2016 AMC 12B Problem 16

Attempt Problem 16 of the 2016 AMC 12B 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 2016 AMC 12B solutions, or check the answer key.

All problems are used with official legal permission of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA).

16.

In how many ways can 345345 be written as the sum of an increasing sequence of two or more consecutive positive integers?
11
33
55
66
77
Answer: E
Concepts:arithmetic sequencefactor countingcasework
Small hint:
A run of kk consecutive integers equals kk times its median, and 345=3⋅5⋅23345=3\cdot5\cdot23
Big hint:
For odd k,k, the median is an integer factor; for even k,k, the median is a half-integer. Count both while keeping all terms positive
Solution:
A sum of consecutive integers equals the count times the median. For an odd number of terms, the median is an integer divisor of 345,345, giving runs of 33 (median 115115), 55 (median 6969), 1515 (median 2323), and 2323 (median 1515) terms. For an even number of terms the median is a half-integer. The positive possibilities have lengths 2,6,10,2,6,10, with respective medians 172.5,57.5,34.5.172.5,57.5,34.5. Longer divisor-based runs would force a nonpositive first term. This gives 4+3=74+3=7 ways.
Thus, the correct answer is E.
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