You are a biochemist, working with a 12-slot centrifuge. This is a gadget that has 12 equally spaced slots around a central axis, in which you can place chemical samples you want separated. The slots on the centrifuge are numbered 1 through 12 clockwise (and clock-like).

           12  1
        11        2

      10            3
             °
       9            4

         8        5
            7  6

When the machine is turned on, the samples whirl around the central axis and do their thing. To ensure that the centrifuge runs smoothly, the samples must be distributed in the 12 slots such that it is balanced evenly.

Can you use the centrifuge to run 5 samples?

For example, if you have four samples, they may be placed in slots 1, 4, 7, and 10 to balance the centrifuge.

Why bother then with the water in the case of 5 or 7 samples?. It takes extra time to prepare the water sample with the correct mass.

Sounds to me like they are not that smart after all...

Next time I get a medical bill with lab charges, I'll demand not to pay for the time it took the bioquemist to prepare unnecessary watter samples.

If they get paid about $40/hour and it takes a couple minutes to handle the watter sample, I should save enough money to get a burger at the local fast food joint.

Posted by ajosin on 2005-04-14 14:20:21