Math Puzzle #4
February 16, 2021
Using numbers 1-16, fill in each grid so that every row, column, and diagonal has the same sum. You may use each number only once per puzzle.
When you arrive at a solution, use this form to tell us how you solved it for a chance to have your approach and solution featured in our next edition!
Hint: Try to find a pattern
Solution to 1/15/20 puzzle, provided by freshman Maddox Hussar:
“For both problems, I added up all the numbers in the puzzle and divided by how many rows there were, which gave me the sum of each row,” Maddox said. He used that knowledge to determine the sum of the remaining boxes in each row and column. “For the 3-row problem, it was pretty simple,” he said. “For the 5-row problem I used some more methods: first I knew the last digit in the negative diagonal had to be 21.” After completing the three-by-three grid, he noticed a pattern in the diagonal starting at the bottom left corner. Each value in the diagonal was just one more than the one below it and to the left. “So the diagonal read 11, 12, 13, 14, 15. From there, I did some reasoning and finished the problem.”
