Problems Selected by Brilliant Staff: Feb. 11, 2019

Although we have discontinued "Problems of the Week," we're excited to continue showcasing the problem-writing skills of our community. We wanted to share with you these fifteen wonderful problems written solely by members of the community. We have placed these problems in our various "Challenge Quizzes" so that they can featured on our site and accessible to the community in the future.

Here is the list of the problems for you all to try:

1. Geometry Level 1: Folding a rectangular sheet of paper by Ronald Chén

2. Classical Mechanics Level 2: Gravitational Field! by Niraj Sawant

3. Logic Level 2: Burglars and Detectives Part1 by Jay B

4. Algebra Level 2: The Horse and the Donkey by Jay B

5. Electricity and Manetism Level 3: A Flux Divided by Steven Chase

6. Discrete Mathematics Level 3: Number of Shoes by Mk Jain

7. Geometry Level 3: Triangulations by Otto Bretscher

8. Logic Level 3: Logic Thinks by Winston Choo

9. Number Theory Level 3: Sum and sum to the seventh power by Sathvik Acharya

10. Classical Mechanics Level 3: Rod on a Hemisphere by William Allen

11. Geometry Level 3: Triangles and squares by Ronald Chén

12. Algebra Level 4: Roots and its Relations by Sathvik Acharya

13. Number Theory Level 4: 3 Brothers Riddle by Worranat Pakornrat

14. Logic Level 4: The smileys problem by Chan Lye Lee

15. Discrete Mathematics Level 5: Average Floor Number of an Elevator? by Garrett Clarke

Note by Andrew Hayes
2 years, 3 months ago

This discussion board is a place to discuss our Daily Challenges and the math and science related to those challenges. Explanations are more than just a solution — they should explain the steps and thinking strategies that you used to obtain the solution. Comments should further the discussion of math and science.

When posting on Brilliant:

• Use the emojis to react to an explanation, whether you're congratulating a job well done , or just really confused .
• Ask specific questions about the challenge or the steps in somebody's explanation. Well-posed questions can add a lot to the discussion, but posting "I don't understand!" doesn't help anyone.
• Try to contribute something new to the discussion, whether it is an extension, generalization or other idea related to the challenge.

MarkdownAppears as
*italics* or _italics_ italics
**bold** or __bold__ bold
- bulleted- list
• bulleted
• list
1. numbered2. list
1. numbered
2. list
Note: you must add a full line of space before and after lists for them to show up correctly
paragraph 1paragraph 2

paragraph 1

paragraph 2

[example link](https://brilliant.org)example link
> This is a quote
This is a quote
    # I indented these lines
# 4 spaces, and now they show
# up as a code block.

print "hello world"
# I indented these lines
# 4 spaces, and now they show
# up as a code block.

print "hello world"
MathAppears as
Remember to wrap math in $$ ... $$ or $ ... $ to ensure proper formatting.
2 \times 3 $2 \times 3$
2^{34} $2^{34}$
a_{i-1} $a_{i-1}$
\frac{2}{3} $\frac{2}{3}$
\sqrt{2} $\sqrt{2}$
\sum_{i=1}^3 $\sum_{i=1}^3$
\sin \theta $\sin \theta$
\boxed{123} $\boxed{123}$

Sort by:

- 2 years ago

I hope so! :)

- 2 years ago

cc @Julian Poon since this might be interesting to you based on your comment in the other discussion.

Staff - 2 years, 2 months ago

In resharing problems of mine from years ago so that newer members can give them a try, I've ended up monopolizing the Popular section of the Community page. Is there any way short of deleting my problems to remedy this unintended consequence? The Popular section doesn't seem to refresh that regularly.

- 2 years, 2 months ago

I don't think it's such a terrible thing that your high quality problems from yesteryear are showing up again. I do see how they're monopolizing the space, however. Unfortunately, I don't think we'll be making any changes to our algorithm any time soon, but I will see if we can do more to popularize other problems so that your problems aren't hogging the spotlight.

Staff - 2 years, 2 months ago

Thanks, Andrew, for the response and proposed action. :)

- 2 years, 2 months ago

To Brian's point, if all that gets posted are Brian's problems, then what about Brian? Where does he go to see the new and challenging problems? 😯

- 2 years, 2 months ago

Hahaha Yes, what about Brian? I always go to the New section anyway to test out those problems and report if necessary, or dip into my Saved collection. But the Popular section questions get the most attention on the Community page, so I think it would be better if the algorithm used could be adjusted so that the list of questions in that section was refreshed more regularly. Even before my recent unintended monopolization I did notice that the Popular list was relatively stagnant. Any thoughts on the matter? I apologize if the current status of this section has annoyed you at all; I just thought newer members would enjoy trying out my old problems. It seemed like a good idea at the time. :/

- 2 years, 2 months ago

Just to chip in - there's certainly a noticeable trend in the Popular list at the moment, but if you still have problems to put up, please continue! I for one have really enjoyed the selection you've posted so far - well written, interesting and in a wide variety of different topics (which, succinctly, is what I am currently missing about the Problems of the Week). And yes, what about Brian? The New section is good, but it's pretty wild out there. I hope the algorithm reinvigorates the Popular section soon but in the meantime am extremely happy to see you are keeping it going.

- 2 years, 2 months ago

I agree. Brian's problems are some of the best on Brilliant! 😃

And not only that but if you write a problem, he'll more often than not take it to the next level!

- 2 years, 2 months ago

Thanks, Geoff and Chris, for the encouragement! I would like to keep resharing old problems, but I think I'll wait to hear from @Andrew Hayes before continuing. I don't want to ruffle any feathers with staff (or other members), so I would like to hear first about their thoughts on the present situation and also on any plans they have to "reinvigorate the Popular section" (as Chris so aptly states).

- 2 years, 2 months ago

I'm curious... Why we're the problems of the week discontinued?

- 2 years, 2 months ago

Over time, we discovered that most users were drawn towards highly curated learning experiences like our courses. We wanted the free experience on our site to be aligned with this demand, so we created Daily Problems. The Problems of the Week were a tremendous success, but the user base for them stagnated over time. We found that the PotW format had a limited audience because it was too a la carte -- it wasn't well-connected. You either knew how to do the problems or you didn't, and there was not enough guidance on how to achieve understanding if you didn't.

It took a substantial amount of effort to curate the Problems of the Week. We feel like the Daily Problems add more value for our users instead. Right now, we're focused on creating engaging learning experiences through our courses and Daily Problems, and in the future we're hoping to maintain a great community experience, but to do more to connect these community features to our guided experiences.

Staff - 2 years, 2 months ago

@Andrew Hayes, why not one science AND one math problem every day for daily challenges?

- 1 year, 2 months ago