23rd University of Michigan Undergraduate Mathematics Competition

April 2, 2006
One of the areas of interest to me, besides inequalities, is number theory. Specifically, I enjoy
applying modular arithmetic operations in solving numerous problems e.g. finding the last three
digits of a large number. Here is one example taken from the aforementioned competition.
Problem 3 (Solved on April 2, 2006):

The sequence {an}n is defined recursively such that

a1 = 1 and a n +1 = ( n + 1) a 2006 .
an
, n ≥ 1 . Find the last two digits of

Solution:

21
...

= 2005 2004
2003

Notice that a 2005 . So, a2005 = 5k , for some k ∈ Ζ + .

a2006 ≡ 2006 a2005

≡ 20065 k
≡ (20065 ) k
≡ (6 5 ) k
≡ 76 k
≡ 76(mod100)
We’re tempted to conclude that 7 and 6 are the last two digits (that is …76)

of a 2006 . But to confirm this conclusion, we check for k = 2 since if the check
works for k = 2 , it works for all integers greater than 2.

So, 76 − 76 = 76 ⋅ 75 = 19 ⋅ 4 ⋅ 25 ⋅ 3 . Because each of the four factors is always

2

congruent to 0 modulo 100, we can rule out 19 and 25, especially, as the last two

digits of a 2006 .
We conclude that 76 are the last two digits.

Note: I think there might be a flaw in the solution, especially in the penultimate
paragraph. Please correct me if you can. Thank you.