Logic Question - Can you solve?

Question

Three businessmen walk into a hotel. The front desk tells them the cost for a room is $30.00. The men give $10.00 each and go up to their room. Several minutes later the manager comes to the front desk and tells the clerk the businessmen should only be charged $25.00. The manager gives the clerk five $1 bills and tells him to give the businessmen their change.

As the clerk is walking up to the room he realizes he can't divide $5 equally between three people. He decides to give the businessmen $1 each and keep $2 for a tip.

Each of the three businessman has now paid $9.00 ($10.00 initially and $1.00 back).

Nine dollars times three businessmen equally $27 dollars ($9.00 X 3 = $27.00). Plus the $2.00 the clerk took as a tip. ($27.00 + $2.00 = $29.00)

That's a total of $29, but the businessmen payed $30 originally.

What happened to the last dollar?

Answer 1

let's analyze:

$25 - cost of room
$9 x 3men = $27
But since the clerk kept $2 as a tip:
$27-$2 = $25

you should have subtracted the $2 from $27, not add it.

Answer 2

The problem is trying to mislead us into thinking that the amount the businessmen pay plus the the profit of the porter should equal $30. We can see the flaw in this logic if we suppose the room actually cost $0. In that case, the porter would get $27 and the businessmen would pay $27 which sum to $54 (not $30, again).

The invariant is actually the sum of what the porter gets and the amount that goes to the desk ($2 + $25) which is $27. That won't change regardless of the actual rate of the room is.

Answer 3

Wait a minute. By the end of the day, the men paid $27 (9 * 3 = 27).

The clerk took a $2.00 tip. 27-2 = $25.

There is no missing dollar.

This part of your logic is wrong :($27.00 + $2.00 = $29.00). you should have subtracted, not added.

Answer 4

Dude, your math is right, but you method is alittle wrong.
You should have subtracted $2 (the tip) from the $27 the business dudes paid. Theres no missing dollar at all.

Answer 5

I don't get it... that doesn't make any sense -your logic is wrong.

$10 + $10 +$10 = $30 - $5 =$25 + $3 = $28


Is the riddle the fact that you're trying to mislead us by telling us somethings wrong when it isn't?

Answer 6

Jim = wood worker, Astrid = Plumber, Leonard = VCR tech ( Is Astrid a woman or a guy with an extremely unusual call and what the heck does he/she have going with Jim? Who names their teenagers Astrid in any case? what number data does a plumber understand and who's that this smartass Jim?)

Answer 7

The guy who kept the money as a tip has it.

Answer 8

I love this one. I pull it on people all the time. Thankx for reminding me of it.

Answer 9

disapperated in the magic of math!