268 core topics
+ 34 prerequisite topics taught
as needed · approximately 96 hours of instruction
including spaced review
An adaptive diagnostic (up to
40 questions) places the student on the course's knowledge
graph - topics already known are credited, and instruction begins exactly
at the learning frontier. Every topic is taught with a worked-example
lesson and auto-graded practice; a topic is mastered at
75%+ and then maintained through spaced reviews on an
expanding schedule. Mixed checks follow every 6 lessons;
each unit ends with a 12-item quiz, and course-wide assessments appear at
25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% mastery. Prerequisite gaps below the course are detected and taught rather
than skipped, so completion certifies the whole tower, not just the top.
| Divisibility Rules
[H] |
Test divisibility without doing the division. |
| Remainders
[H] |
The amount left over after fair sharing. |
| Digit Sums
[H] |
Add up the digits of a number. |
| Reversing Two-Digit Numbers
[H] |
The gap between a number and its reversal is a multiple of 9. |
| Counting Divisors
[H] |
Read the divisor count off the prime factorization. |
| GCF and LCM
[H] |
Common factors and common multiples. |
| Units Digit of a Power
[H] |
Last digits of powers repeat in a short cycle. |
| Sums of Consecutive Integers
[H] |
Pair the ends to add a run quickly. |
| Factors and Factor Pairs
[H] |
Factors come in pairs that multiply to the number. |
| Common Multiples in a Range
[H] |
Numbers divisible by both a and b are multiples of their LCM. |
| Gauss Sums
[H] |
Add 1 to n by pairing the ends. |
| Arithmetic Sequence Sums
[H] |
Average the first and last term, then multiply by the count. |
| Finding the nth Term
[H] |
Count the steps from the start. |
| Averages and a Missing Value
[H] |
The total is the average times the count. |
| A Fraction of a Quantity
[H] |
Divide into equal parts, then take some of them. |
| Successive Fractions (What's Left)
[H] |
Each fraction acts on the amount remaining, not the original. |
| Sharing in a Ratio
[H] |
Split into equal 'shares', then hand them out. |
| Proportions and Scaling
[H] |
Scale both quantities by the same factor. |
| Unit Rates
[H] |
How much for exactly one. |
| Distance, Speed, and Time
[H] |
Distance equals speed times time. |
| Perimeter of Rectangles
[H] |
Add up the distance around the outside. |
| Area of Rectangles
[H] |
Rows times columns of unit squares. |
| Area of Triangles
[H] |
Half of the base times the height. |
| Area of Composite Shapes
[H] |
Break the figure into rectangles, then add or subtract. |
| Angles in a Triangle
[H] |
The three angles always add to 180 degrees. |
| Angles on a Straight Line
[H] |
Angles along a straight line add to 180 degrees. |
| Counting Squares in a Grid
[H] |
Count squares of each size separately, then add. |
| The Painted Cube
[H] |
Where a small cube sits decides how many faces are painted. |
| Volume of a Box
[H] |
Stack layers of unit cubes. |
| The Multiplication Principle
[H] |
Multiply the number of independent choices. |
| Arrangements in a Row
[H] |
Multiply the shrinking number of choices for each spot. |
| Handshakes and Choosing Pairs
[H] |
Each handshake is a chosen pair. |
| Simple Probability
[H] |
Favorable outcomes over total outcomes. |
| Counting Grid Paths
[H] |
Every shortest path is a sequence of the same moves. |
| Two-Set Venn Counting
[H] |
Do not double-count the overlap. |
| The Pigeonhole Principle
[H] |
Plan for the worst case, then add one. |
| Age Problems
[H] |
Both people age by the same amount. |
| Chickens and Cows
[H] |
Assume all of one kind, then fix the leg count. |
| Coin Problems
[H] |
Assume the cheaper coin, then account for the extra value. |
| Work Rate (Inverse Proportion)
[H] |
More workers means proportionally less time. |
| Working Backwards
[H] |
Undo each step in reverse order. |
| Fence Posts (Off-by-One)
[H] |
A straight row of posts has one more post than gaps. |
| Days of the Week
[H] |
The weekday pattern repeats every 7 days. |
| Clock Angles
[H] |
Each hour mark is 30 degrees apart. |
| Magic Squares
[H] |
The magic sum is the total divided by the number of rows. |
| Even and Odd (Parity)
[H] |
Even/odd follows simple rules under addition and multiplication. |
| Remainders that Cycle
[H] |
Adding to a number cycles its remainder. |
| Perfect Squares
[H] |
Perfect squares come from squaring whole numbers. |
| Counting Multiples
[H] |
Divide to count multiples up to a limit. |
| Multiplying Patterns
[H] |
Find the constant ratio, then apply it again. |
| Total Value Problems
[H] |
Multiply each value by its count, then add. |
| Differences of Squares
[H] |
Consecutive squares differ by an odd number. |
| Grouping and Leftovers
[H] |
The leftover is the remainder after grouping. |
| Average Speed of a Round Trip
[H] |
Average speed is total distance over total time, not the mean of speeds. |
| Factorials
[H] |
Multiply every whole number down to 1. |
| LCM of Three Numbers
[H] |
Build up the least common multiple two numbers at a time. |
| GCF with Equal Remainders
[H] |
Subtract the remainder, then take a common factor. |
| Sum of Divisors
[H] |
Add up every factor, from 1 up to the number itself. |
| Counting Even Divisors
[H] |
An even divisor must keep at least one factor of 2. |
| Counting Primes
[H] |
A prime has exactly two divisors: 1 and itself. |
| Digit Products
[H] |
Multiply the digits together instead of adding them. |
| Reversing Three-Digit Numbers
[H] |
The gap is always a multiple of 99. |
| Counting Palindromes
[H] |
A palindrome reads the same in both directions. |
| Converting to Another Base
[H] |
Repeatedly divide, reading remainders from bottom to top. |
| Two Remainders at Once
[H] |
Step through one list of remainders until the other matches. |
| Summing Multiples
[H] |
Factor out the common multiple, then use a Gauss sum. |
| Counting Non-Multiples
[H] |
Count the total, then remove the multiples. |
| Divisible by One or the Other
[H] |
Add the two counts, then subtract the overlap once. |
| Counting Perfect Cubes
[H] |
Perfect cubes come from cubing whole numbers. |
| Highest Power that Divides
[H] |
Keep dividing by the prime until it no longer goes evenly. |
| Recovering a Number from GCF and LCM
[H] |
The product of two numbers equals GCF times LCM. |
| The Second Largest Divisor
[H] |
Divide by the smallest prime factor. |
| Digital Roots
[H] |
Adding digits repeatedly lands on the remainder mod 9. |
| Counting Subsets
[H] |
Each element is either in or out - two choices each. |
| Seating Around a Circle
[H] |
Fix one person to remove the identical rotations. |
| Arranging Letters with Repeats
[H] |
Divide out the reorderings of identical letters. |
| Choosing with a Required Member
[H] |
Seat the required person first, then fill the rest. |
| Sharing Identical Objects
[H] |
Place dividers in the gaps between the objects. |
| Diagonals of a Polygon
[H] |
Each vertex connects to all but itself and its two neighbors. |
| Triangles from Points
[H] |
Every choice of 3 points makes one triangle. |
| Coloring with Adjacency Rules
[H] |
The first region is free; each next avoids its neighbor. |
| Two-Digit Numbers by Digit Sum
[H] |
List the tens digit and read off the units digit. |
| How Many n-Digit Numbers
[H] |
The first digit can't be zero; the rest are free. |
| Choosing from Two Groups
[H] |
Multiply the independent choices from each group. |
| Spinner Probability by Angle
[H] |
A region's chance is its angle over the full 360°. |
| Probability with a Deck of Cards
[H] |
Count the favorable cards out of 52. |
| Probability of Both Events
[H] |
Multiply the probabilities of independent events. |
| Probability an Event Does Not Happen
[H] |
Subtract the event's probability from 1. |
| Expected Value
[H] |
Average the outcomes, weighted by how likely each is. |
| Geometric Probability
[H] |
Compare the target area to the total area. |
| Numbers from Their Sum and Difference
[H] |
Half the sum plus half the difference gives the larger number. |
| Finding Consecutive Even Numbers
[H] |
Write each even number in terms of the first. |
| Pattern to Formula (Toothpicks)
[H] |
Find how much each new figure adds, then build a rule. |
| Balance Puzzles
[H] |
Replace one object with its equal in the other. |
| The Median
[H] |
Sort the numbers and take the middle one. |
| The Mode
[H] |
The mode is the value that appears most often. |
| The Range
[H] |
Subtract the smallest value from the largest. |
| Geometric Series Sums
[H] |
Use the doubling shortcut instead of adding term by term. |
| Inserting Arithmetic Means
[H] |
Count the equal gaps the inserted numbers create. |
| Iterating a Rule
[H] |
Apply the same operation repeatedly, tracking the result. |
| Average of Consecutive Integers
[H] |
The average is the midpoint of the run. |
| Area of a Parallelogram
[H] |
Base times height, using the straight-across height. |
| Area of a Trapezoid
[H] |
Average the parallel sides, then multiply by the height. |
| Area of a Square from its Diagonal
[H] |
A square's area is half the square of its diagonal. |
| Perimeter of an L-Shape
[H] |
Cutting a corner notch leaves the perimeter unchanged. |
| Rectangle from Area and Perimeter
[H] |
Half the perimeter is the sum of length and width. |
| Angles with Parallel Lines
[H] |
Same-side interior angles add to 180°. |
| Exterior Angles of a Polygon
[H] |
The exterior angles always add to 360°. |
| Complements and Supplements
[H] |
Complements make 90°; supplements make 180°. |
| Angles Around a Point
[H] |
Angles around a single point add to 360°. |
| Base Angles of an Isosceles Triangle
[H] |
The two equal sides sit opposite two equal angles. |
| Distance Between Points
[H] |
Make a right triangle from the horizontal and vertical gaps. |
| Midpoint of a Segment
[H] |
The midpoint averages the endpoints' coordinates. |
| Area from Coordinates
[H] |
The side lengths are the coordinate differences. |
| Cube Edge from Surface Area
[H] |
A cube has six equal square faces. |
| Cube Edge from Volume
[H] |
The volume of a cube is the edge cubed. |
| Euler's Formula for Solids
[H] |
Vertices minus edges plus faces always equals 2. |
| Scale Drawings
[H] |
Multiply the map distance by the scale factor. |
| Area of a Ring (Annulus)
[H] |
Subtract the inner circle's area from the outer circle's. |
| The Triangle Inequality
[H] |
The third side lies strictly between the sum and the difference. |
| Classifying Angles
[H] |
Compare the angle to 90° and 180°. |
| Approaching Objects
[H] |
Add the speeds to get the closing rate. |
| Catching Up
[H] |
Subtract the speeds to get the closing rate. |
| Boats and Currents
[H] |
The current helps one way and hinders the other. |
| Simple Interest
[H] |
Interest is principal times rate times time. |
| Mixture Prices
[H] |
The blended price is the total cost over the total weight. |
| Unit Conversion
[H] |
Multiply by how many small units fill one big unit. |
| Average Speed over Timed Legs
[H] |
Total distance divided by total time. |
| Filling Against a Drain
[H] |
Subtract the draining rate from the filling rate. |
| Elapsed Time
[H] |
Convert both clock times to minutes, then subtract. |
| Counting Days Inclusively
[H] |
Subtract the dates, then add one for both endpoints. |
| A Clock that Runs Fast
[H] |
The error grows by the same amount each hour. |
| Percent More Than
[H] |
Compare the increase to the original amount. |
| Fractions to Percents
[H] |
A percent is the fraction scaled to a denominator of 100. |
| From a Part to the Whole
[H] |
Find the value of one share, then count all the shares. |
| Shadows and Similar Triangles
[H] |
Height and shadow keep the same ratio for everything. |
| Meshing Gears
[H] |
The gear with fewer teeth spins faster. |
| Replacing One Member of an Average
[H] |
One swap shifts the total by n times the change in average. |
| A Percent of a Percent
[H] |
Take the percents one after the other. |
| Remainders Add
[H] |
The remainder of a sum is the sum of the remainders. |
| Sum of the First n Odd Numbers
[H] |
The running total of odd numbers is always a perfect square. |
| Digits Forced by a Divisor
[H] |
Split the divisor into coprime parts and let each part pin down a digit. |
| Divisors That Are Always There
[H] |
Among k consecutive integers, every residue class modulo k appears exactly once. |
| GCD of Two Linear Forms
[H] |
A common divisor of two linear forms also divides any integer combination of them. |
| The 1001 Trick
[H] |
Because 1001 = 7 x 11 x 13, a six-digit number with a repeated block is divisible by all three. |
| Prime Powers Inside a Factorial
[H] |
Count multiples of p, then of p squared, then of p cubed, and add. |
| Which Claim Holds for Every n
[H] |
A statement about all integers needs a residue argument, while one counterexample kills it. |
| Forcing a Divisor to Be Constant
[H] |
Reduce the dividend modulo the divisor until only a constant remains, then list its divisors. |
| A Parity That Survives Every Move
[H] |
Replacing two numbers by their difference leaves the parity of the total unchanged. |
| Coloring a Board
[H] |
Color the board like a chessboard: every domino covers one square of each color. |
| Flipping a Fixed Number of Switches
[H] |
Each move changes the number of ON switches by an amount with the same parity as the move size. |
| Choosing the Argument That Settles It
[H] |
An impossibility proof needs a quantity that no move can change, not an arithmetic coincidence. |
| The Handshake Sum Must Be Even
[H] |
Adding everyone's handshake count double counts each handshake, so that total is even. |
| Reachable Positions Form One Progression
[H] |
Swapping one jump for the other always changes the finish by the same fixed amount. |
| A Total That Drifts by a Fixed Amount
[H] |
Track how much the total changes at each move, not which numbers were chosen. |
| Adding One Turns a Sum Rule into a Product Rule
[H] |
Since ab + a + b + 1 = (a+1)(b+1), the product of all numbers increased by one is preserved. |
| Color Counts Modulo Three
[H] |
Each meeting changes two color counts by one and the third by two, so differences modulo three are preserved. |
| Every Amount Is a Combination of the Two Jugs
[H] |
Any amount reachable with two jugs is a multiple of the greatest common divisor of their sizes. |
| A Score That Does Not Depend on Your Choices
[H] |
Each split scores exactly the pairs of stones it separates, so the total counts all pairs once. |
| Undoing a Repeated Rule
[H] |
Reverse each step in turn: undoing halve-then-subtract means add back, then double. |
| Three Rounds Run in Reverse
[H] |
Undo a doubling round by halving the receivers and returning what was given. |
| Shortest Route to a Target Number
[H] |
Work backwards from the target: undo a multiplication when possible, otherwise undo an addition. |
| Losing Positions Found Backwards
[H] |
A position is losing exactly when every move from it leads to a winning position. |
| Make the Others as Small as Possible
[H] |
To maximise one member of a set with a fixed total, minimise everything else. |
| Pushing the Middle Value Up
[H] |
To maximise the median, make the values below it minimal and those above it as tight as allowed. |
| Pair Up the Forbidden Partners
[H] |
Split the numbers into pairs that add to the forbidden total and take one from each pair. |
| How Many Can Clear the Bar
[H] |
Count how many members can meet a threshold by giving everyone the least the rules allow. |
| Squeezing the Largest Member Down
[H] |
If the biggest number is M, the whole set fits inside M, M-1, ..., M-k+1, which caps the total. |
| Remainders as Pigeonholes
[H] |
Two numbers differ by a multiple of m exactly when they leave the same remainder on division by m. |
| Pigeonholes of Different Sizes
[H] |
A color with fewer than k socks caps the worst case at its own supply. |
| None Divides Another
[H] |
Writing each number as an odd number times a power of two sorts them into chains. |
| Something Beats the Average
[H] |
Some box holds at least the average, rounded up, and an even spread shows no more is guaranteed. |
| Factoring an Equation into a Product
[H] |
Adding the right constant turns xy + ax + by into a product of two brackets. |
| Counting Differences of Squares
[H] |
Every way of writing N as a difference of squares comes from a factor pair of N whose two factors have the same parity. |
| Building Symmetric Expressions
[H] |
Any symmetric expression in x and y can be rebuilt from their sum and product alone. |
| Powers of x Plus Its Reciprocal
[H] |
Multiplying x^n + 1/x^n by x + 1/x produces the next power and the previous one. |
| A Sum of Fourth Powers That Factors
[H] |
The identity a^4 + 4b^4 = (a^2 + 2ab + 2b^2)(a^2 - 2ab + 2b^2) factors a sum of fourth powers. |
| Alternating Squares Collapse
[H] |
Pair the terms so each pair is a difference of squares equal to the sum of its two bases. |
| Splitting a Power Minus One
[H] |
For every divisor d of e, the number m^d - 1 divides m^e - 1. |
| Spotting the Hidden Factorisation
[H] |
A number close to a square or to a round power usually hides an algebraic factorisation. |
| Telescoping with a Gap
[H] |
Split 1/(k(k+d)) as (1/d)(1/k - 1/(k+d)) so terms cancel d places apart. |
| A Product That Telescopes
[H] |
Factor each term as (k-1)(k+1)/k^2 so neighbouring numerators and denominators cancel. |
| Rationalising Makes It Telescope
[H] |
Multiplying by the conjugate turns 1/(root k + root (k+1)) into a difference of square roots. |
| Three Factors in the Denominator
[H] |
Half the difference of two neighbouring products of pairs gives 1/(k(k+1)(k+2)). |
| Adding Rates, Not Times
[H] |
Let the unknown be the tank per hour rate of each pipe; the three pairwise sums then add to twice the total rate. |
| One Worker Leaves Partway
[H] |
Measure the fraction of the job finished before the change, then divide what remains by the surviving rate. |
| The Escalator Steps You Never Tread
[H] |
The escalator supplies the steps you do not walk, so steps walked plus steps carried is a constant. |
| Meeting, Then Finishing
[H] |
Let the meeting time be the unknown; each rider covers the other's first leg in the time stated. |
| Grass That Grows While the Cows Eat
[H] |
Take one cow's daily ration as the unit and treat the starting grass and the daily growth as two unknowns. |
| Areas Along a Divided Side
[H] |
Triangles with the same apex and bases on one line have areas in the ratio of those bases. |
| Shrinking a Triangle at One Corner
[H] |
Cutting both sides at a vertex multiplies the area by the product of the two ratios. |
| A Chain of Midpoints
[H] |
Each median drawn in a triangle halves the area of the triangle it is drawn in. |
| A Point Inside a Rectangle
[H] |
Opposite triangles from an interior point of a rectangle have areas summing to half the rectangle. |
| The Midpoint Quadrilateral
[H] |
Joining the midpoints of a convex quadrilateral produces a parallelogram of exactly half the area. |
| Pick's Theorem on a Lattice
[H] |
A lattice polygon has area I + B/2 - 1, where I and B count interior and boundary lattice points. |
| Which Fact Forces Equal Areas
[H] |
Two triangles have equal areas exactly when equal bases are paired with equal heights. |
| Rectangles Inside a Grid
[H] |
A rectangle in a grid is fixed by choosing two horizontal lines and two vertical lines. |
| Tilted Squares in a Point Array
[H] |
Every square in a lattice sits inside a unique upright square that circumscribes it. |
| Counting Inside a Fan
[H] |
In a fan of cevians every triangle is fixed by choosing two of the rays from the apex. |
| Parallelograms From Two Line Families
[H] |
Two lines from each of two parallel families bound exactly one parallelogram. |
| Triangles With Collinear Points Removed
[H] |
Count all vertex triples, then subtract the triples that are collinear and so degenerate. |
| Intersections of a Family of Lines
[H] |
Each pair of lines meets once unless the pair is parallel, so subtract the parallel pairs. |
| Rectangles in an L-Shape
[H] |
Count rectangles in the full grid and subtract exactly those that reach into the removed block. |
| A Board With Two Squares Removed
[H] |
A domino always covers one square of each color, so a color imbalance blocks any covering. |
| Counting Tilings of a Strip
[H] |
Tilings of a 2 by n strip satisfy a recurrence found by looking at the last column only. |
| Deficient Boards and L-Trominoes
[H] |
A tromino covering of a deficient board uses exactly one third of the remaining unit squares. |
| Covering a Board With Long Pieces
[H] |
An m by n board takes 1 by k pieces exactly when k divides m or k divides n. |
| Fewest Tiles on a Floor
[H] |
Fewest tiles means most 2 by 2 tiles, and an even-coordinate invariant caps how many fit. |
| Which Covering Argument Is Sound
[H] |
An impossibility needs an invariant that every piece respects; a possibility needs an actual covering. |
| Degrees Add Up to Twice the Edges
[H] |
The friendship counts of all members add to twice the number of friendly pairs. |
| When Everyone Has the Same Degree
[H] |
Equal degrees d for n people are achievable exactly when d is at most n - 1 and n times d is even. |
| Walking Every Path Exactly Once
[H] |
A connected network can be walked in one route exactly when it has no odd corner or exactly two. |
| How Many Strokes to Draw a Figure
[H] |
A connected figure with 2k odd points needs exactly k strokes, and k is never smaller. |
| Counting Routes Through a Network
[H] |
Routes to a town total the routes to each town with a road into it. |
| Roads You Can Close
[H] |
A connected network on n towns keeps only n - 1 roads at minimum, so the rest are removable. |
| Can These Handshake Counts Happen
[H] |
A list of handshake counts needs an even total and no entry above the number of other people. |
| Regions Cut by Straight Lines
[H] |
Each new line adds one region for every region it crosses, that is one more than its intersections. |
| Regions Inside a Circle of Chords
[H] |
Each interior crossing comes from a unique set of four marked points, which drives the region count. |
| Pentagons Forced by Euler's Formula
[H] |
Counting each edge and vertex through the faces turns Euler's formula into a fixed pentagon count. |
| Regions Cut by Circles
[H] |
A new circle meeting the earlier ones in 2(k - 1) points gains exactly that many regions. |
| Integer Triangles of a Given Perimeter
[H] |
List sides in increasing order and let the triangle inequality bound the largest side. |
| Counting Coin Combinations by Cases
[H] |
Fix the number of the largest coin first; the rest of each case is then a short count. |
| Splitting a Number into Three Parts
[H] |
Order the three parts to count each split once, then sweep the smallest part. |
| Numbers With Ordered Digits
[H] |
A strictly increasing digit string is just a choice of digits, since the order is then forced. |
| Choosing an Exhaustive Case Split
[H] |
A case split must cover every possibility, overlap nowhere, and be fine enough to settle the claim. |
| Largest Product With a Fixed Sum
[H] |
Parts that differ by more than one can be evened out to increase the product, so the best split is level. |
| Kings That Never Touch
[H] |
Cutting the board into 2 by 2 blocks caps the kings, and an odd-row odd-column placement attains the cap. |
| Bishops on Their Diagonals
[H] |
No two bishops may share a diagonal, and two of the corner diagonals can never both be used. |
| A Set With No Fixed Difference
[H] |
Splitting the numbers into chains that step by d turns the problem into alternating along each chain. |
| Shading Without a Full 2 by 2 Block
[H] |
Disjoint 2 by 2 blocks each need one blank square, and blanking the even-even squares attains that. |
| Does the Construction Attain the Bound
[H] |
An extremal answer needs both an upper bound and one arrangement that reaches it and obeys every rule. |
| Bracelets Up to Rotation
[H] |
Averaging the colorings left unchanged by each rotation corrects the overcount from turning the ring. |
| Painting the Faces of a Cube
[H] |
The 24 rotations of a cube each fix their own colorings, and the answer is the average of those counts. |
| Shadings Up to Rotation and Reflection
[H] |
Group shadings into families joined by the eight symmetries of the square and count one per family. |
| Rook Placements That Mirror Themselves
[H] |
A self-mirroring rook placement pairs up its columns, so it is built from fixed points and swapped pairs. |
| Using Symmetry Without Overcounting
[H] |
Dividing by the number of symmetries is valid only when every object is repeated that many times. |
| Inversions Fall One at a Time
[H] |
Count the pairs standing in the wrong order: one adjacent swap changes that count by exactly one, so it measures the work exactly. |
| A Quantity That Only Falls
[H] |
A positive whole number that strictly decreases at every step cannot decrease forever, so the process must halt and its length can be counted. |
| What Rows and Columns Cannot Change
[H] |
Adding 1 along a whole row or column leaves every corner-to-corner cross difference of a rectangle untouched. |
| Pressing a Lamp and Its Neighbours
[H] |
Only the parity of the number of presses at each lamp matters, so a solution is a SET of lamps and the whole search is finite. |
| Most Friendships Without a Triangle
[H] |
Split the people into equal groups and join every pair from different groups: that construction meets the counting bound exactly. |
| Pushing the Closest Pair Apart
[H] |
The gaps between neighbouring markers add up to the whole length, so the smallest gap can never beat the average gap - and even spacing attains it. |
| Where the Claim First Breaks
[H] |
A claim about every n is settled by the smallest n that breaks it, and the largest modulus that never breaks is the gcd of the first few values. |
| Making the Heaviest Group as Light as Possible
[H] |
The largest group can never be lighter than the average group, and the question is whether some split actually reaches that floor. |
| Every Long Sequence Turns Monotone
[H] |
Label each term by the longest increasing run ending there; two terms with the same label are forced to decrease. |
| More Subsets Than Possible Totals
[H] |
Count the subsets and count the totals they could land on: when the first count wins, two subsets must share a total. |
| How Many Columns Force a Repeat
[H] |
Count the painting patterns a single column can have: that count is the number of pigeonholes. |
| The Two Colors a Knight Alternates
[H] |
A knight always lands on the opposite color, which fixes the parity of any journey and organises the search into layers. |
| A Coloring That Caps the Tiling
[H] |
Color cell (i, j) by the remainder of i + j: a straight piece of k cells then covers one cell of every color. |
| How Long Until Everything Returns
[H] |
Break the shuffle into cycles: each cycle returns after its own length, so everything returns after the least common multiple. |
| Painting a Row and Painting a Ring
[H] |
Build the coloring one cell at a time and count the choices left at each step; a ring needs a correction because its last cell sees the first. |
| Stepping Along a Recurrence
[H] |
A rule that builds each term from the one before is an induction already written down, and the closed form is found by shifting the constant. |
| Routes That Never Cross the Diagonal
[H] |
Count the routes by filling in the grid corner by corner, discarding every point that breaks the rule before it is ever used. |
| Counting the Outcomes to Get a Bound
[H] |
Each question has a fixed number of possible answers, so q questions can tell apart at most that many possibilities raised to the power q. |