1985 AMC 8 Problem 22

Attempt Problem 22 of the 1985 AMC 8 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 1985 AMC 8 solutions, or check the answer key.

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22.

Assume every 77-digit whole number is a possible telephone number except those that begin with 00 or 1.1. What fraction of telephone numbers begin with 99 and end with 0?0?
163\dfrac{1}{63}
180\dfrac{1}{80}
181\dfrac{1}{81}
190\dfrac{1}{90}
1100\dfrac{1}{100}
Answer: B
Concepts:basic probabilitymultiplication principle
Small hint:
The first digit can be any of 22 through 9,9, which is 88 choices
Big hint:
Multiply the fraction of telephone numbers that begin with 99 by the fraction that end in 00
Solution:
The first digit is one of 88 allowed digits (22 through 99), so 18\dfrac18 of the numbers begin with 9.9. The last digit is any of 1010 digits, so 110\dfrac{1}{10} end in 0.0.
These conditions are independent, so the fraction is 18⋅110=180.\dfrac18 \cdot \dfrac{1}{10} = \dfrac{1}{80}.
Thus, the correct answer is B .
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