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SPICY QUESTIONS

The Spicy Questions Competition is now over.
 

You can download all 50 questions in one file here

Question Number
Question
Spicy Rating
Video Solution
First Solved By
1
Nilo, 11 minutes
2
Damian, 8 minutes
3
Joshh, 4 minutes
4
Nilo, 8 minutes
5
Tushar, 2 minutes
6
A, Eng, 15 minutes
7
D, Chan, 2 minutes
8
A, Eng, 2 minutes
9
A, Eng, 2 minutes
10
Tinashe, 11 minutes
11
Z, Bremner, 4 minutes
12
D, Chan, 5 minutes
13
Nilo, 4 minutes
14
Nilo, 11 minutes
15
Isabelle C, 6 minutes
16
D, Chan, 4 minutes
17
D, Chan, 2 minutes
18
D, Chan, 4 minutes
19
Joshh, 5 minutes
20
Joshh, 4 minutes
21
D, Chan, 3 minutes
22
Isabelle C, 8 minutes
23
Nilo, 10 minutes
24
Nilo, 5 minutes
25
Nilo, 6 minutes
26
V, McCabe, 25 minutes
27
D, Chan, 10 minutes
28
Isabelle C, 4 minutes
29
Nilo, 7 minutes
30
S, Griffiths, 3 minutes
31
S, Griffiths, 6 minutes
32
S, Griffiths, 14 minutes
33
Isabelle C, 17 minutes
34
D, Chan, 30 minutes
35
D Chan, 11 minutes
36
D, Chan, 3 minutes
37
Nilo, 4 minutes
38
D, Chan, 21 minutes
39
Z, Bremner, 6 minutes
40
S, Griffiths, 3 minutes
41
D, Chan, 10 minutes
42
Nilo, 13 minutes
43
I, Hewitt, 8 minutes
44
Nilo, 7 minutes
45
D, Chan, 2 minutes
46
S, Griffiths, 25 minutes
47
S, Griffiths, 34 minutes
48
S, Griffiths, 25 minutes
49
S, Griffiths, 14 minutes
50
Z, Bremner, 43 minutes
#
Question
Spicy Rating
Video Solution
First Solver
1
Nilo, 11 minutes
2
Damian, 8 minutes
3
Joshh, 4 minutes
4
Nilo, 8 minutes
5
Tushar, 2 minutes
6
A, Eng, 15 minutes
7
D, Chan, 2 minutes
8
A, Eng, 2 minutes
9
A, Eng, 2 minutes
10
Tinashe, 11 minutes
11
Z, Bremner, 4 minutes
12
D, Chan, 5 minutes
13
Nilo, 4 minutes
14
Nilo, 11 minutes
15
Isabelle C, 6 minutes
16
D, Chan, 4 minutes
17
D, Chan, 2 minutes
18
D, Chan, 4 minutes
19
Joshh, 5 minutes
20
Joshh, 4 minutes
21
D, Chan, 3 minutes
22
Isabelle C, 8 minutes
23
Nilo, 10 minutes
24
Nilo, 5 minutes
25
Nilo, 6 minutes
26
V, McCabe, 25 minutes
27
D, Chan, 10 minutes
28
Isabelle C, 4 minutes
29
Nilo, 7 minutes
30
S, Griffiths, 3 minutes
31
S, Griffiths, 6 minutes
32
S, Griffiths, 14 minutes
33
Isabelle C, 17 minutes
34
D, Chan, 30 minutes
35
D Chan, 11 minutes
36
D, Chan, 3 minutes
37
Nilo, 4 minutes
38
D, Chan, 21 minutes
39
Z, Bremner, 6 minutes
40
S, Griffiths, 3 minutes
41
D, Chan, 10 minutes
42
Nilo, 13 minutes
43
I, Hewitt, 8 minutes
44
Nilo, 7 minutes
45
D, Chan, 2 minutes
46
S, Griffiths, 25 minutes
47
S, Griffiths, 34 minutes
48
S, Griffiths, 25 minutes
49
S, Griffiths, 14 minutes
50
Z, Bremner, 43 minutes
#
Question
Spicy Rating
Video Solution
First Solver
1
Nilo, 11 minutes
2
Damian, 8 minutes
3
Joshh, 4 minutes
4
Nilo, 8 minutes
5
Tushar, 2 minutes
6
A, Eng, 15 minutes
7
D, Chan, 2 minutes
8
A, Eng, 2 minutes
9
A, Eng, 2 minutes
10
Tinashe, 11 minutes
11
Z, Bremner, 4 minutes
12
D, Chan, 5 minutes
13
Nilo, 4 minutes
14
Nilo, 11 minutes
15
Isabelle C, 6 minutes
16
D, Chan, 4 minutes
17
D, Chan, 2 minutes
18
D, Chan, 4 minutes
19
Joshh, 5 minutes
20
Joshh, 4 minutes
21
D, Chan, 3 minutes
22
Isabelle C, 8 minutes
23
Nilo, 10 minutes
24
Nilo, 5 minutes
25
Nilo, 6 minutes
26
V, McCabe, 25 minutes
27
D, Chan, 10 minutes
28
Isabelle C, 4 minutes
29
Nilo, 7 minutes
30
S, Griffiths, 3 minutes
31
S, Griffiths, 6 minutes
32
S, Griffiths, 14 minutes
33
Isabelle C, 17 minutes
34
D, Chan, 30 minutes
35
D Chan, 11 minutes
36
D, Chan, 3 minutes
37
Nilo, 4 minutes
38
D, Chan, 21 minutes
39
Z, Bremner, 6 minutes
40
S, Griffiths, 3 minutes
41
D, Chan, 10 minutes
42
Nilo, 13 minutes
43
I, Hewitt, 8 minutes
44
Nilo, 7 minutes
45
D, Chan, 2 minutes
46
S, Griffiths, 25 minutes
47
S, Griffiths, 34 minutes
48
S, Griffiths, 25 minutes
49
S, Griffiths, 14 minutes
50
Z, Bremner, 43 minutes

FINAL LEADERBOARD

#
Name
% Correct
Top 5s
Points
1
Nilo
94
28
257
2
D, Chan
76
30
238
3
S, Griffiths
92
29
233
4
Z, Bremner
78
21
178
5
V, McCabe
92
16
174
6
R, Fernando
90
14
171
7
Isabelle C
64
17
143
8
Chris 8
88
2
138
9
Tinashe
72
8
126
10
W, Anittellor
86
0
125
11
Cambria French
70
7
122
12
A, Lee
76
0
115
13
Z, Smyth
70
2
109
14
J, Wong
72
1
103
15
H, Thomas
50
9
89
16
A, Mamatzakis
62
0
88
17
Sai
48
13
86
18
T Thayaparan  
62
2
83
19
S, Bowring
48
5
81
19
B, Li
54
0
81
21
A, Gonsalves
52
3
79
22
I, Hewitt
42
8
70
23
Joshh
28
3
49
23
S, Samad
36
0
49
25
M, Ibraheem Diab
38
0
48
26
E, Gledhill
36
0
46
26
Meetraa
36
0
46
28
J, Akinrin
32
1
45
29
A, Gledhill
34
0
43
29
J, Yoo
40
0
43
31
A, Eng
20
5
41
31
Ebonie Totty
30
3
41
33
B, Ingleton
30
0
39
34
P, Zabinski
22
4
38
35
C, Munzer
26
0
35
36
A, Twite
22
2
33
37
N, Tatkowski
20
3
27
38
Aca Williams
22
1
26
39
R, Shah
22
0
24
39
E, Cho
24
0
24
39
Elena A
20
1
24
42
Yahia HL
18
0
22
42
N, Ahmed
20
0
22
44
E, Conway
16
0
19
44
Tushar
12
2
19
46
P, David
14
0
17
47
Panagiotis
14
0
16
47
SanJay
16
0
16
47
A, Gala
18
0
16
47
N, Armstrong
14
0
16
51
F, Kennedy
14
1
15
52
C, Robertson
10
0
14
53
A, Overy
10
0
13
53
S, Merlini
8
0
13
55
C, Wallace
10
1
12
55
K, Jang
10
0
12
55
Matthew M
12
0
12
55
J, Bafna
6
2
12
55
A, Challinor
12
0
12
60
A, Lalli
10
0
11
60
Suki
12
0
11
60
B, Kim
12
0
11
60
Molly Way
10
0
11
64
I, Millington
6
1
10
64
Z, Hayes
10
0
10
64
H, More
10
0
10
64
J, Lewis
10
0
10
68
T, Liu
10
0
9
68
Damian
4
1
9
70
A, Gould
8
0
8
70
J, Highland
6
0
8
70
Aaron B
6
0
8
70
egamorf
8
0
8
70
C, Kim
8
0
8
70
R, Whelehan
8
0
8
76
Snah
6
0
7
76
L, Tyas
8
0
7
76
J, Zhong
4
0
7
76
F, Zulfikar
6
0
7
80
B, Carter
4
1
6
80
S, Adedayo
8
0
6
80
Adam W
4
0
6
80
Anavi Pawar
6
0
6
84
K, Aggarwal
4
0
5
84
A, Gjongecaj
4
0
5
84
B, Middlemiss
4
0
5
84
D, Voung
4
0
5
84
Sofia P
6
0
5
84
C, Chan
6
0
5
84
I, Han
6
0
5
84
A, Bates
4
0
5
84
W, Hollick
4
0
5
84
L, Purvis
6
0
5
84
E, Hamnett
4
0
5
95
Y, Kotakadi
4
0
4
95
L, Poutney
4
0
4
95
R, Sundaram
4
0
4
95
M, Cluett
4
0
4
95
Aarit B
6
0
4
95
N, Arora
4
0
4
95
M, Goulbourne
4
0
4
95
Sekou Kaba
4
0
4
103
O, Robinson
2
0
3
103
Sierra
2
0
3
103
T, Booth
2
0
3
103
T, Michael-Mason
2
0
3
103
praniti
4
0
3
103
H, Chohan
4
0
3
103
A, Reginold
4
0
3
110
J, Thomas
2
0
2
110
Dinuli
2
0
2
110
D, Gursahaney
2
0
2
110
A, Smith
2
0
2
110
M, Chaytor Wilson
2
0
2
110
D, Short
2
0
2
110
Baecon Master
2
0
2
110
Ananya G
2
0
2
110
R, Sharma
2
0
2
110
C, Lam
2
0
2
110
Cuggs
2
0
2
110
L, Doughty
2
0
2
110
Jaewook Kim 
2
0
2
110
J, Kebede
2
0
2
110
R, Kumar
2
0
2
110
William Choi
2
0
2
110
N, Nowaczyk
2
0
2
110
L, Hilton
2
0
2
110
D, Mistry
2
0
2
110
A, Cook
2
0
2
110
F, Mahmud
2
0
2
110
J, Kobayashi
2
0
2
110
L, Thorn
2
0
2
110
M, MacDonald
2
0
2
110
L, Bela
2
0
2
110
V, Patel
2
0
2
110
M, Feely
2
0
2
137
W, Iqbal
2
0
1
137
Ava, T
2
0
1
137
A, Ene
2
0
1
137
S, Butt
2
0
1
137
A, Prinstan
2
0
1
137
S, Lister
2
0
1
137
G, Kenechukwu
2
0
1
137
Alex H-B
2
0
1

FINAL LEADERBOARD

#
Name
% Correct
Top 5s
Points
1
Nilo
94
28
257
2
D, Chan
76
30
238
3
S, Griffiths
92
29
233
4
Z, Bremner
78
21
178
5
V, McCabe
92
16
174
6
R, Fernando
90
14
171
7
Isabelle C
64
17
143
8
Chris 8
88
2
138
9
Tinashe
72
8
126
10
W, Anittellor
86
0
125
11
Cambria French
70
7
122
12
A, Lee
76
0
115
13
Z, Smyth
70
2
109
14
J, Wong
72
1
103
15
H, Thomas
50
9
89
16
A, Mamatzakis
62
0
88
17
Sai
48
13
86
18
T Thayaparan  
62
2
83
19
S, Bowring
48
5
81
19
B, Li
54
0
81
21
A, Gonsalves
52
3
79
22
I, Hewitt
42
8
70
23
Joshh
28
3
49
23
S, Samad
36
0
49
25
M, Ibraheem Diab
38
0
48
26
E, Gledhill
36
0
46
26
Meetraa
36
0
46
28
J, Akinrin
32
1
45
29
A, Gledhill
34
0
43
29
J, Yoo
40
0
43
31
A, Eng
20
5
41
31
Ebonie Totty
30
3
41
33
B, Ingleton
30
0
39
34
P, Zabinski
22
4
38
35
C, Munzer
26
0
35
36
A, Twite
22
2
33
37
N, Tatkowski
20
3
27
38
Aca Williams
22
1
26
39
R, Shah
22
0
24
39
E, Cho
24
0
24
39
Elena A
20
1
24
42
Yahia HL
18
0
22
42
N, Ahmed
20
0
22
44
E, Conway
16
0
19
44
Tushar
12
2
19
46
P, David
14
0
17
47
Panagiotis
14
0
16
47
SanJay
16
0
16
47
A, Gala
18
0
16
47
N, Armstrong
14
0
16
51
F, Kennedy
14
1
15
52
C, Robertson
10
0
14
53
A, Overy
10
0
13
53
S, Merlini
8
0
13
55
C, Wallace
10
1
12
55
K, Jang
10
0
12
55
Matthew M
12
0
12
55
J, Bafna
6
2
12
55
A, Challinor
12
0
12
60
A, Lalli
10
0
11
60
Suki
12
0
11
60
B, Kim
12
0
11
60
Molly Way
10
0
11
64
I, Millington
6
1
10
64
Z, Hayes
10
0
10
64
H, More
10
0
10
64
J, Lewis
10
0
10
68
T, Liu
10
0
9
68
Damian
4
1
9
70
A, Gould
8
0
8
70
J, Highland
6
0
8
70
Aaron B
6
0
8
70
egamorf
8
0
8
70
C, Kim
8
0
8
70
R, Whelehan
8
0
8
76
Snah
6
0
7
76
L, Tyas
8
0
7
76
J, Zhong
4
0
7
76
F, Zulfikar
6
0
7
80
B, Carter
4
1
6
80
S, Adedayo
8
0
6
80
Adam W
4
0
6
80
Anavi Pawar
6
0
6
84
K, Aggarwal
4
0
5
84
A, Gjongecaj
4
0
5
84
B, Middlemiss
4
0
5
84
D, Voung
4
0
5
84
Sofia P
6
0
5
84
C, Chan
6
0
5
84
I, Han
6
0
5
84
A, Bates
4
0
5
84
W, Hollick
4
0
5
84
L, Purvis
6
0
5
84
E, Hamnett
4
0
5
95
Y, Kotakadi
4
0
4
95
L, Poutney
4
0
4
95
R, Sundaram
4
0
4
95
M, Cluett
4
0
4
95
Aarit B
6
0
4
95
N, Arora
4
0
4
95
M, Goulbourne
4
0
4
95
Sekou Kaba
4
0
4
103
O, Robinson
2
0
3
103
Sierra
2
0
3
103
T, Booth
2
0
3
103
T, Michael-Mason
2
0
3
103
praniti
4
0
3
103
H, Chohan
4
0
3
103
A, Reginold
4
0
3
110
J, Thomas
2
0
2
110
Dinuli
2
0
2
110
D, Gursahaney
2
0
2
110
A, Smith
2
0
2
110
M, Chaytor Wilson
2
0
2
110
D, Short
2
0
2
110
Baecon Master
2
0
2
110
Ananya G
2
0
2
110
R, Sharma
2
0
2
110
C, Lam
2
0
2
110
Cuggs
2
0
2
110
L, Doughty
2
0
2
110
Jaewook Kim 
2
0
2
110
J, Kebede
2
0
2
110
R, Kumar
2
0
2
110
William Choi
2
0
2
110
N, Nowaczyk
2
0
2
110
L, Hilton
2
0
2
110
D, Mistry
2
0
2
110
A, Cook
2
0
2
110
F, Mahmud
2
0
2
110
J, Kobayashi
2
0
2
110
L, Thorn
2
0
2
110
M, MacDonald
2
0
2
110
L, Bela
2
0
2
110
V, Patel
2
0
2
110
M, Feely
2
0
2
137
W, Iqbal
2
0
1
137
Ava, T
2
0
1
137
A, Ene
2
0
1
137
S, Butt
2
0
1
137
A, Prinstan
2
0
1
137
S, Lister
2
0
1
137
G, Kenechukwu
2
0
1
137
Alex H-B
2
0
1

Terms and Conditions

By submitting solutions to questions via email entrants agree to all of the following terms

​

  • The competition is open to people aged 18 or below who are studying in secondary education in the United Kingdom. Prize winners will need to demonstrate that they meet this criteria.

  • The competition will start with the first question being posted on this page on 9/1/23.

  • The final question will be posted on this page on 27/2/23.

  • The competition will conclude on 28/2/23 after the submission deadline for the final question.

  • Questions will typically be posted at 7pm GMT but this may vary.

  • Entrants will have 24 hours from the time the question is posted to email a solution to the address at the bottom of this page. Solutions submitted after this time will not be counted.

  • Sometimes a text based solution will be fine, but in others you may prefer to attach an image of working and/or diagrams.

  • Where a question states that a calculator is not allowed a solution must clearly show a non-calculator method.

  • All solutions must show sufficient working out, the answer alone is not sufficient.

  • Each entrant will only have one submission per question. Subsequent submissions will not count.

  • Submissions will not receive a reply confirming if they are correct or not.

  • Entries are by individuals but the rules do permit requesting assistance from others, including those over the age of 18. In good spirit of the competition entrants are still required to solve the problem themselves and understand the solution. Where the organiser believes there is good reason that an entrant does not understand the solutions they are submitting or believes the entrant does not meet the entry criteria they reserve the right to reject entries.

  • Each question has a spicy rating from 1-5.

  • Correct submissions within the deadline will receive points equal to the spicy rating of the question.

  • The first 5 correct submissions will receive bonus points starting with 5pts for 1st, 4pts for 2nd, 3pts for 3rd, 2pts for 4th and 1pt for 5th.

  • After each deadline the leaderboard will be updated to reflect current standings. Updates will not be immediately after the deadline and could take several hours or even days depending on the volume of submissions. If the number of entries is particularly high the leaderboard will be limited and not show all entrants. Scores will still count not all will be shown.

  • The leaderboard will display the entrant's first name and first initial of surname only. Entrants can  request that an alias be displayed instead of their name. The organiser reserves the right to refuse to post an alias that they deem unsavoury. Entrants should make clear the alias they wish to be displayed when they submit their solution.

  • The first entrant to solve each question will have their name and time to submit displayed next to that question on the main table of questions. Entrants can request to have an alias displayed here, as with the leaderboard.

  • Prizes will be awarded to the three entrants at the top of the leaderboard after the competition has ended. 1st place will receive a £50 Amazon voucher, 2nd place will receive a £30 Amazon voucher and 3rd place will receive a £20 Amazon voucher.

  • In the event of tie the winner will be decided by the entrant who has most bonus points. In the event of a tie on bonus points a further tie break question will be set.

  • A separate prize of a £50 Amazon voucher will be awarded in a raffle. Each correct submission before the daily deadline will earn the entrant 1 raffle entry up to a maximum of 100 raffle entries for submitting correct answers to all solutions before the respective deadlines.

  • The raffle draw will take place within 7 days of the close of the competition. The winner will be displayed on this page and contacted via email.

  • The organiser reserves the right to void or replace questions that are ambiguous, contain errors (typographical or mathematical) or are impossible.

  • The organiser's decision is final.

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