Wealth Redistribution

The kingdom of Syldavia has five economic classes. Feeling one day that there is too great a disparity among the wealth of the classes, the King asks his Finance Minister to devise a plan to redistribute the wealth of the classes. The FM proposes that the wealth of the top two classes be averaged, then the wealth of classes 2 and 3 be averaged, then the wealth of classes 3 and 4 be averaged, and finally that the wealth of classes 4 and 5 be averaged—a four-step process. The King likes the sound of the plan, but suggests that the progression should be from the lowest classes upwards. (In either case, the result will be a four-class system.) Which of the two plans should the lowest class prefer? Why?

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Radical of Year of Birth

Stella’s grandfather was born during the 19th century. The square root of the year he was born, plus the square root of the year that Stella’s cousin Elspeth was born, equals the age of Stella’s grandfather when he died. So in what year did her gramps die, how old was he at his death, and how old is Elspeth now?

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