To my knowledge, Michael and Tyler were the first to accept the challenge of finding the Size 3 Sphinx (if it existed). Their story is one of determination and shines as a beacon for Aboriginal people as an example of the quality of the work their children can do. You can read about their story here.
Their solution is:
At the '98 Easter Conference of the Association of Teachers of Mathematics, John, along with others in a workshop on Tasks, Technology and Problem Solving, became engaged with this sphinx problem. The problem stayed with him and I stayed in his village for a few days break over Easter. Far too early one morning a few days later John knocked on the door with this solution:
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 John's original hand drawn solution. |
I was staying with the Anderton family when John delivered his solution. His visit caused daughter Louise to ask what the problem was all about. Perhaps she was a little stunned that anyone would want to work on maths puzzles in their Easter holiday. Soon she was also engaged and after working with the puzzle on and off for a couple of days she produced this solution:
Sarah attends Thorne Grammar School, near Doncaster, England. The Patterns & Powers lesson linked below was photographed at Thorne and it seems to have stimulated considerable interest. Sarah, a Year 8 student at the time, set about studying the Size 3 Sphinx. She found the three solutions above and also discovered this fourth solution:
At almost the same time, Sarah's new solution was confirmed by Johan Öberg, a university student from Malmö, Sweden.