2024 AMC 8 Exam Solutions

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All of the real AMC 8 and AMC 10 problems in our complete solution collection are used with official permission of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA).

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1.

What is the ones digit of 222,22222,2222,222222222?\begin{align*} & 222,222 - 22,222 - 2,222 \\ &- 222 - 22 - 2? \end{align*}

00

22

44

66

88

Solution:

We only need to consider the ones digits of each number (except for the first one so we avoid getting a negative answer): 2222222=12 22 - 2 - 2 - 2 - 2 - 2 = 12 which has a ones digit of 2 2 .

Thus, B is the correct answer.

2.

What is the value of this expression in decimal form? 4411+11044+441100 \frac{44}{11} + \frac{110}{44} + \frac{44}{1100}

6.46.4

6.5046.504

6.546.54

6.96.9

6.946.94

Solution:

We can simplify the fractions by taking out the common factor 1111: 4411 \dfrac{44}{11} simplifies to 4 4 , 11044 \dfrac{110}{44} simplifies to 104=52=2.5 \dfrac{10}{4} = \dfrac{5}{2} = 2.5 , and 441100 \dfrac{44}{1100} simplifies to 4100=0.04 \dfrac{4}{100} = 0.04 . Therefore, we have 4+2.5+0.04=6.54. 4 + 2.5 + 0.04 = 6.54.

Thus, C is the correct answer.

3.

Four squares of side length 4,4, 7,7, 9,9, and 1010 units are arranged in increasing size order so that their left edges and bottom edges align. The squares alternate in color, as shown in the figure. What is the area of the visible colored region in square units?

4242

4545

4949

5050

5252

Solution:

The visible colored region includes the area of the square with side length 10 10 subtracted by the area of the square with side length 9 9 plus the area of the square with side length 7 7 minus the area of the square with side length 4 4 . Hence, we get 10081+4916=52. 100 - 81 + 49 - 16 = 52.

Thus, E is the correct answer.

4.

When Yunji added all the integers from 11 to 9,9, she mistakenly left out a number. Her incorrect sum turned out to be a square number. Which number did Yunji leave out?

55

66

77

88

99

Solution:

To find the number that Yunji left out, we need to find the sum of the integers from 11 to 99 and find its difference with the largest perfect square below the sum. We can calculate the sum of the integers from 11 to 99 as follows: 1++9=9(9+1)2=45 1 + \ldots + 9 = \dfrac{9(9+1)}{2} = 45 The largest perfect square less than 45 45 would be 36 36 and 4536=9 45 - 36 = 9 .

Thus, E is the correct answer.

5.

Aaliyah rolls two standard 6-sided dice. She notices that the product of the two numbers rolled is a multiple of 6. Which of the following integers cannot be the sum of the two numbers?

55

66

77

88

99

Solution:

can draw a 2x2 chart of possible rolls

We can simply list down all possible combinations of the two rolls: (1,6),(2,3),(2,6),(3,6), (1,6), (2,3), (2,6), (3,6), (4,6),(5,6),(6,6)(4,6), (5,6), (6,6) Respectively, the sums would be 7,5,8,9,10,11,12 7, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 . Among the choices, only 6 6 is not a possible sum.

Thus, B is the correct answer.

6.

Sergei skated around an ice rink, gliding along different paths. The gray lines in the figures below show four of the paths labeled P, Q, R, and S. What is the sorted order of the four paths from shortest to longest?

P, Q, R, S

P, R, S, Q

Q, S, P, R

R, P, S, Q

R, S, P, Q

Solution:

From inspection, we can notice that Path R is the shortest path since it avoids going through the entire loop by taking straight-line shortcuts instead of going through the arc portions of the rink. This leaves us with two possible answer choices, D and E, which only differ in how they sort Path P and S.

To determine which path is longer between Path P and S, notice that the difference between the two paths can be related by a right triangle as shown here:

The hypotenuse of the triangle was traversed by Sergei in Path S while one of the legs is part of Path P. By the Pythagorean Theorem, we know that the hypotenuse will always be longer than the legs, and so Path S will be longer than Path P.

Thus, B is the correct answer.

7.

A 3×73 \times 7 rectangle is covered without overlap by 33 shapes of tiles: 2×2,2 \times 2, 1×4,1 \times 4, and 1×1,1 \times 1, shown below. What is the minimum possible number of 1×11 \times 1 tiles used?

11

22

33

44

55

Solution:

Notice that if we only fill the 3×73 \times 7 rectangle using 2×22 \times 2 and 1×41 \times 4 tiles, then we will always be filling the rectangle in multiples of 4.4. From the answer choices, it will suffice to consider the cases where we are able to fill 1616 or 2020 tiles out of the 2121 tiles of the rectangle, since the former will leave us 55 spaces for the 1×11 \times 1 tiles while the latter will leave us with one. The other options are not possible since those numbers of tiles cannot be arrived by subtracting any multiple of 44 from 2121.

By attempting to place the 2×22 \times 2 and 1×41 \times 4 tiles, we can immediately notice that it's not possible to fill 2020 tiles in the rectangle, and we can easily find cases where we are left with five tiles.

Thus, E is the correct answer.

8.

On Monday Taye has $2. Every day, he either gains $3 or doubles the amount of money he had on the previous day. How many different dollar amounts could Taye have on Thursday, 33 days later?

33

44

55

66

77

Solution:

We can systematically exhaust the cases using a tree diagram where the upper branch covers the case where the amount gains $3 while the other branch represents the case where the amount doubles.

From the diagram, we can see that we end up with six unique dollar amounts after three days.

Thus, D is the correct answer.

9.

All of the marbles in Maria's collection are red, green, or blue. Maria has half as many red marbles as green marbles and twice as many blue marbles as green marbles. Which of the following could be the total number of marbles in Maria's collection?

2424

2525

2626

2727

2828

Solution:

We can let rr be the number of red marbles that Maria has. Since Maria has half as many red marbles as green, then we know that she has 2r2r green marbles. Moreover, since she has twice as many blue marbles as green, then she will have 2(2r)=4r2(2r) = 4r blue marbles. Adding these together gives us r+2r+4r=7r, r + 2r + 4r = 7r, and so the answer must be a multiple of 7.7. Among the answer choices, only 2828 is a multiple of 7.7.

Thus, E is the correct answer.

10.

In January 1980 the Mauna Loa Observatory recorded carbon dioxide CO2 levels of 338338 ppm (parts per million). Over the years the average CO2 reading has increased by about 1.5151.515 ppm each year. What is the expected CO2 level in ppm in January 2030? Round your answer to the nearest integer.

399399

414414

420420

444444

459459

Solution:

There are 5050 years between 19801980 and 20302030, so we can expect the CO2 reading to increase by 50×1.515=75.757650 \times 1.515 = 75.75 \approx 76 ppm by 20302030. Since the CO2 reading in 19801980 was 338338 ppm, then we will have 338+76=414338 + 76 = 414 ppm by 20302030.

Thus, B is the correct answer.

11.

The coordinates of ABC\bigtriangleup ABC are A(5,7),A(5, 7), B(11,7),B(11, 7), and C(3,y),C(3, y), with y>7.y > 7. The area of ABC\bigtriangleup ABC is 12.12. What is the value of y?y?

88

99

1010

1111

1212

Solution:

Consider the base of the triangle to be AB\overline{\rm AB} which has length 115=611-5=6. Given that the area of the triangle is 1212, its height must be of length 2(12)6=4\dfrac{2(12)}{6}=4. Since y>7y>7, then yy must be 7+4=117+4=11.

Thus, D is the correct answer.

12.

Rohan keeps a total of 90 guppies in 4 fish tanks.

• There is 1 more guppy in the 2nd tank than in the 1st tank.

• There are 2 more guppies in the 3rd tank than in the 2nd tank.

• There are 3 more guppies in the 4th tank than in the 3rd tank.

How many guppies are in the 4th tank?

2020

2121

2323

2424

2626

Solution:

Let xx be the number of guppies in the 1st tank. Hence, there are x+1x+1 guppies in the 2nd tank, x+3x+3 guppies in the 3rd tank, and x+6x+6 guppies in the 4th tank. We then use the fact that there are a total of 90 guppies in the 4 tanks to find xx: x+x+1+x+3+x+6=90x + x + 1 + x + 3 + x + 6 = 90 4x+10=904x+10=90 x=20.x=20.

Note that we are not yet done since we are asked for the number of guppies in the 4th tank and not the 1st. There are x+6=20+6=26x+6=20+6=26 guppies in the 4th tank.

Thus, E is the correct answer.

13.

Buzz Bunny is hopping up and down a set of stairs, one step at a time. In how many ways can Buzz start on the ground, make a sequence of 6 hops, and end up back on the ground? (For example, one sequence of hops is up-up-down-down-up-down.)

44

55

66

88

1212

Solution:

We can deduce from the choices that it is possible to exhaust all possible cases for this problem. Note that all sequences must start with up (U)(U) and end with down (D)(D), and that it should not be possible to go down more times than Buzz has gone up so far. Keeping this in mind, we can arrive at the following possible cases: UUUDDDUUUDDD UUDUDDUUDUDD UUDDUDUUDDUD UDUDUDUDUDUD UDUUDDUDUUDD which is a total of five possible sequences.

Thus, B is the correct answer.

14.

The one-way routes connecting towns A,A, M,M, C,C, X,X, Y,Y, and ZZ are shown in the figure below (not drawn to scale). The distances in kilometers along each route are marked. Traveling along these routes, what is the shortest distance from AA to ZZ in kilometers?

2828

2929

3030

3131

3232

Solution:

A systematic way of tracking the shortest overall distance to ZZ is to consider the shortest distance to get to each town from AA. For instance, the shortest distance to get to town XX from AA is 55 km, trivially.

Then, for town MM, going to town XX first will be shorter compared to going directly from AA, so the shortest path to town MM has a length of 77 km.

For town YY, it will take us 1515 km if we come from town XX and only 1313 km coming from M,M, so 1313 km is the length of shortest path to YY from AA.

Doing the same for town CC will give us 1818 km as the shortest distance by coming from town YY.

Finally, for town ZZ, we can either come from town Y,Y, C,C, or MM. The total distance if we come from each three towns respectively would be 30,30, 28,28, and 3232. Hence, 2828 km is the shortest distance from AA to ZZ.

The diagram below summarizes our process. Here, the town name is replaced by the shortest distance to get to that town from town AA.

Thus, A is the correct answer.

15.

Let the letters F,F, L,L, Y,Y, B,B, U,U, GG represent distinct digits. Suppose FLYFLY\text{FLYFLY} is the greatest number that satisfies the equation 8FLYFLY=BUGBUG. 8 \cdot \text{FLYFLY} = \text{BUGBUG}. What is the value of FLY+BUG?\text{FLY} + \text{BUG}?

10891089

10981098

11071107

11161116

11251125

Solution:

Firstly, note that FLYFLY=1001(FLY)\text{FLYFLY} = 1001(\text{FLY}) and, similarly, BUGBUG=1001(BUG)\text{BUGBUG}=1001(\text{BUG}) so the equation can be simplified to 8FLY=BUG.8 \cdot \text{FLY} = \text{BUG}.

For BUG\text{BUG} to remain three digits, FF must be 1.1. Moreover, LL must also be less than 33 to avoid carrying over 22 to the hundreds digit and making the product 44 digits. Since we need FLY\text{FLY} to be the greatest number, LL must be 2.2.

To identify the possible values for Y,Y, we note that so far we have 8(12)=968(12)=96, so we must avoid carrying 44 to the tens digit to keep the resulting product three digits. Hence, Y5Y\le5. We can try 44 and verify that the resulting product has unique digits that haven't been used yet: 8(124)=9928(124) = 992, which does not have unique digits. Trying 3,3, we get 8(123)=9848(123) = 984, which satisfies our criteria.

Hence, FLY+BUG=123+984=1107.\text{FLY} + \text{BUG} = 123 + 984 = 1107.

Thus, C is the correct answer.

16.

Minh enters the numbers 11 through 8181 into the cells of a 9×99 \times 9 grid in some order. She calculates the product of the numbers in each row and column. What is the least number of rows and columns that could have a product divisible by 3?3?

88

99

1010

1111

1212

Solution:

We first need to note that there are 2727 multiples of 33 from 11 through 8181. If any row or column has a multiple of 33, then the product of the numbers in the row or column will be divisible by 33. From this, it is evident that we must try to place all 2727 multiples of 33 together in some corner of the grid so the least number of products will be divisible by 33.

We can place 2525 multiples of 33 in a 5×55 \times 5 grid so only 55 rows and 55 columns will have products that are divisible by 33. The remaining 22 multiples of 33 can then be placed in the 6th column along the 1st and 2nd row of the 5×55 \times 5 grid so in total we will only have 66 columns and 55 rows that have products that are divisible by 33, for a total of 6+5=116+5=11 products divisible by 33.

The diagram below illustrates our process. The highlighted cells contain the multiples of 33 while the dotted lines mark the rows or columns that have products which are divisible by 3.3.

Thus, D is the correct answer.

17.

A chess king is said to attack all the squares one step away from it, horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. For instance, a king on the center square of a 3×33 \times 3 grid attacks all 88 other squares, as shown below. Suppose a white king and a black king are placed on different squares of a 3×33 \times 3 grid so that they do not attack each other. In how many ways can this be done?

2020

2424

2727

2828

3232

Solution:

Firstly, we note that a king cannot be on the center square as it will attack any other piece on the 3×33 \times 3 grid. To solve this problem, we can simply consider some possible cases: one where a king is in the corner and another when one king is on an edge (but not a corner).

When one king is placed in any corner, then the other king can be placed in 55 other squares without them attacking each other.

Since there are four corners, we have 5×4=205 \times 4 =20 possibilities for this case.

Another possible case is when one king is on an edge that is not a corner.

In this scenario, the other king can be in 33 other squares without the two kings attacking each other. There are 44 edges in the grid so we have 4(3)=124(3)=12 possibilities for this case.

Adding the number of possibilities, we get 20+12=3220+12=32 total number of ways.

Thus, E is the correct answer.

18.

Three concentric circles centered at OO have radii of 1,1, 2,2, and 3.3. Points BB and CC lie on the largest circle. The region between the two smaller circles is shaded, as is the portion of the region between the two larger circles bounded by central angle BOC,BOC, as shown in the figure below. Suppose the shaded and unshaded regions are equal in area. What is the measure of BOC\angle BOC in degrees?

108108

120120

135135

144144

150150

Solution:

Let θ\theta be the measure of BOC.\angle BOC.

One component of the shaded region is the area of the circle with radius 22 minus the area of the circle with radius 1.1. This part has area 4ππ=3π.4\pi-\pi=3\pi. The remaining area is a sector of the biggest circle minus the area of the circle with radius 22. This has area θ360(9π4π)=θ360(5π).\dfrac{\theta}{360}(9\pi-4\pi) = \dfrac{\theta}{360}(5\pi). Hence, the total area of the shaded region is 3π+θ360(5π).3\pi + \dfrac{\theta}{360}(5\pi).

Next, we note that the unshaded region is composed of the smallest circle and the unshaded portion of the outer ring. This will have a total area of π+360θ360(5π)\pi + \dfrac{360-\theta}{360}(5\pi)

Lastly, we equate the area of both regions and solve for θ:\theta: 3π+θ360(5π)=π+360θ360(5π) 3\pi + \dfrac{\theta}{360}(5\pi) = \pi + \dfrac{360-\theta}{360}(5\pi) 2π=360θθ360(5π) 2\pi = \dfrac{360-\theta-\theta}{360}(5\pi) 25=12θ360 \dfrac{2}{5} = 1 - \dfrac{2\theta}{360} 2θ=35(360) 2\theta = \dfrac{3}{5}(360) θ=108. \theta = 108.

Thus, A is the correct answer.

19.

Jordan owns 1515 pairs of sneakers. Three fifths of the pairs are red and the rest are white. Two thirds of the pairs are high-top and the rest are low-top. The red high-top sneakers make up a fraction of the collection. What is the least possible value of this fraction?

00

15\dfrac{1}{5}

415\dfrac{4}{15}

13\dfrac{1}{3}

25\dfrac{2}{5}

Solution:

Jordan has 35×15=9\dfrac{3}{5} \times 15 = 9 pairs of red sneakers and 66 pairs of white sneakers. Moreover, 23×15=10\dfrac{2}{3} \times 15 = 10 are high-top and 55 are low-top. If we want to minimize the number of red high-top sneakers, then we can set all 66 white sneakers to be high-top, leaving 106=410-6=4 red sneakers as high-top. Hence, the fraction of red high-top sneakers would be 415\dfrac{4}{15}.

Thus, C is the correct answer.

20.

Any three vertices of the cube PQRSTUVW,PQRSTUVW, shown in the figure below, can be connected to form a triangle. (For example, vertices P,P, Q,Q, and RR can be connected to form isosceles PQR.\bigtriangleup PQR.) How many of these triangles are equilateral and contain PP as a vertex?

00

11

22

33

66

Solution:

We first note that we can only form equilateral triangles if we go through the diagonals of the square faces, otherwise at least one angle of the triangle will be different. Afterwards, it is easy to exhaust all possible equilateral triangles that can be formed: PVT,\triangle PVT, PRT,\triangle PRT, and PRV.\triangle PRV.

Thus, D is the correct answer.

21.

A group of frogs (called an army) is living in a tree. A frog turns green when in the shade and turns yellow when in the sun. Initially, the ratio of green to yellow frogs was 3:1.3 : 1. Then 33 green frogs moved to the sunny side and 55 yellow frogs moved to the shady side. Now the ratio is 4:1.4 : 1. What is the difference between the number of green frogs and yellow frogs now?

1010

1212

1616

2020

2424

Solution:

We can let gg be the number of green frogs and yy be the number of yellow frogs. Initially, we have g=3yg=3y. Then, after some frogs moved, we have the following proportion: g+53y+35=41.\dfrac{g+5-3}{y+3-5} = \dfrac{4}{1}.

Substituting 3y3y for gg will allow us to determine the number of yellow frogs originally (yy): 3y+2y2=4\dfrac{3y+2}{y-2} = 4 3y+2=4(y2)=4y83y+2 = 4(y-2) = 4y-8 y=10y = 10

Hence, there were 1010 yellow frogs and 3×10=303 \times 10 = 30 green frogs initially. After some frogs moved, we now have 10+35=810+3-5 = 8 yellow frogs and 30+53=3230+5-3=32 green frogs, giving us a difference of 328=2432-8=24 between the number of green and yellow frogs.

Thus, E is the correct answer.

22.

A roll of tape is 44 inches in diameter and is wrapped around a ring that is 22 inches in diameter. A cross section of the tape is shown in the figure below. The tape is 0.0150.015 inches thick. If the tape is completely unrolled, approximately how long would it be? Round your answer to the nearest 100100 inches.

300300

600600

12001200

15001500

18001800

Solution:

We have a huge margin of error for this problem so we can freely estimate values. Firstly, we note that the entire roll of tape is 1-inch thick, and given that a single tape is 0.0150.015 inches thick, then there are 10.015=20.03=2003\dfrac{1}{0.015}= \dfrac{2}{0.03} = \dfrac{200}{3} layers of tape in the entire roll.

Then, we must identify an estimate for the circumference of one layer of tape. Near the center, one layer of tape will have a circumference of 2π2\pi while the layers near the outer section will have a circumference of about 4π4\pi. A good estimate would be to take the average circumference which is 3π3\pi. With this, we can estimate the total length for the entire roll: 2003(3π)=200π200(3)600.\dfrac{200}{3}(3\pi) = 200\pi \approx 200(3) \approx 600.

Thus, B is the correct answer.

23.

Rodrigo has a very large piece of graph paper. First he draws a line segment connecting point (0,4)(0, 4) to point (2,0)(2, 0) and colors the 44 cells whose interiors intersect the segment, as shown below. Next, Rodrigo draws a line segment connecting point (2000,3000)(2000, 3000) to point (5000,8000).(5000, 8000). Again he colors the cells whose interiors intersect the segment. How many cells will he color this time?

60006000

65006500

70007000

75007500

80008000

Solution:

From the given example, observe that if we consider a different line segment with the same slope, for instance the line connecting points (0,2)(0,2) and (1,0)(1,0), then the number of colored cells will be halved.

In general, it is possible to scale down the problem as long as we still have the same slope for the line.

Next, note that the line segment passing through points (2000,3000)(2000, 3000) and (5000,8000)(5000, 8000) has a slope of 53\dfrac{5}{3}. Hence, a scaled down version that we can consider is a segment connecting the points (0,0)(0,0) and (3,5).(3,5).

From the diagram, it is evident that the line passes through 77 cells. We know that this will happen 10001000 times as the segment passes through points (2000,3000)(2000, 3000) and (5000,8000)(5000, 8000). Hence, Rodrigo will need to color 7(1000)=70007(1000) = 7000 cells.

Thus, C is the correct answer.

24.

Jean made a piece of stained glass art in the shape of two mountains, as shown in the figure below. One mountain peak is 88 feet high and the other peak is 1212 feet high. Each peak forms a 9090^\circ angle, and the straight sides of the mountains form 4545^\circ angles with the ground. The artwork has an area of 183183 square feet. The sides of the mountains meet at an intersection point near the center of the artwork, hh feet above the ground. What is the value of h?h?

44

55

424\sqrt{2}

66

525\sqrt{2}

Solution:

Observe that the we can extend the two mountains at the intersection point to make three triangles as shown in the diagram below.

All triangles formed are 45-45-9045^\circ\text{-}45^\circ\text{-}90^\circ triangles and so based on the given height information, we can determine that the side lengths of the triangles, from left to right, are 82,h2,8\sqrt{2}, h\sqrt{2}, and 12212\sqrt{2}. Hence, we have areas of 64,h2,64, h^2, and 144144, respectively.

To find hh, we use the total area of the diagram which we can obtain by adding the area of the two large triangles and subtracting the area of the triangle with height hh since this area was counted twice. Doing this, we get 64+144h2=18364+144-h^2=183 h2=144+64183=25h^2 = 144+64-183 = 25 h=5h=5

Thus, B is the correct answer.

25.

A small airplane has 44 rows of seats with 33 seats in each row. Eight passengers have boarded the plane and are distributed randomly among the seats. A married couple is next to board. What is the probability there will be 22 adjacent seats in the same row for the couple?

815\dfrac{8}{15}

3255\dfrac{32}{55}

2033\dfrac{20}{33}

3455\dfrac{34}{55}

811\dfrac{8}{11}

Solution:

For simplicity, we can disregard the order in which passengers are seated so we only consider the number of ways that the 1212 seats can be filled by 88 passengers for the total number of possibilities, which is given by (128)=495.{12 \choose 8} = 495.

Out of these 495495 possibilities, we consider the number of ways where no adjacent seats are available, then subtract this from 495495. This scenario can happen when two passengers are occupying the edge seats of one row or one passenger is seated in the middle seat of a row. Hence, we consider the following cases:

• No passenger is in the middle seat (all 88 passengers are on the edge seats): (88)=1{8 \choose 8} = 1 way.

• Exactly 11 passenger is in the middle seat (77 are seated on the edge seats): There are (41)=4{4 \choose 1} = 4 ways where one row can contain a passenger in the middle seat and (21)=2{2 \choose 1} = 2 ways for the eighth passenger to be seated on the row where the one passenger is sat on the middle seat. Hence, the total for this case is 4(2)=84(2) = 8 ways.

• Exactly 22 rows have a passenger in the middle seat: (42)=6 {4 \choose 2} = 6 ways to select rows with occupied middle seat and another (42)=6 {4 \choose 2} = 6 ways for the remaining 22 passengers to be seated in the rows with occupied middle seats. Thus, this case has a total of 6(6)=366(6) = 36 possibilities.

• Exactly 33 rows have occupied middle seats: (43)=4{4 \choose 3} = 4 ways to select rows with occupied middle seats and (63)=20{6 \choose 3} = 20 ways for the remaining 33 passengers to be seated on the rows with occupied middle seats, for a total of 4(20)=804(20) = 80 ways.

• All 44 rows have occupied middle seats: (84)=70{8 \choose 4} = 70 ways for the remaining 44 passengers to be seated.

Adding all the possibilities in each case, we get 1+8+36+80+70=1951+8+36+80+70 = 195 ways for there to be no two adjacent seats available. Hence, the probability that the couple will be seated together would be 495195495=2033.\dfrac{495-195}{495} = \dfrac{20}{33} .

Thus, C is the correct answer.