It's another Word Problem Wednesday! In February, we're all about celebrating the beauty of math in all its forms... one of which is the geometric art of origami. Give our origami-themed word problem a try; we'll update with the answer tomorrow!
Five people sit down for a fancy dinner. Each of their napkins is folded into a different origami animal—a swan, a frog, a rabbit, a fish, a pig, or a turtle. The person at the head of the table always gets the rabbit. How many different ways can the napkins be arranged around the table?
Update: Here's the solution!
Because the rabbit must be at the head of the table, we only need to find the number of possible animals for the other 4 place settings. There are 5 options for the first place setting’s animal, followed by 4 remaining options for the next place setting, 3 for the third place setting, and 2 for the fourth. To find the number of possible combinations, we multiply the number of possibilities for each place setting together. So, there are 5 × 4 × 3 × 2 = 120 possible arrangements.
