Use phone keypad for December Math Mania

Most kids like to talk on the phone. So, the creator of Math Mania decided to use the phone keypad to set up seven December puzzlers.

The creator of Math Mania is Ms. Amy Ruzicka, a math teacher at St. Gabriel's School in south St. Louis City.

During this second year of Math Mania on Young Saint Louis.com, Ms. Ruzicka has been using a lot of different formats for her puzzles. This month, she's designed a unique "secret code" using the numbers and the letters on the phone keypad.

She wants you to discover the words-which all deal with measurements-that can be decoded from a list of numbers.

Let's see how you do with this different type of math puzzle. And, if you have friends who haven't entered the Math Mania as yet, why don't you invite them to enter. Maybe they'd like to have a little fun with math too.

(If you want to find out the answers to the November Math Mania puzzles, click here.)

Rules for this month's Math Mania are the same. Each month, the contest calls for you to give answers to brainteasers based on numbers and math.

Then, you submit your answers, using the form which is attached to the questions. If you answer all the questions correctly, you'll have a chance to win a Borders book certificate.

We'll award 2 or 3 $10 book certificates each month, if there are enough winners.

Follow contest instructions and fill out the entry form carefully and legibly so, if you're a winner, we can send your prize to the right address.

1. Print out the following entry form.
2. Fill out your name, address and telephone number. (Please print).
3. Give your answers to the seven December Math Mania questions.
4. Put your completed entry into a stamped, addressed envelope.
5. Mail your entry to:

In telephone code puzzles, the code printed on the buttons of a phone is used to substitute numbers for letters.

A dentist might advertise her phone number as 55-BRUSH (552-7874). If you push the button labeled with the letter "B", you get the number "2." If you push the button labeled with the letter "R," you get the number "7," and so on.

These puzzles do the opposite, giving you the numbers and having you figure out what the letters must be. Since each number could be any of three letters, it is going to be tricky to decipher these codes! The task has been made a little bit easier, though, because all of the secret words have to do with measurement.

Examples:

A. 4624 Answer: INCH

B. 2732 Answer: AREA

C. 54837 Answer: LITER

1. 9273         Answer: ______________________

2. 63837       Answer: ______________________

3. 72253       Answer: ______________________

4. 638742     Answer: ______________________

5. 536484     Answer: ______________________

6. 934448     Answer: ______________________

7. 865863     Answer: ______________________