SOLUTION: You want to share 30 identical sausages equally among 18 people. How many cuts did you make? How many pieces did you create? Is there a formula for calculating the minimum number

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Question 292424: You want to share 30 identical sausages equally among 18 people. How many cuts did you make? How many pieces did you create? Is there a formula for calculating the minimum number of cuts/pieces?
Answer by vleith(2983) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
How much does each oerson get? 30%2F18 so everyone gets one and 2/3 sausages
How many cuts? Trick question. Take 18 sausages out. You have 12 left.
Get a long knife. Line up the 12 sausages one next to the other, touching side to side.
Make a cut that creates sausage pieces that are 2/3 and 1/3 in length.
With the sausages lined up the correct way, ONE cut will let you create 12 2/3 sized pieces and 12 1/3 sized pieces.
That's a total of 24 pieces, plus the original 18 gives 42 total pieces.
I am sure the must be a formula, but given the way these sausages are given out, I don't see the need to use one.
One well placed cut does the trick.