In a puzzling 1% Club question that’s left Brits scratching their heads.
The question that has left people stumped is: In a room of 100 people, 99% are left-handed. How many left-handed people have to leave the room to bring the percentage back to 98%? It might sound straightforward at first, but when you crunch the numbers, things quickly get more complicated than you’d expect.
At the start, we know that 99% of the 100 people in the room are left-handed. That means 99 out of the 100 people are lefties, and only 1 person is right-handed. The question asks how many left-handed people need to leave the room for the percentage of left-handed people to drop to 98%.
Comments on 1percentclubitv TikTon were full of disagreement. One person said, “It’s 50, how is this so hard for people?” while another remarked, “How did everyone get 50? I got 1.” A third chimed in, “I got 1 too, not 50!”
Let’s break it down to solve the question. If one left-handed person leaves, the total number of people in the room drops to 99, and the number of left-handed people becomes 98. This means that, after one person leaves, 98 out of the remaining 99 people are left-handed. But that’s only 98.99% – still not quite 98%.
To bring the percentage down exactly to 98%, we need to keep adjusting the numbers. After doing the math, it turns out that in order to achieve exactly 98%, 50 left-handed people would need to leave the room. This leaves 49 left-handed people and 50 right-handed people, making the total number of people in the room 99. That means 49 left-handed people out of 99 is exactly 98%, and the percentage is right where it needs to be.
It might seem a little counterintuitive at first – you’d expect a larger proportion of the group to leave, but once you consider how the math works, it all adds up. The question might be a bit of a brain teaser, but it’s a fun example of how sometimes things aren’t as straightforward as they seem.
Brainteasers and tricky maths questions like this are fantastic for keeping your brain sharp. They encourage critical thinking, improve problem-solving skills, and help develop a deeper understanding of numbers and logic. Regularly challenging yourself with puzzles can enhance mental agility, boost memory, and even improve concentration all while offering a fun and rewarding sense of accomplishment.
So, next time you find yourself facing a tricky question like this, don’t forget to think carefully and take your time. The answer is logical even if the wording is tricky.
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