Pascal's Papers - a Binomial Triangle Game and Puzzle

Put together this puzzle of hexagonal tiles using simple addition to create a beautiful triangle of numbers studied for thousands of years in many cultures. Once assembled, the puzzle becomes a game board for two games and countless activities you can do with this powerful binomial triangle of numbers.

Pascal's Papers is a game where a team of museum curators races a ring of thieves for control of Pascal's remaining mathematical papers. If they can collect all the artifacts the world over for their show on the famous triangle before the thieves can steal the papers, we all win! Better yet, catch the thief red handed to instantly win the game.

Pattern Hangman is a different game, where one player thinks of and writes down a pattern, say, multiples of seven or three. The other player guesses numbers, which are flipped over to reveal the darker color on the other side if the guess is correct, or covered with a blank tile if the guess was wrong. Can you guess the pattern before your blank hexagons run out?

There are books and websites galore with activities you can do with this triangle of numbers. Just look up "Pascal's Triangle", although it is called other names in other countries, for an idea about all the things you can do and explore.

A mathematically inspired game by Julie Newdoll, www.brushwithscience.com.