Earlier this month, more than 200,000 British students aged 13 to 16 sat the 2016 UK Intermediate Mathematical Challenge. The exam, run by the UK Mathematics Trust, consists of 25 multiple-choice questions designed to test problem-solving skills. We have selected ten questions from this year's paper, starting easy and getting progressively harder.
The challenge allows 24 minutes for these ten questions, averaging 2 minutes 24 seconds per question. Calculators are forbidden, but rough paper is permitted. The questions cover topics such as fractions, geometry, logic, and number theory.
Sample questions include: 'One third of the animals in Jacob’s flock are goats, the rest are sheep. There are twelve more sheep than goats. How many animals are there?' and 'A list of positive integers has a median of 8, a mode of 9 and a mean of 10. What is the smallest possible number of integers in the list?'
The answers and the percentage of students who answered each question correctly will be revealed later today. For instance, 91 per cent got question one right, while only 3 per cent answered question ten correctly.
