Editing Mathematical puzzle

{{short description|Type of puzzle}}
'''Mathematical puzzles''' make up an integral part of [[recreational mathematics]]. They have specific rules, but they do not usually involve competition between two or more players. Instead, to solve such a [[puzzle]], the solver must find a solution that satisfies the given conditions. Mathematical puzzles require mathematics to solve them. [[Logic puzzle]]s are a common type of mathematical puzzle.

[[Conway's Game of Life]] and [[fractals]], as two examples, may also be considered mathematical puzzles even though the solver interacts with them only at the beginning by providing a set of initial conditions. After these conditions are set, the rules of the puzzle determine all subsequent changes and moves. Many of the puzzles are well known because they were discussed by [[Martin Gardner]] in his "Mathematical Games" column in Scientific American. Mathematical puzzles are sometimes used to motivate students in teaching elementary school [[Mathematical problem|math problem]] solving techniques.<ref>Kulkarni, D. [http://www.matholympiad.info/Documents/TeachingWithKenKen.pdf Enjoying Math: Learning Problem Solving With KenKen Puzzles] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801080339/http://www.matholympiad.info/Documents/TeachingWithKenKen.pdf |date=2013-08-01 }},  A textbook for teaching with KenKen Puzzles. </ref> [[Creative thinking]]{{snd}}or "[[thinking outside the box]]"{{snd}}often helps to find the solution.

== List of mathematical puzzles ==
=== Numbers, arithmetic, and algebra ===
* [[Cross-figure]]s or cross number puzzles
* [[Dyson number]]s
* [[Four fours]]
* [[KenKen]]
* [[Water pouring puzzle]]
* [[The monkey and the coconuts]]
* [[Pirate loot problem]]
* [[Verbal arithmetic]]s
* [[24 (puzzle)|24 Game]]

=== Combinatorial ===
* [[Cryptograms]]
* [[N-puzzle|Fifteen Puzzle]]
* [[Kakuro]]
* [[Rubik's Cube]] and other [[Mechanical puzzle#Sequential movement|sequential movement puzzles]]
*[[Str8ts]] a number puzzle based on sequences
* [[Sudoku]]
* [[Sujiko]]
* [[Think-a-Dot]]
* [[Tower of Hanoi]]
* [[Bridges Game]]

=== Analytical or differential ===
* [[Ant on a rubber rope]]

* See also: [[Zeno's paradoxes]]

=== Probability ===
* [[Monty Hall problem]]  <!--- Not a game --->

=== Tiling, packing, and dissection ===
* [[Bedlam cube]]
* [[Conway puzzle]]
* [[Mutilated chessboard problem]]
* [[Packing problem]]
* [[Pentomino]]es tiling
* [[Slothouber–Graatsma puzzle]]
* [[Soma cube]]
* [[T puzzle]]
* [[Tangram]]

=== Involves a board ===
* [[Conway's Game of Life]] <!--- Not a game --->
* [[Mutilated chessboard problem]]
* [[Peg solitaire]]
* [[Sudoku]] <!--- Not a game --->
* [[Nine dots problem]]

==== Chessboard tasks ====
* [[Eight queens puzzle]]
* [[Knight's Tour]]
* [[No-three-in-line problem]]

=== Topology, knots, graph theory ===
The fields of [[knot theory]] and [[topology]], especially their non-intuitive conclusions, are often seen as a part of recreational mathematics.

* [[Disentanglement puzzle]]s
* [[Seven Bridges of Königsberg]]
* [[Water, gas, and electricity]]
* [[Slitherlink]]

=== Mechanical ===
{{Main|Mechanical puzzle}}

* [[Rubik's Cube]]
* [[Think-a-Dot]]
* [[Matchstick puzzle]]

=== 0-player puzzles ===
* [[Conway's Game of Life]] <!--- Not a game --->
* [[Flexagon]]  <!-- Not a game -->
* [[Polyominoes]]

==References==
<references />

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070711224905/http://mathdl.maa.org/convergence/1/?pa=content&sa=browseNode&categoryId=9 Historical Math Problems/Puzzles] at [[Mathematical Association of America]] ''Convergence''

{{Polyforms}}

[[Category:Recreational mathematics|*]]
[[Category:Mathematical puzzles| ]]