Puzzle Nekst 2 2016-2017

There is nothing like winter. Gorgeous nature, an abundance of family holidays and plenty of time to huddle up by the fireplace and enjoy Nekst! For when the inevitable moment that you will have to get back your studies comes, Nekst even provides you with something to spark you brain back into action. Can you crack this puzzle?

An econometrics student spends his Christmas holidays high up in the mountains. Every year, he spends at least six months looking forward to a time of skiing and, naturally, après-skiing. He particularly enjoys long tours through the tiniest villages, which are only reachable by going off-piste. Normally, doing so costs almost no effort.

One fateful day, he makes a mistake, loses one of his skis and crashes into a tree. In what comes next, he hardly knows what is up and down: in a giant, ever growing snowball, he tumbles down the mountain. After what seems like a few hours later, he wakes up without any idea where he has ended up. He quickly rustles through his coat in an attempt to find the notes he made earlier.

When he finds them, the sudden flash of joy dies away quickly: the snow that ended up in his coat has blurred an essential part of his notes so much that it has become unreadable. And that is not all: looking at the numbers, they do not appear to have any structure to them whatsoever! The sequence reads:

16 06 68 88 … 98

Can you help him find the missing number? Please send your solution to Nekst@Asset-Econometrics.nl. A crate of beer or a delicious pie, whichever the winner prefers, will be waiting for whoever has sent the best (partial) solution. Please note that, as before, every recipient of this magazine is eligible to send in their solution, so members of the department are invited to participate as well Good luck!