?
WIN £15 will be awarded to the sender of the first correct answer opened on Wednesday 29 May. The Editor’s decision is final. Please send entries to Enigma 1747, Â鶹´«Ã½, Lacon House, 84 Theobald’s Road, London WC1X 8NS, or to enigma@newscientist.com (please include your postal address).
Answer to 1741 Four squares: The five two-digit numbers are 56, 48, 72, 10 and 39
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The winner Alan Walder of London, UK
