Solutions of Math Olympiads Challenges Question 1 Find the number A such that the following statement is true: Sx 10+6x10=11xA Solution: Evaluate the left hand side of the equation. 5x 104+6x10=(5+6)x10= 11x10 = 110 Then, 4 = 42 =10 Alternate Solution: Evaluate the left hand side of the equation. 5x 10 +6 x 10 = 50 + 60 = 110 Then, A= 2 = 10 Question 2 What is the missing number B which satisfies the given equation? 2RB+SX4-14=B43xK246 Solution. Evaluate both sides of the equation simultaneously 2XB+SX4-4=B+3x246 2B + 20-14=B +646 Therefore, 28 + 6 = B+ 12 Subtracting both sides of the equation by B + 6, We get (28 + 6)-(B + 6) = (B + 12)-(B + 6) 2B + 6-B-6=B + 12-B-6 B+O=046 Therefore, B = 6.Question 3 ae NN is a whole number. For how many values of N less than (Sis “4 ss = also a whole number? Solution. For = “a x to, be a whole number, a) N must be a multiple of 10 b) NV must be a multiple of 20 As all multiples of 10 are also multiples of 20, N must be a multiple of 20. ‘Therefore, ‘we must count all multiples of 20 that are less than 150. Multiples of 20 that are less than 150 are 20, 40, 60, 80, 100, 120, 140 Therefore, for 7 values of W, the sum “+ will be a whole number. Question 4 For how many values of W is $** also a whole number? Solutiorr. For “ to be a whole number, N?must be a factor of 144, ing all the factor pairs of 144: 1 x 14,2 x 72,3 x 48,4 x 36,6 x 24,8 x 18,9 x 16,12 x 12 Therefore, N can take 6 values, namely 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 12 where “ will be a whole number. Question 5 A bag contains a total of 15 balls of 5 different colours. Each colour has a unique number of balls in the bag. What is the least number of balls to be picked (without looking) to ensure three different coloured balls are picked?Solution: Determine the largest number of balls picked without getting three different colours, Clearly, the number of per colour is distributed as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 respectively. Therefore, we can pick 9 balls (5 balls of one colour and 4 balls of another colour) without picking three different coloured balls. Thus, the least number of balls to be picked is 10. Question 6 Seven 50 ¢coins and eight $1 coins are equally distributed (randomly) among five children. What is the difference between the maximum amount and the minimum amount a child can receive? (Give your answer in dollars) Solution. A total of 15 coins are randomly distributed among 15 children. Therefore, each child receives 3 coins. The maximum amount that a child can receive is three $1 coins, which is $3. The minimum amount that a child can receive is three 50 ¢coins, which is $1.50. Therefore, the difference in the maximum amount and the minimum amount that a child can receive is $3 - $1.50 = $1.50. Question 7 A palindromic number is a number that remains the same when its digits are reversed. E.g. 4554 is a palindromic number. How many palindromic numbers are there between 100 and 999, inclusive? Solution. All the numbers in concern are three digit numbers where the first digit is the same as the last digit. This digit can be chosen from the numbers 1 to 9. For the second digit, we can choose any number from 0 to 9. Thus, the total number of palindromic numbers between 100 and 999 is 9x10x1=90Question 8 If two different natural numbers have the same digits but in reverse order, each number is called the palimage of the other. For example, 12 and 21 are palimages of each other. What is the maximum difference between two-digit palimages? Solution We start by comparing two numbers, 12 and 13. By observation, the difference between two-digit palimages increases with an increase in units digit, that is, 21 ~ 12 is less than 31 — 13. Also, the difference between two-digit palimages decreases with an increase in tens digit, that is, 42 ~ 24 > 43 - 34 (Note: We increase the tens digit in 12 and 13 from 1 to 4 to obtain the above conclusion). Thus, the maximum difference between two-digit pal ages is 91-19=72. Question 9 ‘Alan runs at a rate of 100 meters per 15 seconds. At this rate, how much distance will he cover in 15 minutes? Give your answer in Kilometers. Solution: 100 meters per 15 seconds translates to 400 meters per minute. ‘Therefore, for 15 minutes, distance covered is 400 x 15 = 6000 meters 1000 meters = 1 kilometer Hence, 6000 meters = 6 kilometers Alan covers 6 kilometers in 15 minutes. Question 10 In a construction company, 10 workers complete one-tenth of their total in 10 hours. How long will 50 workers take to complete their entire work? Solution: 10 workers complete one-tenth of the total work in 10 hours. ‘Therefore, 50 workers complete 5 x + of total work in 10 hours.Therefore, to complete the entire work, 50 workers will take 10 x 2 = 20 hours Question 14 If January 1%, 2005 was a Monday, on what date will the 55" Monday from January 1%, 2005 be? Solution: ‘As 2005 was not a leap year, there were 365 days in 2005. Number of days in 52 weeks = 52 x 7 = 364 days Therefore, 365 day = 31% December, 2005 was a Monday. 31*"December, 2005 was the 52%! Monday FROM 1% January, 2005 534 Monday = 7% January, 2006 and 54% Monday = 14 January, 2006 Therefore, 55 Monday from 1* january, 2005 = 21st January, 2006 Question 12 ‘The average of 5 numbers is 7.6. What number should be added to increase the average of the number to 8? Solution: If the average of 5 numbers is 7.6, then the total sum of the 5 numbers is 5 x 7.6 = 38 When a 6" number is added, the average becomes 8. Therefore, the total sum of the 6 numbers = 6 x 8 = 48 Value of the 6 number = Total sum of 6 numbers ~ Total sum of 5 numbers = 48-38 = 10. Question 13 In the following pattern, how many black squares are there in the 19" image?1 Image 2"4 Image 3 Image 4 Image Solution: Clearly, all squares along the diagonal are shaded black. Also, the nth image is a (n + 2) x (n + 2) square. ‘Therefore, the 19" image is a 21 x 21 square 1% image, a 3 x 3 square, has 3 + 2 = 5 black squares 24 image, a 4 x 4 square, has 4 + 8 black squares 3° image, a 5 x 5 square, has 5 + 4 = 9 black squares at image, a 6 x 6 square, has 6 + 6 = 12 black squares From observation, we can conclude: For odd values of n, the n"* image has (n + 2) + (n + 1) black squares For even values of n, the nt image has (n + 2) + (n + 2) black squares ‘Therefore, the 19" image has (19 + 2) + (19 + 1) = 41 black squares. Question 14 A certain number of children stand in a line in ascending height order. The 10 child from the front is also the 16" child from the back. How many children must be added at the back such that the St child from the front becomes the 36" child from the back?Solution: The 10" child from the front is the 16" child from the back. This implies that there are 9 children in front of him and 15 children behind him. Therefore, the total number of children in the line is 25. The 5" child from the front in a line of 25 children is also the 21* child from the back. If the child becomes the 36" child from the back, the number of children added in the line is 36-21 = 15 Therefore, 15 children must be added at the end of the line. Question 15 ‘Among a certain group of kids, the first kid gets 1 sweet, the second kid gets 2 more sweets than the first kid, the third kid gets 3 more sweets than the second kid and so ‘on. How many more sweets does the 12" kid get in comparison to the 6" kid? ‘Solution: The 6" kid gets 1+2+34+445+6=21 sweets The 12" kid gets 1+ 2+ 3+ .... + 12 = 78 sweets Therefore, the 12" kid gets 78 - 21 = 57 sweets more than the 6" kid. Question 16 Rico walks from point A to point B on a straight path at a speed of 2 km/h. Alice walks from point B to point A on the same path at a speed of 5 km/h. if Rico starts walking from point A at the same time as Alice starts walking from point B, and the distance between points A and B is 14 km, how far would Alice have walked before she crosses Rico? SolutionLet the distance travelled by Alice when she crosses Rico be x kin So the distance travelled by Rico in the same time is (14 ~ x) km stance _ x Speed 5° Distance _ 34-x ‘Speed 2 Time taken by Alice to cover x km = Time taken by Rico to cover (14 - x) As the time elapsed is the same for both Alice and Rico, we get x_iM-x Solving the equation, we get x Question 17 How many degrees does the minute hand sweep between the time 9:00 AM and 11:50 AM? ‘Solution. ‘A minute hand sweeps 360 degrees in one hour. Therefore, the angle swept in 10 minutes is 60 degrees. Thus, angle swept in 50 minutes is 300 degrees. ‘Time elapsed between 9:00 AM and 11:50 AM = 2 hours and 50 minutes ‘Therefore, total angle swept = 2 x 360 + 300 = 1020 degrees Question 18 A,B, Care different numbers to be chosen from the set {4, 7, 8, 10}. Find the difference between the largest and smallest values of AxB cSolution: Largest value of the expression is when the numerator is maximum and denominator is minimum. 10x8 Therefore, maximum value = 20. ‘Smallest value of the expression is when the numerator is minimum and dengminator is maximum. Therefore, minimum value = “2 = 2.8. Hence, difference between maximum and minimum values = 20- 2.8 = 17.2. Questior 19 Given o> the right is a series of numbers following a column specific pattern. (1,2) refers to the number in the first row secon¢’ column. What is the number in (10,2)? Solution. Let us analyze the patterns being followed. In the first row, the number in each subsequent cell is, increasing by 2. In the second row, the number in each subsequent cell is increasing by 3. This pattern is followed for every odd and even numbered row. Thus, the numbers in odd rows are increasing by 2 and the,numbers in even rows are increasing by 3. Furthermore, in every column, the numbers increase by 15 in every alternate row. ‘Therefore, in the tenth row second column, the number will be: 12+4x15=72. Question 20 A circle with centre 0 is inscribed in a square ABCD ion 8 as shown in the figure. If the perimeter of square oN ABCD is 16 cm, find the area of the circle in cm?. o Al cThe diagram is drawn to scale. Give your answer in terms of cm? . Solution. Perimeter of square = 4 x (length of each side) Therefore, length of sides of square ABCD = 4 cm ‘We infer from the diagram that radius of circle 1.5 x length of one side of ABCD. Radius of circle = 0.5 x 4 = 2cm. Therefore, area of circle = m x 2? = 41 cm? Question 21 In the given figure, arc AOD represents a semicircle. With centre at 0. Length of AB = a where ABCD is a square. Find the area of the given figure. Solution: Area of square ABCD Given Ad is the radius, it implies that AD is the diameter. irc Therefore, radius of se } (diameter of semicircle) = Hence, area of semicircle = > x mr?, where r is the radius Gay? Total area of the figure = Area of square + Area of semicircle =a? tina? = a*(1+in) Question 22 Let ABCDEFGH be a cuboid such that AB = 10cm, BC = . 5 2cm, BF = S.cm. How many cubes of length + cm would be required to fill the cuboid? Solution. Volume of cuboid ABCDEFGH = 10 x 2 x S = 100cm? 10Volume of one cube of unit length = = x =x = Therefore, number of cubes required to fill cuboid 100 +2 = 100 x 8 = 800 cubes. Question 23 Given C > 0, for how many values of B is the given product valid? AA x CB BB cco CSB Solution: AS AAx B = BB, clearly A= 1 Also, B+ C= 5 As the numbers A, B, C need not be unique, the possible solutions are: B=0,C=5 Hence, the product is valid.for 5 values of B. Question 24 If BD is a diagonal in a rectangle ABCD where AB = age os 10,AD =" 5,AE = 2,FC = 4as shown in the figure, find the value of: Area of triangle AED | Area of triangle BCF Area of triangle BED © Area of triangle BFD » Fo4« ‘Solution: Area of triangle AED = 3 x AE x AD =} x2x5=5. Area of triangle ABD = 3 x AB x AD =x 10 x § = 25. uw‘Area of triangle BED = Area of triangle ABD - Area of triangle AED Therefore, area of triangle BED = 25-5 = 20. tx Bc tx cox cb =!x5x 10 = 25. ‘Area of triangle BCF x5 x4 = 10. ‘Area of triangle CBD Area of triangle BFD = Area of triangle CBD ~ Area of triangle BCF Therefore, area of triangle BFD = 25-10 = 15. Therefore, Area of triangle AED , Area of triangle BCF _ 5 ,10_ 11 ‘Area of triangle BED * Area of triangle BFD 20" 1S” 12 Question 25 ‘ABCD is a square park where AB = 100 m. The shaded area represents grass and the solid areas represent congruent squares of concrete. If EF = 5m, what is the ratio of the area covered by mo grass to the area covered by concrete? J Sotation . ‘Area of square park = 100 x 100 = 10,000 m?. ‘Area of one concrete square = 5 x 5 = 25m’. Therefore, area of four concrete squares = 4 x 25 = 100m?, ‘Area of grass. = Area of park — Area of concrete = 10000-- 100 = 9900 m?. Question 26 ‘Andy's current age is 40. Five years from now, his age will be equal to the sum of the ‘ages of his two sons, Mike and Rick. If Mike is 3 years older than Rick, what is Rick’s current age? nSolution: Five years from now, Andy's age will be 45 years. In 5 years, the sum of the ages of his sons will increase by 5 x 2 = 10 Therefore, sum of their current ages = 45-10 = 35, Let Rick’s current age be Y years. This implies Mike’s current age = Y + 3 years. Sum of their ages = 35 = Y + (Y + 3). Therefore, ¥ = 16. Hence, Rick’s current age is 16 years. Question 27 A3 x 3 grid contains 9 numbers. Each number is halved to obtain the number on the left. Each number is multiplied by + to obtain the number above. If the sum of the numbers is 182, what is the number in the top right corner? Solution: Let the number in the bottom right corer be a. Following the pattern, the numbers can be written as: za 7 36 | 18 3 a a a 12 6 3 . S| @ 4 2 Leta = 36b The grid can be rearranged as: b 2 | 4b 3b | 6b | tab 9% | ise | 36b Therefore, b + 2b + 4b + 3b + 6b + 12b + 9b + 18b + 36b = 182 BHence, b = 2 The number in the top right corner Question 28 A square is divided into three congruent rectangles as shown in figure 1. If the middle rectangle is rearranged to form figure 2, what is the ratio of the perimeter of figure 1 to the perimeter of figure 2? Sohitiorr Let AB = 3a. Therefore, Perimeter of figure 1= 4 x 3a = 12a. Perimeter of figure 2 = AB + BH + HG + GK + KL + LC +CD+DI +I + JF + FE + EA = 16a +HG +KL+ D+ FE Clearly, EF + GH = EH- FG = 3a-a = 2a Similarly, KL + I = IL- JK = 3a-a = 2a Therefore, Perimeter of figure 2 = 16a + 2a + 2a = 20a Ratio of perimeter of figure1_12a_3 Ratio of perimeter of figure ~ 20a ~ 5Question 29 In the zoo, there are 45 heads of monkeys and lions. There are twice as many monkeys as lions. How many lions are there? Solution: ‘There are a total of 45 monkeys and lions. Model: Monkey [unit Tiunit] Lion Lunit Total: 45 No of lions = 1 unit = 45 Question 30 In a group of 35 students, there are 9 girls more than boys. What is the number of girls? Solution: Model: Gils [Lunt [9 Boys Total: 35 26 35 22°38 Number of girls = 13 + 9 = 22 1 unit Question 31 Jason has eaten 45 chocolates in 5 days. Every day, he ate 2 chocolates more than the previous day. How many chocolates did he eat on the first day? Model: 1 day |_1.unit 2”) day 2 34 day 242 4 day 2{[2{2 S® day ZT.) 1STotal: 45 S units = 45-2 x 10 = 25 Lunit = 25+5=5 He ate 5 chocolates on the first day. Question 32 Find missing number and complete the number pattern. OOOO Solution: OOOO®D The pattern is following: 441% 13 =27 27 +2x 13 =53 53+3x13 =92 924413 = 144 The missing numbers are 27 and 92. Question 33 ‘The sum of Tom’s age and Jerry's age is 25. What will the sum of their ages be after nine years? Solution: METHOD 4 After nine years Tom's age will increase by 9 and Jerry's as well. Hence, the sum will increase by 9+9=18. The sum of their ages after eleven years will be 25+18=43, METHOD 2 In the beginning:= sativa ee Berg Hence, the sum will increase by 9+9=18. The sum of their ages after eleven years will be 25+18=43, Question 34 The tk (star) has a number value of? O+A =26 Ath =34 At+O =35 O+rO0=% Solution: A + LA =34, hence LAr substituting it into first and third equations give us O -sa 2 Ke = 9418 = 27. 7Question 35 ‘There were 17 pieces of paper. Some of them were cut into four parts. Altogether, there are now 32 pieces of paper. How many pieces were cut into four parts? Solution: When we cut 1 piece into three parts we get 3 more pieces. Since 32 ~ 17 need 15 more pieces. 15+3 5, we 5. Hence, 5 pieces were cut into three parts. Question 36 What is the smallest possible number of children in a family if each child has at least two brothers and two sisters? Solution: If there 2 girls in the family, then each of these girls will only have 1 sister. Thus, there are at least 3 girls. If there 2 boys in the family, then each of these boys will only have 1 brother. Thus, there are at least 3 boys. The smallest possible number of children is 6 (3 boys and 3 girls) Question 37 In a box, there are six smaller boxes, each one of them contains seven even smaller boxes. How many boxes are there in total? Solution: Let us draw the figure above and count the number of boxes. There are 49 boxes. 18What is the value of the following? TS+7S+IS475 475+ TS+IS+ISHIS+IS + 7S + 7S 475 +75 +75 + IS+7S+7S +75 475+ 7S 475475475 Solution: There are 24 seventy-fives, thus the value is 75 x 24 = 1800 Question 39 ‘Observe the following number pattern and fill in the box with the correct answer. 1 35 32 46 34 25 | 1645 3966 | 2 Solution: 1* Figure: 1 goes to 1 (1*), 5 goes to 5 (4%), (2%) 6=145 and (3) 4=143 2° Figure: 3 goes to 3 (1%) 6 goes to 6 (4!) Z) (2%) 9=346 and (3%) 6=244 3 Figure: 3 goes to 3 (1%) 5 goes to 5 (4%) (2) 8=345 and (39 )6=44+2 So answer is 3865 9Question 40 There are 47 boys and 29 girls in a group. Every week, 6 more boys and 9 more girls join the group. After how many weeks will there be the same number of boys and girls in the group? Solution: Initial difference between boys and girls is 47 — 29 = 18. Every week, the difference is reduced by 9 ~ 6 = 3. There will be the same number of boys and girls when the difference is 0. Therefore, since 18 = 3 = 6, after 6 weeks there will be the same number of boys and gts. Question 41 ‘A box has five pens in five colours: red, green, blue, white and yellow. The green pen is the first pen on the left. The yellow pen is next to the green pen and the red pen. The white pen is next to the red pen and the blue pen. What is the order of the pens in that box? Solution: The yellow pen is the second pen on the left, since it is next to the green (which is first). The red pen is the third, since it is next to the yellow. The white pen is fourth and blue ‘Thus, the order is Green, Yellow, Red, White, and Blue. Question 42 How many rectangles are in this picture? ‘Solution: Let us numerate the smalll rectangles. 201, 12, 123, 1234, 2, 23, 234, 3, 34, 4 (10 rectangles) 5, 56, 567, 5678, 6, 67, 678, 7, 78, 8 (10 rectangles) 15, 1526, 152637, 15263748, 26, 2637, 263748, 37, 3748, 48 (10 rectangles) Therefore, there are 30 rectangle in total. Question 43 What is the next number in the following pattern Solution: ‘The pattern 1,3, 11, 123, ? 3x34 1x142=3 su 11x 11425123 123 x 123 +2 = 15131 The next number is 15131 Question 44 There are parrots and rabbits in a pet store. The number of parrots is 50 more than that of rabbits and the total number of legs of the parrots is 40 more than that of the rabbits. How many parrots are there in the pet store? Solution: # of legs of | # of legs of | Difference ‘# of rabbits | # of parrots rabbits Parrots | between legs 1 SI 4x1=4 2x51 = 102 98 2 52 4x2=8 2x52 = 104 96 3 53 4x3=12 [2x53=106 94 30 80 4x30=120 | 2x80= 160 40 aFrom the table above, we can observe that when we increase number of ralshite by: 1, difference between their legs is decreased by 2. To get the difference of 40, 98 — 58 = 40, we need increase number of rabbits by 58 + 2 = 29. Thus, the number of parrots in the store is 80. Question 45 How many three-digit numbers are there in which all digits on the left are larger thans digits on the right? (Hint: Look for a pattern) Sofution: When the hundreds digit is 9. 987, 986, 985, 984, 983, 982, 981, 980 (8 numbers) 976, 975, 974, 973, 972, 971,970 (7 numbers) . (6 numbers) Continuing the same way there are 8+7+6+5+4+3+2+1=36 numbers with hundreds digit 9. When the hundreds digit is 8, the same way as for 9, there are 74+6+5+4+3+2+1=28 numbers with hundreds digit 8. Continuing the same way for other hundreds digit we get # of numbers, hundreds digit 8474645+4434241=36 9 74+64544+34241=28 8 6454443+241=21 7 544434241515 6 4434241510 5 34241=6 4 24+1=3 3 1 2 There are 36+28+21+15+10+6+3+1=120 three-digit numbers ”