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Red Balloons, Blue Balloons

Age 7 to 11
Challenge Level Yellow star
  • Problem
  • Getting Started
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Katie and Will have some balloons, some are red and some are blue.

First, Katie blew up a red one. After her first puff her balloon had a circumference of $24$ cm.

Her second puff added $\frac{1}{2}$ as much again to that.

Her third puff increased it by $\frac{1}{3}$.

Her fourth puff increased it by $\frac{1}{4}$ and her fifth puff by $\frac{1}{5}$.

Her sixth puff increased it by $\frac{1}{6}$ and at the beginning of her seventh puff it went

Bang!

Next, Will blew up a blue balloon. After his first puff his balloon had a circumference of $14$ cm.

And, just like Katie's, his second puff added $\frac{1}{2}$ as much again to that and his third puff increased it by $\frac{1}{3}$.

His fourth puff increased it by $\frac{1}{4}$ and so on.

His balloon burst at exactly the same size as Katie's at the beginning of a puff.

How many puffs had Will done before his balloon burst?


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The NRICH Project aims to enrich the mathematical experiences of all learners. To support this aim, members of the NRICH team work in a wide range of capacities, including providing professional development for teachers wishing to embed rich mathematical tasks into everyday classroom practice.

NRICH is part of the family of activities in the Millennium Mathematics Project.

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