Kinesys materializes with a “plop” in the middle of a meadow of floating digits. “This is not the vacation planet,” Liz sighs, shutting down the engines. Dord steps out first and stiffens instantly: “Look at those 8s. They’re stacked crooked. Every single one. Unacceptable.”
Before them rises a gate shaped like a giant zero, guarded by a chubby Numerian who speaks only in digits. M00N buzzes around him, flashes a bright smile, and translates: “He says the gate opens only for someone who hands him the number 1,000… built out of his favorite 8s!”
The guard holds out a little bag: inside are exactly eight 8s, shiny and perfectly straight. Dord, for the first time, looks almost satisfied.
The Riddle
Use the digit 8 exactly eight times to make 1,000!
Hint
You don’t have to use the 8s one at a time: you can put them side by side to form bigger numbers. Addition is all you need.
Solution
Just combine the eight 8s like this:
888 + 88 + 8 + 8 + 8 = 1,000
Counting the digits: three 8s in 888, two in 88, and three more single 8s, for a total of eight. The Numerian guard opens the gate, and Dord allows himself a rare nod of approval.