1998 AMC 8 Problem 23

Attempt Problem 23 of the 1998 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 1998 AMC 8 solutions, or check the answer key.

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

23.

If the pattern in the diagram continues, what fraction of the interior would be shaded in the eighth triangle?
38\dfrac{3}{8}
527\dfrac{5}{27}
716\dfrac{7}{16}
916\dfrac{9}{16}
1145\dfrac{11}{45}
Answer: C
Concepts:triangular numberpattern recognition
Small hint:
At step n,n, there are n2n^2 small triangles.
Big hint:
The shaded count is 1+2+⋯+(n−1).1+2+\cdots+(n-1).
Solution:
The nnth triangle has n2n^2 small triangles.
The number of shaded small triangles is 1+2+⋯+(n−1)1+2+\cdots+(n-1) =n(n−1)2.=\dfrac{n(n-1)}{2}.
For n=8,n=8, the shaded fraction is 8⋅7282=716.\dfrac{\frac{8\cdot 7}{2}}{8^2}=\dfrac{7}{16}.
Thus, the correct answer is C .
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