Coffee Conundrum

What's wrong with this picture?

If you thought "hey, there's two pots but not even enough coffee to pour one cup" then we are on the same page. Terry Tate does a great job of reminding a coworker about proper coffee pot etiquette in this Reebok Office Linebacker commercial.

To be honest it's not a big deal, but what I'm really wondering is why does it get like this? I know some days are hectic and you grab a cup and go without having time to make another pot...no problem. For most of us I'm going to assume that this isn't the case, and my best guess is that it's because they may not know how. To be more specific, they may not feel comfortable for fear of making the coffee too strong or weak.

The goal of this post isn't to rant (maybe a little bit), it's to present a real world math problem with a meaningful solution, so let's get down to business.

What information do we need?

The coffee can label includes this recipe...

This very useful pitcher in the break room fills the coffee pot...

To make it quicker than using a tablespoon, we have this scoop for the coffee grounds...

How many scoops do we need to make a full pot of coffee?

*Extension: How much do we save by brewing our own coffee?