Can you solve this UPSC final exam question? Find solution inside

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, numerable puzzles, dare games, and quizzes are surfacing the internet. In no time, these fun games are becoming viral as people are searching for various means to kill their time and connect with closed ones during the lockdown. Therefore, these puzzles are making rounds on social media as challenges are being forwarded to WhatsApp groups.

Maths puzzles

From movies, idioms, to general knowledge questions, mathematical quizzes have gained immense popularity these days. People have been sharing difficult questions, which once appeared in competitive exams. Moreover, they are challenging their peers and tutors to complete the task and reveal the correct method of solving those interesting questions.

One of the questions forwarded WhatsApp puzzles appeared in a UPSC final exam. Therefore, we have mentioned the question for you to solve. Have a look.

Can you solve this USPC final exam question?

­­­__ + ­­__ + __ = 30

Fill the blanks using (1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15). You can also repeat the numbers. This question came in UPSC final exam held in December 2013.

While many people could not come up with answers and claimed the question to be incorrect, others attempted to solve it. This is one of the toughest maths puzzles as a sum of three odd numbers cannot give an even answer. However, many others found different methods to find a solution.

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This is one of the maths puzzles in which there is no conventional method to find out the answer. Therefore, the usage of the factorial symbol and other mathematical signs are common. Here are alternate ways to solve it.

UPSC final exam question answer

1 fortnight + 15 days + 1 day = 14 days + 15 days + 1 day = 30 days 

13.3 + 15.7 + 1 = 30

3! + 13 + 11 = 30

11.9 + 15.1 + 3 = 30

5!/3! + 9 + 1= 30

OR

Let  x + y + z = 30

Consider x,y,z to be random variables

=x + y + z - 30 = 0
Dividing both the sides by 2:-
(x/2) + (y/2) + (z/2) - 15 = 0

Let  x=9 , y =3 , z= 3 ( from the provided numbers)
= (9/2) + (3/2) + (3/2) = 15
= (9 + 3 + 3)/2 = 15 
Which makes it
= 9+3+3 = 30

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