2019 AMC 12A Problem 8

Below is the professionally curated solution for Problem 8 of the 2019 AMC 12A, from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 2019 AMC 12A solutions, or check the answer key.

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Concepts:counting intersectionscasework

Difficulty rating: 1380

8.

For a set of four distinct lines in a plane, there are exactly NN distinct points that lie on two or more of the lines. What is the sum of all possible values of N?N?

1414

1616

1818

1919

2121

Solution:

With four lines, the number of intersection points ranges over the achievable configurations. All parallel gives 0;0; all concurrent gives 1.1.

Working through the cases (parallel classes and points of concurrency), the achievable values are 0,1,3,4,5,6;0, 1, 3, 4, 5, 6; the value 22 is impossible.

The sum is 0+1+3+4+5+6=19.0 + 1 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 = 19.

Thus, the correct answer is D.

Problem 8 in Other Years