mtj@ncvet.UUCP (Michael Jones) (10/13/84)
------------------------- -------- A Non-Trivial Pursuit -------- ------------------------- Since you have read all of this (to the very end), you must be an inquisitive person. I respect that quality in you. I submit a challenge to you in the form of a contest. Contest Rules: 1. I, Michael T. Jones, shall be the sole, total, final, and complete judge of the contest. (After all, I know the answer!) 2. The prize is $100.00 A One Hundred Dollar Bill, S/N D10703122A will be awarded in the event the contest is won by a single entrant. If the con- test is won by multiple entrants, prizes will be awarded by check. 3. A valid entry shall be defined as follows: a. Contains the complete and legible NAME of the contestant. b. Contains the complete and legible MAILING ADDRESS of the contestant. c. Contains the legible proposed solutions to all three parts of the contest question. d. Must be received at the following mailing address: Data Systems Research, Inc. P.O. Box 37153 Raleigh, NC 27626-7153 e. Must have the word "CONTEST" clearly legible on the exterior of the postal item. f. May be any form of postal document acceptable by the U.S. Post Office including, but not limited to, post cards, letters, and envelopes. 4. The winner shall be determined as follows: a. On the date of receipt of the first correct entry, a Grace Period of 7 days shall begin. All correct entries received within this Grace Period shall be ordered according to the U.S. Postal Service Stamp Of Cancellation (Post Mark, NOT the date given by office-type postal de- vices, if different) and the earliest so dated shall be the winner. b. In the event of multiple identically post marked winning entries, the prize ($100.00) shall be divided equally among these winning entries. All prize values shall be calculated to the nearest cent. 5. Winners will be notified by telephone on the first weekday after the end of the seven day Grace Period if a legible and complete telephone number is included in the entry along with a request for such notification. 6. Any cash prize awards shall be made via U. S. Postal Service Registered Mail. Any prize awards paid by check shall be via U. S. Postal Service First Class Mail. Contest sponsors are not responsible for lost or mis- delivered mail. 7. Contest begins October 10, 1984 8. Contest ends December 31, 1984 Contest Information: 1. The following four numbers are part of a much longer sequence. 54748 92727 93084 548834 2. They appear in this longer sequence consecutively. 3. They appear in this longer sequence in the order given (top to bottom). 4. Each number appears only once in the longer sequence. 5. The longer sequence consists of numbers with a special property. 6. The longer sequence is finite. Contest Question: 1. What two numbers (if any) preceed 54748 in the longer sequence ? 2. What two numbers (if any) succeed 548834 in the longer sequence ? 3. What special property do these numbers possess ? ------------------------- -------- A Non-Trivial Pursuit -------- -------------------------