1999 AIME Problem 1

Attempt Problem 1 of the 1999 AIME below, then check your answer against the professionally curated solution from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 1999 AIME solutions, or check the answer key.

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1.

Find the smallest prime that is the fifth term of an increasing arithmetic sequence, all four preceding terms also being prime.

Answer: 29
Concepts:primearithmetic sequencedivisibility
Difficulty rating: 1890
Solution:

Let the terms be p,p, p+d,p + d, ,\ldots, p+4d.p + 4d. If dd were odd, consecutive terms would have opposite parity, so some term other than the first would be even and greater than 22 — impossible. If dd were not a multiple of 3,3, then p,p, p+d,p + d, p+2dp + 2d would cover all residues mod 3,3, so some term would be divisible by 3;3; that term would have to be 33 itself, forcing p=3,p = 3, but then p+3d=3(1+d)p + 3d = 3(1 + d) is composite. Hence 6d.6 \mid d.

With d6d \ge 6 the fifth term is at least p+24.p + 24. Trying p=5p = 5 and d=6d = 6 gives 5,11,17,23,29,5, 11, 17, 23, 29, all prime, and no smaller fifth term is possible since p5p \ge 5 (the starts p=2p = 2 and p=3p = 3 fail as above). The answer is 29.29.

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