Quick Solution

The best way to solve this ranking puzzle is to express the weight of every article in terms of a single base article. Let's use the weight of article C as our base unit, as several other weights are related to it.

1. Expressing Each Weight in Terms of C

• Let the weight of article C be represented by the variable x.
• From clue 3, "C weighs half as much as D," it follows that D = 2x.
• From clue 4, "D weighs half as much as E," it follows that E = 2D, so E = 4x.
• From clue 2, "B weighs four and half times as much as C," it follows that B = 4.5x.
• From clue 1, "A weighs twice as much as B," it follows that A = 2B, so A = 9x.

2. Comparing the Weights

Now we have the weight of every article expressed in terms of 'x', allowing for a direct comparison. The ranking from heaviest to lightest is:

1. A = 9x (Heaviest)
2. B = 4.5x
3. E = 4x
4. D = 2x
5. C = x (Lightest)

(We can verify this ranking with the final clue, "E weighs less than A but more than C". Our result, A > E > C (or 9x > 4x > x), confirms this is correct.)

Final Answer: Comparing all the derived weights, the heaviest article is A.