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Can you solve the maths question for Singapore schoolkids that went viral?


pongo

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 3/3/2023 at 10:34 AM, Chinahand said:

If you can explain something you understand it ... and I'm trying to fix my understanding of power series and log log plots. So here's a go at creating and setting some problems about them!

I'm pretty certain the following are examples of straight lines on a log log plot ... if anyone has any thoughts do chip in!

Let's assume a 10% increase in bodymass results in a 15% increase in brainsize - I'm pretty sure that results in a linear plot on a log log graph.

Now if a rhino's mass is 500kg and it has a brain size of 1 kg, how much will the brain of a 2000kg elephant weigh?

Bizarrely, the maths in this also work with things like world telecoms pricing.

If a country has a per capita gdp 15% higher than another's then the Average Revenue per Capita (ARPU) on its mobile subscriptions will be 10% higher. If the UK's gdp per capita is $40K per year and mobile phone bills are on average $20 per month how much will mobile phone bills be in the US with a GDP per Capita of $55K per year?

For more details of this sort of thing see Scale by Geoffrey West:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Scale-Universal-Organisms-Cities-Companies/dp/1780225598

All the numbers are entirely made up! I'm just wanting to ensure I can do the maths given the assumptions. I think I can, but I'm not certain ... off to calculate elephant brain sizes and ARPUs in the US!

My job is very strange!

So ... my calcs give 7.636 kg for the Elephant Brain

And $24.85 for the US APRU.

Any other takers? I'll leave it for a while and then try and explain!

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5 hours ago, Chinahand said:

So ... my calcs give 7.636 kg for the Elephant Brain

And $24.85 for the US APRU.

Any other takers? I'll leave it for a while and then try and explain!

Agreed. 
 

I solved 1.1^x=4 then took 1.15^x as the brain multiplication factor which equals 7.636kg

Same process for the other one. 

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