Answer & explanation
The official answer, with Fermi’s reasoning step by step.
Answer & explanation
Official answer
32
cups
How to estimate it
Fermi’s official “Napkin math”
A coffee tree is a big bush covered in red cherries. How many? Maybe 2,000, with 2 beans inside each. How many beans make one cup? A small handful, call it 100.
- Cherries on a tree
- ~2,000
- Beans per cherry
- × 2
- Beans per cup
- ÷ 100
- 2,000 × 2 ÷ 100
- ≈ 40
Rounded assumptions may give a slightly different estimate. The official answer above is the game’s reference value.
Source calculation & reference
- One coffee tree's yearly harvest, roasted (Starbucks)
- ≈ 1 lb (454 g)
- Ground coffee per 8 oz (240 ml) cup
- ÷ 14 g
- 454 ÷ 14
- ≈ 32
Reference cited by Fermi: Starbucks Coffee Blog, 'Roast Story': each coffee tree produces the equivalent of about a pound of roasted beans per year · Specialty Coffee Association Golden Cup standard: 55 g of coffee per liter of water, about 12 to 14.5 g for an 8 oz (240 ml) cup
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