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Connecting Math: Just for Fun #1
The Pearls Story
By Oana Sãcãlus
"Duiliu Zamfirescu" School, Focsani, Romania

A king had a chain of precious pearls arranged like this:
 

OOOOOOO
O
O
O
O
O
O
He used to count them from the left side going on down or from the right side going on down and he always found ten pearls.

One day the chain got broken and the king asked a jeweler to put them in the same way they were before. Counting them, the jeweler saw that there were 13 pearls. As they were very attractive, the jeweler succeeded in keeping one for himself. When the king was given the chain back, he counted them in his own way and he founded 10 pearls as usual.

How did the jeweler arrange the pearls in order to remain 10 at the king's counting?

Version en español

El cuento de las perlas

Un rey tenia una collar de perlas arregladas en tal manera:

OOOOOOO
O
O
O
O
O
O
Siempre las contaba empezando con la mano izquierda contando para abajo o sino de la mano derecha para abajo y siempre que contaba salia con diez perlas.

Un dia el collar se corto y el rey le pidio al joyero que las pusiera de vuelta como estaban. Contandolas, el joyero conto 13 perlas. Viendo que hermosas que eran, el joyero se quedo con una de las perlas. Cuando le devolvio el collar al rey, el rey las conto de su manera y conto 10 perlas como siempre.

Como es que el joyero pudo arreglar el collar para que el rey siguiera contando 10 perlas como antes?

Answer:

This is how the jeweler arranged the pearls:

OOOOO
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
The chain had only 12 pearls but the way the king used to count them, from a side or from the other they were ten as well.

Respuesta:

Esto es como el joyero arreglo las perlas en el collar:

OOOOO
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
El collar tenia 12 perlas pero porque el rey seguia contando las perlas de su manera siempre le salia 10 cuando las contaba.