Socio-Math Problems for San Francisco

1. Zelda and Jane were given a rottweiler at their commitment ceremony. If their dog needs to be walked two miles a day and they walk at a rate of 3/4 mile per hour, how much time will they spend discussing their relationship in public?

2. Michael has two abusive stepfathers and an alcoholic mother. If his self-esteem is reduced by 20% per dysfunctional parent, but Michael feels 3% better for every person he denigrates, how long will it take before he's ready to go home if 1 person walks by the café every 2 minutes?

3. Sanjeev has 7 piercings. If the likelihood of getting cellulitis on a given day is 10% per piercing, what is the likelihood Sanjeev will need to renew his erythromycin prescription during the next week?

4. Chad wants to take half a pound of heroin to Orinda and sell it at a 20% profit. If it originally cost him $1,500 in black market Beanie Babies, how much should he sell it for, factoring in BART fare to and from 16th & Mission?

5. The City and County of San Francisco decide to destroy 50 rats infesting downtown. If 9,800 animal rights activists hold a candlelight vigil, how many people did each dead rat empower?

6. A red sock, a yellow sock, a blue sock, and a white sock are tossed randomly in a drawer. What is the likelihood that the first two socks drawn will be socks of color?

7. George weighs 245 pounds and drinks two triple lattes every morning. If each shot of espresso contains 490mg of caffeine, what is George's average caffeine density in mg/pound?

8. There are 4500 homes in Mill Valley and all of them recycle plastic. If each household recycles 10 soda bottles a day and buys one polar fleece pullover per month, does Mill Valley have a monthly plastic surplus or deficit?

   • Bonus question: Assuming all the plastic bottles are 1 liter size, how much Evian are they drinking?

9. If the average person can eat one pork pot sticker in 30 seconds, and the waitress brings a platter of 12 pot stickers, how long will it take five vegans to not eat them?

10. Todd begins walking down Market Street with 12 $1 bills in his wallet. If he always gives panhandlers a single buck, how many legs did he have to step over if he has $3 left when he reaches the other end and met only one double-amputee?

11. Buffy and Chip own a restored Stick/Eastlake Victorian home in Noe Valley, on a 23' wide lot (10' of which is driveway) and with a garage door that is 7' tall. When they drive 3 blocks down to "New Bohemia" for caffeine, they are distressed to find that the vehicles they double-park with are larger than theirs, and they can't see over them. They buy a new SUV which is 15' long and 9' high. Calculate their combined IQ.

Advanced Placement Students Only:

12. Katie, Trip, Ling, John-John and Effie share a three-bedroom apartment on Guerrero for $2400 a month. Effie and Trip can share one bedroom, but the other three need their own rooms with separate ISDN lines to run their web servers. None of them wants to use the futon in the living room as a bed, and they each want to save $650 in three months to attend Burning Man. What is their best option?

    1. All five roommates accept a $12/hour job-share as handgun monitors at Mission High.
    2. Ask Miles, the bisexual auto mechanic, to share Effie and Trip's bedroom for $500/month.
    3. Petition the Board of Supervisors to advance Ling her annual digital-artists-of-color stipend.
    4. Rent strike.