MathDB
4 colors in grid

Source: Argentina 2007 OMA L3 p2

May 12, 2024
combinatoricsColoringcombinatorial geometry

Problem Statement

The pieces in a game are squares of side 11 with their sides colored with 44 colors: blue, red, yellow and green, so that each piece has one side of each color. There are pieces in every possible color arrangement, and the game has a million pieces of each kind. With the pieces, rectangular puzzles are assembled, without gaps or overlaps, so that two pieces that share a side have that side of the same color. Determine if with this procedure you can make a rectangle of 99×200799\times 2007 with one side of each color. And 100×2008100\times 2008? And 99×200899\times 2008?