Matchstick Puzzles
Matchstick Puzzles are nothing new and probably date back to the time when we had no electricity and everyone carried matches around to light the candles.
Matchstick puzzles are basically rearrangement puzzles in which a number of matchsticks are arranged as squares, rectangles or triangles. The problem is to usually form in a specific number of moves another shape of some kind.
Matchstick puzzles normally involve lateral thinking and is not just about making shapes.
The common wooden matchstick, with its brightly colored tip and sturdy box, has inspired tricks and puzzles ever since it was invented. Here’s a collection of the most baffling matchstick puzzles of all time, from the six riddles of the nine squares to the astonishing effect of the matchstick telegraph. Can you build a bridge with just two matches? Can you balance matchstick equations? Can you calculate how many matches you would need to cover the distance from the earth to the moon? With a rating of easy, medium, or difficult for each puzzle and illustrations showing colorful matchbox covers from around the world, this fascinating potpourri of brain-benders will provide hours of amusement for young and old alike.
For more fun with matchstick puzzles you may want to check out this link.
Lateral thinking is a term coined by Edward de Bono, for the solution of problems through an indirect and creative approach. Lateral thinking is about reasoning that is not immediately obvious and about ideas that may not be obtainable by using only traditional step-by-step logic.
Did you know that…
The first “friction match” was invented by English chemist John Walker in 1826. Early work had been done by Robert Boyle and his assistant, Godfrey Haukweicz in the 1680s with phosphorus and sulfur, but their efforts had not produced useful results.
Walker discovered a mixture of antimony sulfide or stibnite, potassium chlorate, gum, and starch could be ignited by striking against any rough surface.
Walker called the matches congreves, but the process was patented by Samuel Jones and the matches were sold as lucifer matches. The early matches had a number of problems – the flame was unsteady and the initial reaction was disconcertingly violent; additionally, the odor produced by the burning match was unpleasant. It is described as a firework odor.
Despite these problems, the new matches were responsible for a marked increase in the number of smokers Lucifers reportedly could ignite explosively, sometimes throwing sparks at a considerable distance. In the Netherlands matches are still called lucifers.
Now that sounds like one of the biggest matchstick puzzles