2002 AIME I Problem 9

Attempt Problem 9 of the 2002 AIME I 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 2002 AIME I solutions, or check the answer key.

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9.

Harold, Tanya, and Ulysses paint a very long picket fence.

• Harold starts with the first picket and paints every hhth picket;

• Tanya starts with the second picket and paints every ttth picket; and

• Ulysses starts with the third picket and paints every uuth picket.

Call the positive integer 100h+10t+u100h + 10t + u paintable when the triple (h,t,u)(h, t, u) of positive integers results in every picket being painted exactly once. Find the sum of all the paintable integers.

Answer: 757
Concepts:arithmetic sequencemodular arithmeticcasework
Difficulty rating: 2840
Solution:

The three progressions {1,1+h,},\{1, 1 + h, \ldots\}, {2,2+t,},\{2, 2 + t, \ldots\}, {3,3+u,}\{3, 3 + u, \ldots\} must partition the positive integers. If h=1,h = 1, Harold paints every picket and overlaps the other two painters. If h=2,h = 2, Harold paints picket 3,3, which Ulysses also paints, so h3.h \ge 3. If h5,h \ge 5, consider picket 4:4: Harold's next picket is 1+h6,1 + h \ge 6, and Ulysses cannot paint it (that would need u=1,u = 1, repainting everything from 33 on), so Tanya must, forcing t=2.t = 2. Then picket 55 is unpainted unless u=2,u = 2, but then Tanya and Ulysses together cover every picket from 22 on, and Harold's picket 1+h1 + h is painted twice. So h=3h = 3 or h=4.h = 4.

If h=3,h = 3, Harold paints 1,4,7,.1, 4, 7, \ldots. Ulysses cannot paint picket 55 (then u=2u = 2 and he would repaint 77), so Tanya does: t=3,t = 3, covering 2,5,8,.2, 5, 8, \ldots. What remains is exactly 3,6,9,,3, 6, 9, \ldots, so u=3,u = 3, giving 333.333. If h=4,h = 4, Harold paints 1,5,9,;1, 5, 9, \ldots; picket 44 again forces t=2,t = 2, and the leftover pickets 3,7,11,3, 7, 11, \ldots force u=4,u = 4, giving 424.424.

The sum of the paintable integers is 333+424=757.333 + 424 = 757.

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