

There's a torus/ring doughnut shaped space station with 2 spacemen on a

spacewalk standing diametrically oppositie each other. Can then ask a
variety of questions such as if spaceman A wants to throw a spanner to
spaceman B, what angle and speed should they choose (stating any
assumptions made, e.g. that gravity = 0)? (submitted by Oxford university
applicant) Comments


Show that if n is an integer, n^3 - n is divisible by 6. (Submitted by Oxford
Applicant) Comments


Differentiate x^x, then sketch it. (submitted by Oxford university
applicant)


An ant starts at one vertex of a solid cube with side of unity length.
caculate the distance of hte shortest route the ant can take to the furthest
vertex from the starting point. (answers in this book)


A telephone company has run a very long telephone cable all the way
round the middle of the earth. Assuming the Earth to be a sphere, and
without recourse to pen and paper, estimate how much additional cable
would be required to raise the telephone cable to the top of the 10m tall
telephone poles (answers in this book)


a thin hoop of diameter d is thrown on to an infinitely large chessboard
with squares of side L. what is the chance of the hoop enclosing two
colours? (answers in this book)


an infinitely large floor is tiles with regular hexagonal tiles of side L.
Different colours of tiles are used so that no two tiles of the same colour
touch. A hoop of diameter d i thrown onto the tiles. What is the chance of
the hoop enclosing more than one colour? (answers in this book)


what is the volume of the largest cube that fits entirely within a sphere of
unity volume? (answers in this book)


what is the area if an n-sided regular polygon inscribed within a circle of
radius r? (answers in this book)


for a circle inscribed in inside a regular n-sided polygon, what is the
minimum n so that the ratio of the area of part outside the circle to the
area of the circle is less than or equals to 1/1000? (answers in this book)


give a vector proof that for a triangle inscribed within a semicircle, the
included angle is always pi/2 (answers in this book)


Is it possible to cover a chess-board with dominoes, when two corner
squares have been removed from the chessboard and they are (a)
adjacent corners, or conversely, (b) diagonally opposite. (submitted by
Oxford university applicant)


Integrate 1/(x^2) between -1 and 1. Describe any difficulties in doing this?
(submitted by Oxford applicant)


If a cannon is pointed straight at a monkey in a tree, and the monkey lets
go and falls towards the ground at the same instant the cannon is fired,
will the monkey be hit? Describe any assumptions you make. (submitted
by applicant)


Integrate xlog(x). (submitted by Oxford applicant)


How many solutions to kx=e^x for different values of k?


Prove by contradiction that when z^2 = x^2 + y^2 has whole number
solutions that x and y cannot both be odd. (The Student Room)


Sketch y=ln(x) explaining its shape. (The Student Room)


Compare the integrals between the values e and 1: a) int[ln(x^2)]dx; b)
int[(lnx)^2]dx and c) int[lnx]dx. Which is largest?. (The Student Room)


Sketch y=(lnx)/x. (The Student Room)


Differentiate x^x and (x^0.5)^(x^0.5). (The Student Room)


Sketch y=cos(1/x). (The Student Room)


What is the square root of i?


If each face of a cube is coloured with one of 6 different colours, how many
ways can it be done? (The Student Room)


If you have n non-parallel lines in a plane, how many points of intersection
are there? (The Student Room)


Observation about (6 - (37^0.5))^20 being very small. (The Student
Room)


By considering (6 + (37^0.5))^20 + previous expression, show this
second expression is very close to an integer. (The Student Room)


Sketch Y = (x^4 - 7x^2 + 12)/(x^4 - 4x^2 +4). (The Student Room)


Sketch y^2 = x^3 - x. (The Student Room)


Integrate from 0 to infinity the following: Int[xe^(-x^2)]dx and
Int[(x^3)e^(-x^2)]dx. (The Student Room)


If you could have half an hour with any mathematician past or present,
who would it be? (Oxbridge Applications)


Integrate arctan x! (Cambridge applicant, The Student Room)


Do you know where the multiplication sign came from (Oxford university
applicant, mathematics and statistics, The Student Room)


If we have 25 people, what is the likelihood that at least one of them is
born each month of the year? (Oxford applicant, The Student Room)


What makes a tennis ball spin as it's travelling through the air? (Oxford
applicant, The Student Room)


If (cos(x))^2 = 2sin(a), what are the intervals of values of a in the interval
0 ≤ a ≤ pi so that this equation has a solution? (submitted by Oxford
applicant)


If a round table has n people sitting around it, what is the probability of
person A sitting exactly k seats away from person B? (submitted by Oxford
applicant)


You are given that y = t^t and x = cost. What is the value of dy/dx?
(submitted by Oxford applicant)


Differentiate y = x with respect to x^2? (submitted by Oxford applicant)


Prove by contradiction that 2(a)^2 - b^2 is true only if a and b are both
odd? (submitted by Oxford applicant)


if your friends were here now instead of you, what would they say about
you? (Cambridge interview, The Student Room)


Whatever got you into pole dancing? (Cambridge university interview, The
Student Room)


Why do you play table tennis? (Cambridge university interview, The
Student Room)


Do you know where the multiplication sign came from? (Oxford university
interview, Oxbridge Applications)


What is the significance of prime numbers? (Oxford interview, Oxbridge
Applications)


Imagine a ladder leaning against a vertical wall with its feet on hte groun.
The middle rung of the ladder has been painted a differnt colour on the
side, so that we can see it when we look at the ladder from side on. What
shape does that middle rung trace out as the ladder falls to the floor?


Determine all pairs (m, n) of positive integers satisfying: (a) two of the
digits of m are the same as the corresponding digits of n, while the other
digit of m is 1 less than the corresponding digit of n (as in, say, 263 and
273); (b) both m and n are three-digit squares. A typical hint from the tutor
would be to consider this case for 3 digit pairs (m,n) that is, Find as
efficiently as possible all pairs (m,n) of positive integers satisfying the
following two conditions: (a) two of the digits of m are the same as the
corresponding digits of n, while the other two digits of m are both 1 less
than the corresponding digits of n\ (b) both m and n are four-digit squares.
(submitted by oxford university applicant)


Show that no number in the sequence 11,111,1111,11111... is a perfect
square (submitted by oxford applicant)


How many 0s does the number 30! have?

How long does a mirror have to be for you to see your whole body?
A body with mass m is falling towards earth with speed v. It has a drag force equal to kv. Set up a
differential equation and solve it for v.
Show that if n is an integer, n^3 – n is divisible by 6.
A body with mass ‘m’ is falling towards earth with speed v. It has a drag force equal to kv. Set up a
differential equation and solve it for v.
You have a 3 litre jug and a 5 litre jug. Make 4 litres
What was the most beautiful proof in A-Level Mathematics?
If X is odd prove X squared – 1 is always a multiple of 8
What do you think is beautiful in maths?
Prove that any number consists of prime factors or is a prime number.
Consider two identical, frictionless slopes, down which we send two identical particles. If each
particle starts the same height up each slope, but one rolls whereas the other simply translates
down the slope, which particle will reach the bottom first?
Differentiate x^x, then sketch it.
Is it possible to cover a chess-board with dominoes, when two corner squares have been removed
from the chessboard and they are (a) adjacent corners, or conversely, (b) diagonally opposite.
Integrate 1/(x^2) between -1 and 1. Describe any difficulties in doing this?
If a cannon is pointed straight at a monkey in a tree, and the monkey lets go and falls towards the
ground at the same instant the cannon is fired, will the monkey be hit? Describe any assumptions
you make.
Integrate xlog(x).
How many solutions to kx=e^x for different values of k?
Prove by contradiction that when z^2 = x^2 + y^2 has whole number solutions that x and y cannot
both be odd.
Sketch y=ln(x) explaining its shape.
Compare the integrals between the values e and 1: a) int[ln(x^2)]dx; b) int[(lnx)^2]dx and c)
int[lnx]dx. Which is largest?
Sketch y=(lnx)/x.
Differentiate x^x and (x^0.5)^(x^0.5).
Sketch y=cos(1/x).
What is the square root of i?
If each face of a cube is coloured with one of 6 different colours, how many ways can it be done?
If you have n non-parallel lines in a plane, how many points of intersection are there?
Sketch y = (x^4 – 7x^2 + 12)/(x^4 – 4x^2 +4).
Sketch y^2 = x^3 – x.
Integrate from 0 to infinity the following: Int[xe^(-x^2)]dx and Int[(x^3)e^(-x^2)]dx.
If you could have half an hour with any mathematician past or present, who would it be?
What is the most pieces of pizza I can get from ‘n’ cuts?
I am an oil baron in the desert and I need to deliver oil to four different towns which happen to lie
on a straight line. In order to deliver the correct amounts to each town, I must visit each town in
turn, returning to my warehouse in between each visit. Where should I position my warehouse in
order to drive the shortest distance possible? Roads are no problem since I have a friend who is a
sheikh and will build me as many roads as I like for free.
Sketch y = sinx and y = (sinx)-1
I drove to this interview at 50 kmph and will drive back at 30kmph because of the traffic. What is
my average speed?
A body with mass ‘m’ is falling towards earth with speed v. It has a drag force equal to kv. Set up a
differential equation and solve it for v.
Derive the formula for the volume of a sphere.
Do you know what a hyperbolic function is?
Draw the graph of y= (x-3)(x-2) / (x 2)(x-1)
Estimate the fifth root of 1.2
e^x = y^x. For what value of x is there only one solution?
How would you prove that any integer can be expressed factors or is itself a prime number?
How many 0s has 30 factorial?
How would you derive pi?
How would you prove that e is irrational?
How would you prove that the square root of 3 is irrational?
How would you write down 0.1 recurring as a fraction?
If X is odd prove X squared – 1 is always a multiple of 8
Integrate ysiny with respect to y.
Plot 1/x
Plot e x
Plot In x
Plot X2+ x
Prove pythagoras theorem.
Sketch sinh(x) or cosh(x).
There are 30 people in one room. What is the probability that of them have the same birthday?
What are modular functions?
What do know about Fermat’s last theorem?
What do you think is beautiful in maths?
What is the significance of Euler’s equations?
What is your favourite number?
Why do we approximate many functions in maths as cosine?