SOLUTION: I am having trouble figuring out this problem. Could you please help? The question: Penny wants to build a sculpture by piling cubes on top of each other and painting them a brigh

Algebra ->  Volume -> SOLUTION: I am having trouble figuring out this problem. Could you please help? The question: Penny wants to build a sculpture by piling cubes on top of each other and painting them a brigh      Log On


   

Question 252606: I am having trouble figuring out this problem. Could you please help?
The question: Penny wants to build a sculpture by piling cubes on top of each other and painting them a bright color. She has 8 cubes of exactly the same size. She realized she could save money by only painting the parts of the cubes that were exposed. How can she arrange the cubes so that she uses the least amount of paint and can you find another arrangement that is just as economical?
Please help with this problem, I am very confused!
Answer by drk(1908) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
We have 8 cubes. Each cube has 6 sides, so a total of 48 sides. We want to create an object with as few sides as possible. This means as little paint as possible. The minimal object, I think would be a 2x2x2 cube. This cube only has 24 sides to paint. I don't think there would be another way.