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A generalisation of the postage stamps problem

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2016

Max Planitz
Max Planitz*
Affiliation:
Section of Mathematics and Numerical Modelling, Thames Polytechnic, London SE18 6PF
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Extract

In his recent note “On buying postage stamps” in the June 1987 Gazette, John Gilder discusses the solution in integers of the equation

12x + 17y =100z,

where x is the number of second class stamps (at the old rate of 12p), y the number of first class stamps (at 17p), and z the total cost in pounds. A simple algorithm, which can also be applied to equations involving three or more independent variables, is obtained from the following result.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Mathematical Gazette , Volume 73 , Issue 463 , March 1989 , pp. 21 - 25
Copyright
Copyright © The Mathematical Association 1989

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References

1. Gelfond, A.O., The solution of equations in integers, Noordhoff, P. (1960).Google Scholar
2. Gilder, John, On buying postage stamps, Math. Gaz. 71, 110–112 (1987).Google Scholar
3. Papadimitriou, C.H. and Steiglitz, K., Combinatorial optimisation, Prentice-Hall (1982).Google Scholar