Trials of Job

Giles Turnbull of The Morning News tries his hand at some challenging job interview questions.

Below are a few of the slightly challenging mathematical or Fermi type questions for our readers:

Goldman Sachs: Suppose you had eight identical balls. One of them is slightly heavier and you are given a balance scale. What’s the fewest number of times you have to use the scale to find the heavier ball?

Though I've got to say I would have hoped for something slightly more original than this oldie from GS. Can't they afford a dept of hard job interview questions?

Towers Watson: Estimate how many planes there are in the sky.
Jane Street Capital: What is the smallest number divisible by 225 that consists of all 1’s and 0’s?

I got two different answers, both guaranteed to be correct!

Susquehanna International Group: Five guys, all of different ages, enter a bar and take a seat at a round table. What is the probability that they are seated in ascending order of age?

Another one with more than one defensible answer.

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