Here is another math problem to get you ready for Purim.

We all love to boo Haman’s name when we hear it read from the Megillah. But sometimes it can get out of hand. That is, since Haman’s name occurs 54 times throughout the Megillah, we might boo it so much that we forget about hearing the rest of the Megillah. Here’s a problem that might come up at your shul:

Let’s say you boo the first 20 mentions of Haman’s name by swinging your grogger. For each name of Haman, you swing your grogger 8 times.Then, a member of your shul holds a sign stating that for the remainder of the Megillah reading, only 2 grogger swings are allowed when Haman’s name is mentioned. You follow the directions. At the end of the Megillah reading, what is the total number of times you swung your grogger?

Solution:

For the first 20 names, you swung your grogger 8 times. That’s a total of 8 X 20 = 160 swings.

Haman’s name is recorded 54 times in the Megillah. That means that after the first 20 times, that leaves 54 – 20 = 34 names left. You are only allowed 2 swings for each remaining mention of Haman, so that amounts to 2 X 34 = 68 swings. So, if you combine the swings for the first 20 names with the swings for the remaining 34 names, you get 160 + 68 = 228 swings. That’s a lot!

Shabbat Shalom.

Ari Blinder is a math educator living in Highland Park, New Jersey. He is the owner of Math for the Masses, an innovative tutoring and consulting company. Please visit www.math4masses.com for fun activities and helpful worksheets. Ari can be reached at [email protected]. Never think you are “not a math person.” You are very much one already, but no one has shown you how.