The 7 4" Night (the Next Morning) The lost chapter by Elise Tomaszewski and Madison Werthmann Robert woke up on the morning after the 7" night with a terrible headache and a body- wracking cough. He still wanted to go to school ~ although he would never admit it, the Number Devil had given him a certain passion for learning, and Robert took in everything his teachers said somewhat greedily ~ but when his mom saw him stumble into the kitchen on his way out of the door, she sent him straight back to bed with a stern point of her finger towards his bedroom. When he tried to argue that he was okay and could make it to school, she placed her hands on her hips and tapped her foot, narrowing her eyes at him in that concerned, challenging way that only a mother could master. With a sigh and a few more insistent prods from the terrifying woman, Robert marched back to bed and plopped down. Only a few seconds passed by — or so he thought — before Robert found himself in a long hallway with a barely suppressed groan of annoyance. The corridor seemed to go on forever, longer than Robert's eye could see, and farther than he could walk. Or so he found after almost an hour of walking and getting nowhere. b--~ 0 He began to wonder, when the Number Devil didn't show up for that long period of time, whether or not this was a Number-induced dream or not. Perhaps this was a nightms alkingforever and getting nowhere, that is. But after a few more minutes, he heard a crash, followed by more crashes, and suddenly it felt like the walls were falling down around him. But they weren't. His wide eyes scanned the lavender walls as the large, golden-framed portraits lining the walls like soldiers ready for battle fell from their hooks and to the floor with an earth-quaking slam. He covered his ears and ducked for cover in the center of the hallway, only to be pulled to his feet by a familiar red figure. Immediately, Robert's fear turned to an indignant anger, and his arms crossed over his chest as a huff escaped his nostrils. "Why the sour look, Apprentice?” the Number Devil cackled, waving his cane. Another ‘wave of pictures fell to the ground. Robert noticed with a sort of detached interest that the images were of many people from many cultures, mostly male, some female, all with a sort of sullen look on their face. He then turned his attention back to the Number Devil and huffed once more. "You've kept me waiting here for an hour, only to startle me by your rather unconventional redecoration methods,” he retorted sarcastically, waving a hand towards the frames where they rested, leaning against the walls from their new homes on the floor. ‘The Number Devil cast him a wicked grin, but simply shrugged. "I have not kept you waiting an hour; it has been only five minutes since you have fallen asleep. But an idle minddoes seem to find time passing by exponentially slower, that is true." A pause, then the Devil continued. "Anyhow, my ‘rather unconventional redecoration methods’, as you so eloquently phrased it, were actually a part of your next lesson. "You do recall the triangle, correct Robert? Pascal's Triangle? You remember how we used it to solve for the number of possible combinations under various conditions?" "Yeah. The row number represented the number of possible choices and the number of numbers you moved to the right represented the number of selections made from your various choices. Whatever number you landed on would then be the number of possible combinations." ‘The Number Devil's eyes shone excitedly, and if Robert wasn't mistaken, he was almost sure he had seen pride there, too. "Precisely, Robert.” "So what does this have to do with anything?” Robert asked hesitantly. His hesitance was not for fear of angering the Devil, but more for not wanting to have to deal with the Devil in one of his moods. Of course, he still managed to infuriate the small red Devil. He seemed to grow in size exponentially, his face growing redder. "What does it have to do with anything?" the Devil asked incredulously. "I thought I taught you not to write off mathematics so simply! As if this was the subject of the weather or something of even less importance. Now math, math is the basis of everything-" Before he could go any further into his favorite topic of discussion, Robert cut him off with the raising of his right hand. "Now, Number Devil, you know I didn't mean it like that. I meant how do the combinations pertain to whatever we're learning this morning’ The Devil calmed immediately, shrinking back to his normal size. The excited glint was back in his eyes, and his smirk was in place. "Well, Robert, I am very pleased you asked." Hewaved his hand, and many of the picture frames vanished, leaving only ten of them leaning against the wall. He walked over to stand in front of them, and Robert didn't have much choice but to follow him. "Who are these people?” =e "Famous mathematicians: Fibonacci, Descartes, and Pascal included. I want to hang four of them up, and I want to know how many possible ways I can do e e . ° Robert snorted, rolling his eyes. "Are you losing your touch, Devil? We just discussed this. We would use the Triangle. There are ten pictures, so you'd go the tenth row, and then over to the fifth number (since the zero place is the first number of the row) ~ this gives you 10 choose 4. That's how many combinations you would have.” ‘The Devil chuckled, and Robert was immediately apprehensive. "Very good thought, but incorrect. This would be assuming that I could use the same four pictures in any order. According to your method, I could hang them up in this order-" he flicked his cane, and the first four portraits flew onto four bare hooks on the wall, "- or this order." He snapped his fingers, and the same four pictures spun around until they were in a different order. "Or even this order." Again, they flew in circles until landing soundly on the wall, opposite of how they were hanging before. "In this case, this would all count aS one combination. But how many different ways werethere to hang up those four pictures? And what if we switched them out with other pictures from the selection of ten? Then how many possibilities are there?" Robert's head was beginning to spin just thinking about it. "I don't know,” he conceded grumpily, and instead of getting mad, the Devil grinned like he knew that's what Robert would say. "I didn't think you would, my apprentice. That is why I chose to teach you what are called permutations. They’re like combinations, but the order matters.” The four frames hanging on the wall fell gently to the floor with the flick of the Devil's ccane, and he tapped a finger to his chin. With another flick of his cane, a bright red calculator the size of one of the picture frames appeared, “Tassumed you still would forget to bring your calculator in your dreams,” the Devil told Robert in a manner that was not condescending, but amused. Robert sheepishly looked down at the ground beneath his feet. “Never fear; just as mathematics will always be on your side, so will 1. Now, back to the picture frames. As I was saying, we want only four frames on this wall but ‘we have ten frames to choose from. Not only that, but the order of these frames matters too. Let’s stick with just four photos and their order. Remember how your fellow classmates were fighting over the placement of their seats?” Robert’s head swam at the memory of his classmates, and he felt the headache from that morning return, “Yes, I remember. There were four people that each wanted a seat and the order of who sat where was quite the dilemma, so we used 4 ‘vroom’ to find the total number of possibilities. That meant 1 x 2 x 3 x 4, which ended up giving us 24 possible combinations,” Robert answered confidently.‘The Number Devil was pleased with Robert's response. “So it seems you have retained some of my information after all! Now I'll show you where the magic happens.” He took his cane and elegantly wrote ‘nPr’ in the air. Robert was puzzled but was used to how the Number Devil worked. “This will help solve your headaches, Robert. To remember this,” he pointed to the letters, “read it as ‘n pick r°. This is where ‘n’ is the total number of objects that can be ‘chosen from, while ‘r’ is the amount of objects you want. “P” shows that this is for permutations and that the order matters. Can you fill in‘n’ and ‘r’ based off of our situation?” Robert mused over the question but quickly replaced the ‘n’ with 10 and ‘r° with 4. For emphasis he stated, “There are 10 total pictures but we only want to pick four.” “Exactly! But just like with most topics in math, there are several ways to complete one task, Here is where the vroom numbers come into action.” In an instant, an equation appeared next to the original figure. “The numerator is the vroom number of total possible objects. The denominator is the total number of possible objects to choose from minus the desired number of objects, and that quantity is a vroom number also. Try to plug the numbers into this equation.” Robert complied and the equation looked like: 1 10P4 = “Excellent. Now would I be wrong in saying this was equivalent?” The Devil brought up his cane and wrote across the lavender walll in dark red chalk: 10x9x8x7x6x5x4xX3x2K1 art 6x5x4x3x2x1Robert quizzically looked at what the Number Devil had written, and after a few ‘moments he nodded his head in agreement. The Devil was satisfied and continued, “Of course this can be simplified to get...” 10P4 =10x9x8x7 10P4 = 5040 ‘The apprentice’s eyes lit up as realization struck him. “That means there are 5,040 possible ways to hang 4 picture frames from 10 choices! So if | wanted 7 photos on the wall and I could choose from all ten it would be ten pick seven.” Robert greedily clutched the calculator for a moment and then shouted, “I would have 604,800 different ways to hang 7 photos!” The Number Devil smiled a toothy grin and clapped his hands together in excitement. “You are a sharp one, Robert. Presumably the brightest apprentice I have ever had, and without question the most improved.” Robert beamed happily, but his excitement was short-lived. The Number Devil had other things on his mind. low, I want to hang six of these ten pictures in the hall. However, I want Pythagoras and Archimedes to be positioned at either end of the row. Now, how many possible ways can I hang six pictures on this wall?” Robert thought for a moment before typing out 10P6 on the calculator before him. Ere he could hit the ‘Enter’ key, however, the calculator disappeared, and he huffed and narrowed his eyes at the Number Devil “What'd you do that for?” Robert asked, his tone displaying his annoyance. The Devil arinned.“Well, you were going about the problem all wrong, Apprentice. I realized perhaps I should teach you the method, first, and then you can determine the input on your calculator yourself.” With a flick of his cane that Robert now recognized as such a Number Devil-y sort of mannerism, six picture frames flew to the wall. Robert noted that Pythagoras was on the left of the row of portraits, and Archimedes was on the right. The rest of the frames were indistinguishable figures who Robert did not know. “Alright Robert. Now here we see one possible permutation. Remember, Medes and Pythag ~ that's what we call them back in Number Heaven (they're real party animals when they leave their rooms) — will remain no matter what combination of frames we have between them.” With that being said, he began switching the images between Archimedes and Pythagoras rapidly, and Robert watched with wide eyes as they flew through the air and switched with the frames on the ground and played a game of musical chairs of sorts before finally a realization struck him and he cried out, “Eureka!” ‘The Number Devil looked pleased. “Ah, yes. I remember the day Medes discovered density. He always was a boisterous fellow—" he was cut off by Robert's smothering glare. “Devil, I've figured it out,” Robert said with an air of confident finality, his hands folded over his chest and his nose in the air.“Well, you were going about the problem all wrong, Apprentice. I realized perhaps I should teach you the method, first, and then you can determine the input on your calculator yourself.” With a flick of his cane that Robert now recognized as such a Number Devil-y sort of mannerism, six picture frames flew to the wall. Robert noted that Pythagoras was on the left of the row of portraits, and Archimedes was on the right. The rest of the frames were indistinguishable figures who Robert did not know. “Alright Robert. Now here we see one possible permutation. Remember, Medes and Pythag ~ that's what we call them back in Number Heaven (they're real party animals when they leave their rooms) — will remain no matter what combination of frames we have between them.” With that being said, he began switching the images between Archimedes and Pythagoras rapidly, and Robert watched with wide eyes as they flew through the air and switched with the frames on the ground and played a game of musical chairs of sorts before finally a realization struck him and he cried out, “Eureka!” ‘The Number Devil looked pleased. “Ah, yes. I remember the day Medes discovered density. He always was a boisterous fellow—" he was cut off by Robert's smothering glare. “Devil, I've figured it out,” Robert said with an air of confident finality, his hands folded over his chest and his nose in the air.“Yes, Apprentice?” “Because those two always remain, they don’t count towards the value of choices made, so the expression wouldn’t be 10P6, it would be 84,” he said proudly, fighting the urge to stick his tongue out. The Devil was grinning, and after a long time of staring at that grin, Robert felt a bit unsure of himself. “Devil..?” “You are on the right track, Robert. But let me give you a hint.” And with a snap of his nimble red fingers, Archimedes and Pythagoras went flying off of their hooks, nearly colliding in midair as they switched places so that Archimedes was on the left and Pythagoras was on the right. “Now how would you account for this version of the combinations?” Robert grumbled thoughtfully, narrowing his eyes as he examined the scene before him. ‘Then his eyes widened again and he snapped his fingers. “The permutations between the two images would remain the same: the only thing that’s changing are the two possible combinations of pictures on the outside. So we would multiply the ‘number of permutations from the four middle images by 2 — one set to account for Pythag being on the left, and one for him being on the right, so to speak.” This time the Number Devil looked positively thrilled, and Robert knew he had it right. “Alright Robert, you've made it through this lesson. I am going to see how much you've earned before I depart.” He handed Robert the cane, which he tumed over in his hands, ‘mesmerized. He almost never got to handle the cane. “But first, can you write out the equation from the last problem?” Robert thought for a moment and quickly wrote out the equation he knew was correct. 2«nPr = 2+ (8P4) = 3360‘The apprentice stood by his equation, his posture indicating how boastful he felt. The Number Devil fueled Robert’s pride by clapping excessively. He acquired his cane once more and with a swish of his wrist, the frames disappeared altogether. “Now, one more example to give you a litle taste of permutations in real-life situations.” He grinned and snapped his fingers, and then Robert’s worst nightmare came true. Standing around him were 50 Number Devils, circling them at an uncomfortably small radius. They all looked similar to his Devil, although he was able to tell the difference due to his familiarity. He grimaced, inching closer to his Devil to avoid the smirks of the Devils surrounding them. the Devil began talking over him. “My Number Devil associates are all competing for best Devil award, where an award is given for first, second, and third place. First place gets to discuss their theories with the great mathematician, Zeno, second place has a new theorem named after them, and third place gets a 10brand new calculator. Of these 50 Devils, can you tell me how many possible combinations are possible for first, second, and third place?” “Well,” Robert began, with a contemplative tap of his chin, “obviously, order matters, so we're dealing with permutations. None of the numbers can repeat, either, because the same Devil cannot have first and second place. So you would have 50 possibilities for the first place winner, 49 for the second, and 48 for the third place winner. Or, 3 Devils chosen from 50 Devils: 50P3 ut ~ 60-3)! . SOP: 117,600 “So that means there are 117,600 po: le combinations of first, second, and third place Devils!” Robert exclaimed. The Devils surrounding him all cheered, their clapping thunderous in the small corridor. The dim lighting and lavender walls surrounding the 50 Devils and Robert felt closed in, but Robert did not fee! trapped. Instead, he felt surprisingly happy about the praise of all of the Devils around him. His Devil looked especially pleased. “I am very pleased with you, Robert. You are showing much improvement. I must go now and discuss the latest perplexing issues with my fellow Devils. Rest up, Apprentice, for I know you are not feeling well, and you will want to be attentive for my next lesson.” ‘And with that, the Devil and his friends took their leave, disappearing between one blink and the next, Robert sank to the ground and laid down on the plush carpeting, staring at the wall as everything slowly faded out and Robert fell into a dreamless rest. 1