Number Play — Quiz

Q1. In the 'Numbers Tell us Things' game, each child calls out a number that represents

• A. Their own height in centimetres.
• B. The total number of children in the line.
• C. Their position from the left end of the line.
• D. The number of children standing in front of them who are taller than them.

Q2. In a line of 8 children playing this game, the largest possible number that any child can call out is

• A. 1
• B. 6
• C. 8
• D. 7

Q3. Which statement about the 'taller-in-front' game is Always True?

• A. A person not at either end cannot say '0'.
• B. If a person says '0', then they are the tallest in the group.
• C. The person who calls out the largest number is the shortest.
• D. If a person is the tallest, then their number is '0'.

Q4. Kishor has cards showing only odd numbers (1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13). Can he pick 5 cards whose sum is 30?

• A. Only if he uses negative numbers.
• B. Yes, for example 1 + 3 + 5 + 7 + 14.
• C. Yes, by using 5 + 5 + 5 + 5 + 10.
• D. No, because the sum of 5 odd numbers is always odd, not 30.

Q5. Martin and Maria were born exactly one year apart. Maria claims that today the sum of their ages is 112. Is this possible?

• A. Yes, if they are 55 and 57.
• B. Yes, if they are 56 and 56.
• C. No, because their ages are consecutive numbers, so the sum must be odd.
• D. No, because their sum must be a multiple of 4.

Q6. The result of (odd – odd) is always

• A. Odd
• B. Zero
• C. Either odd or even
• D. Even

Q7. The parity of (even – odd) is

• A. Even
• B. Odd
• C. Zero
• D. Cannot be determined

Q8. How many small squares are there in a 3 × 3 grid, and what is the parity of this number?

• A. 6 squares, even
• B. 9 squares, even
• C. 12 squares, even
• D. 9 squares, odd

Q9. What is the parity of the product 42 × 78 (without actually multiplying)?

• A. Odd
• B. Cannot be decided
• C. Depends on the order of multiplication
• D. Even

Q10. Which of these algebraic expressions always gives an even number, for any whole number value of the variable?

• A. 100p
• B. 3n + 4
• C. 2n + 1
• D. n + 5

Q11. If 1 is added to every number in a 3 × 3 magic square (with magic sum 15), the new grid is

• A. Not a magic square anymore.
• B. Still a magic square, with magic sum 15.
• C. Still a magic square, with magic sum 18.
• D. Still a magic square, with magic sum 16.

Q12. If every number in a 3 × 3 magic square with magic sum 15 is doubled, the new magic sum becomes

• A. 15
• B. 20
• C. 30
• D. 45

Q13. The first-ever recorded 4 × 4 magic square in India, the Chautisa Yantra, is found at

• A. The Sun Temple at Konark, Odisha.
• B. The Meenakshi temple at Madurai, Tamil Nadu.
• C. The Brihadeeshwara temple at Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu.
• D. The Parshvanath Jain temple at Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh.

Q14. The Virahanka sequence was first explicitly described by the Prakrit scholar Virahanka around the year

• A. 300 BCE
• B. 1202 CE
• C. 1135 CE
• D. 700 CE

Q15. The number of different rhythms with 8 beats, using short (1-beat) and long (2-beat) syllables, equals which term of the Virahanka sequence 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, ...?

• A. 13 (the 6th term)
• B. 21 (the 7th term)
• C. 34 (the 8th term)
• D. 55 (the 9th term)