Or you could just place bottles around the edge of the table and then move inwards, close together like a domino effect. Just make sure you've a steady hand.
]]>There's almost certainly a better strategy than MathsIsFun's ...
And that ... I mean, wouldn't it ... as a ... if the ... aaarrgghhh!
]]>It can also be proven, although I won't do it here, that round objects packed tightly on a round surface will contain an odd number of objects. So going first would ensure that you would always be placing the odd bottle. So if you both continued to place them tightly, your opponent would wind up left with no space after you placed the last bottle. That's the best that I can come up with at this point.
]]>There's almost certainly a better strategy than MathsIsFun's, but I can't think of what that is right now.
To justlooking, I don't think it makes any difference which way up you put the bottle. They're always a constant diameter at the middle.
]]>For example, can you place your bottle like this?
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Anyway, I will come up with a strategy just to get the ball rolling.
Just place bottles anywhere until the table is nearly full,
Then you have to figure out how many bottles can fit in the space left if they are packed neatly.
If it looks like you will win, then continue to place bottles neatly,
If not, then leave gaps that are too small to fit a bottle but big enough to use up one bottle space by the end of the game.
Discuss
]]>Here is the same problem using different words.
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