mastermind

My game suggestion from last class was Mastermind, and the interactive version available from NLVM: http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/frames_asid_179_g_2_t_1.html?open=instructions. We didn't have much time to consider it, but perhaps a next step is to consider a book, MASTERMIND® Mathematics Logic, Strategies, and Proofs that teases out the higher level thinking skills.

Tootsie Roll Game (“Iterated Sharing” from Solve This)

A group of student sits in a circle, each with a pile of wrapped candies. (Wrapped candy is used because each piece will be handled by many people before being eaten.) Some people have 20 or more, others none, and the rest some number in between. The distribution is arbitrary except for the fact that everyone has been given an even number of pieces. A reserve supply is set aside.
The group now follows these instructions: Give half of your candy to the person on your left and half to the person on your right (and hence receive a supply of candy from the people on your left and right). Do this simultaneously. Now recount your candy supply. If you now have an odd number of pieces, take an extra piece of candy from the reserve supply. This boosts your pile back up to an even number of pieces and everyone is ready to perform the maneuver again.
What happens to the distribution of candy among the group if this maneuver is performed over and over again? Will people be forever taking extra pieces from the center, so everyone’s amount of candy will grow without bound? Or will the distribution stabilize or equalize in some sense? Will one person end up with all the candy? Might “clumps” of candy move around the circle with each iteration or some strange oscillatory pattern emerge? Is it possible to predict what the result will be?
Taking it further: What happens if instead of adding pieces, you eat any odd piece of candy to bring your pile back down to an even number?
Hint: Based on the investigations my class performed, and the patterns they found, I encourage you to examine what the range of distributions is. For example, if you started with 0 – 18 pieces (a range of 18), what happens? And is it different if you started with 0-20 pieces (a range of 20)?
My classes enjoyed this activity, though my advanced class looked into in much further than my lower level class. They tried several rounds to test and prove conjectures. It was a difficult game to play with a class larger than 12 students. I tried putting them into two groups, but this was difficult since I was facilitating both groups. It was also difficult to play with desks in a circle. Playing on the floor or at a large table would have made things easier.