Zysen
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Try to solve this puzzle:
The first expedition to Mars found only the ruins of a civilization. From the artifacts and pictures, the explorers deduced that the creatures who produced this civilization were four-legged beings with a tentatcle that branched out at the end with a number of grasping "fingers". After much study, the explorers were able to translate Martian mathematics. They found the following equation:
[FONT=MathJax_Main]([/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]a[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main])[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]10[/FONT]
[FONT=MathJax_Main]([/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]b[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main])[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]13[/FONT]
[FONT=MathJax_Main]([/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]c[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main])[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]40[/FONT]
[FONT=MathJax_Main]([/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]d[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main])[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]25
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P.S. This is not a home work. It's a question asked in an interview.[FONT=MathJax_Main]5[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]x[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]2[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]−[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]50[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]x[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]+[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]125[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]=[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]0
[/FONT]
with the indicated solutions [FONT=MathJax_Math]x[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]=[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]5[/FONT] and [FONT=MathJax_Math]x[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]=[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]8[/FONT]. The value [FONT=MathJax_Math]x[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]=[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]5[/FONT] seemed legitimate enough, but [FONT=MathJax_Math]x[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]=[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]8[/FONT] required some explanation. Then the explorers reflected on the way in which Earth's number system developed, and found evidence that the Martian system had a similar history. How many fingers would you say the Martians had?[/FONT]
[FONT=MathJax_Main]([/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]a[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main])[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]10[/FONT]
[FONT=MathJax_Main]([/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]b[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main])[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]13[/FONT]
[FONT=MathJax_Main]([/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]c[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main])[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]40[/FONT]
[FONT=MathJax_Main]([/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Math]d[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main])[/FONT][FONT=MathJax_Main]25
[/FONT]