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PART
1
Once upon a time, in a land far away, there lived a rich man called Lee Chin.
He had a very big elephant. It was a fine strong elephant, and Lee Chin was very
proud of it. Many people came to look at it. The elephant made him very happy.
Now
the King of this land was going to have a birthday. All the rich people had to
give him a present for his birthday. What could Lee Chin give the King?
That night he had a good idea. "I would like to give my elephant to the King,"
he said. "It would be a wonderful gift." His friends thought so too.
So, one day Lee Chin set off with his friends to take his elephant to the Palace.
He had dressed the elephant up in a fine cloak of many colours. Then they began
the long journey.
On the way they came to some high mountains. The elephant was much too big to
be able to walk across the mountains on the narrow track. So Lee Chin said, "I
will have to take my elephant down the river on a boat."
Luckily, there was a boat nearby, with a boatman waiting for people to take a
ride.
"Will you take my elephant down the river on your boat?" asked Lee Chin.
"Yes," said the boatman. "I will help you.
But first you must tell me how heavy it is."
"Why?" asked Lee Chin.
"So that I can work out how much you will have to pay me. A heavy animal
costs more than a light one," he said.
Now that was a problem. The rich man had no idea how heavy his elephant was. "
I cannot weigh it," said Lee Chin. "I don't have any scales that are
big enough. What can I do?"
Do
questions 1 to 6 on your answer sheet now.
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PART
2
Lee Chin had a serious problem. How could he possibly weigh such a colossal
animal. He asked his friends for help.
"I have an idea," said the first one. "You could try to
weigh one leg at a time."
"That would not solve the problem," said the second friend.
"I believe you will need a huge see-saw to do this job. Put the elephant
on one end of the see-saw and see how many men it takes to balance it."
But nobody knew where to get a big enough see-saw.
A third friend had another idea. "I think you will require a large
set of scales. Arrange to have the elephant sit on all of the scales at
once, then record the weight on all of the scales, and add them up. "
But nobody was excited by that idea either. It seemed that none of his
friends had a sensible answer. So Lee Chin asked for Tsao Tsao, the Wise
Man, to be called. Maybe he could find a solution. Accordingly, Tsao Tsao
was approached and he was asked for his views.
Unfortunately,
he had little to offer either. He went to his large library, and searched
through many books, but could find nothing related to the weighing of
elephants. Apparently it was not a common problem for those who write
books.
By now Lee Chin was becoming impatient. He talked to the boatman again
to see if he would change the rules, but he would not. Surely someone
could find a practical solution.
Do
questions 7 to 12 on your answer sheet now.
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PART
3
Now while the wise man was consulting his library, his young daughter,
Little Tsao had a flash of inspiration. She immediately announced that
she had discovered a solution to their difficulties, but her announcement
was ignored. Nobody would possibly expect an immature person like her
to come up with a solution to a problem that had stumped so many wise
adults. She tried a second time, with a much louder call. This time they
heard her speak, but again she was disappointed at their reaction. They
burst into laughter. "What would a mere child know of such complex
matters?" they exclaimed, and they continued to ignore her. However,
Lee Chin heard Little Tsao's plea, and asked for her opinion on the matter.
"I've listened to so much irrelevant nonsense on the subject already
that I may as well give her a chance." So little Tsao was given the
floor. First, she requested that the huge beast be transferred on to the
boat. Lee Chin and his servants did as they were asked. Initially, the
boat rocked back and forth, and sank well down in the water with the extreme
weight of the elephant. Eventually, the vessel settled down. Then Little
Tsao asked the rich man's servants to paint a straight line around the
sides of the boat to indicate where the water came up to. This was done
and the elephant was then restored to dry land again.
Do
questions 13 to 18 on your answer sheet now.
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PART
4
The next phase in Little Tsao's plan was now ready for operation. She
surprised the company by asking that the vessel be loaded with stones.
Indeed, she asked them to continue loading the vessel until it had submerged
to the point that the surrounding water had reached the threshold line
already drawn. The people were still somewhat confused, but they followed
her orders to the letter. "Now, a set of scales will be necessary
for the final phase," she explained. "Kindly remove the stones,
weigh them in batches, and calculate the total weight of all the batches.
This sum is the figure you have been seeking the weight of the
elephant." At last the onlookers were able to follow her reasoning.
"What an elegant solution!" ventured one. "A virtual stroke
of genius!" acknowledged another. "Why didn't we come up with
such a brilliant solution?" "Indeed!" agreed the relieved
Lee Chin. The clever young woman's technique was duly applied, and the
waiting boatman was immediately able to estimate the price that Lee Chin
was required to pay. Being wealthy, he was readily able to meet his obligations,
and the vessel was soon heading downstream with its precious cargo aboard.
Suffice it to say that the mission was duly accomplished, the King was
well satisfied with his unusual present, and the townsfolk expressed nothing
but admiration for the clever young woman who was able to produce such
a neat solution to Lee Chin's problem.
Do
questions 19 to 24 on your answer sheet now.
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