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The Puzzler

Puzzler, 3/1/98: Billboard Equation

RAY: The new puzzler.

TOM: Oh, you have one?

RAY: I do have one.

TOM: I can hardly wait.

RAY: Well, I have a crusty puzzler which I will save until next week.

TOM: I can hardly wait. What is it?

RAY: Well, this was sent to us from cyberspace by Roy Richarde.

TOM: Good. Read it.

RAY: It says --

TOM: Hurry up.

RAY: While driving around Luxembourg, on a recent trip to Europe, I caught a glimpse of a billboard that immediately brought Car Talk to mind.

TOM: Yeah.

RAY: The billboard was brightly colored with a cartoon like a pig on the bottom, but it wasn't just a pig that brought Car Talk to mind. Across the center of the sign was written an equation. Write this down.

TOM: I'm going to write it down. Go ahead.

RAY: D.

TOM: D. Small or big.

RAY: Yeah.

TOM: D equals --

RAY: Equals V over 10.

TOM: Yeah.

RAY: In parentheses. Squared. That quantity squared. The whole thing divided by two. OK? You got it. So, the quantity --

TOM: Whoa!

RAY: V over 10.

TOM: Yeah. Square.

RAY: Squared. Divide V by 10, square it. You divide that whole thing by 2. Got it?

TOM: I've got it. Yeah.

RAY: Right? You got it?

TOM: Yeah. And this was a billboard?

RAY: This was a billboard. He says remembering a discussion on the show of several months ago, I immediately knew what this was all about.

TOM: Wow!

RAY: What was it?

TOM: That's it? That's the question? No, oh, you gave a hint. Remembering a discussion on our show.

RAY: Remembering a discussion on Car Talk of a few months ago.

TOM: I knew immediately what this meant.

RAY: And all the hints are there. I mean Luxembourg. I mean you name it. You name it. It's all there, man.

TOM: Richarde.

RAY: Roy Richarde. Luxembourg. Europe.

TOM: Yeah.

RAY: D. D is there.

TOM: V. V is there too.

RAY: D and V. They're both there.

TOM: All right.

[ Car Talk Puzzler ]

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