2020 AMC 8 Problem 8

Below is the video solution and professionally curated solution for Problem 8 of the 2020 AMC 8, from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 2020 AMC 8 solutions, or check the answer key.

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Concepts:linear equationoptimization

Difficulty rating: 1020

8.

Ricardo has 20202020 coins, some of which are pennies (11-cent coins) and the rest of which are nickels (55-cent coins). He has at least one penny and at least one nickel. What is the difference in cents between the greatest possible and least possible amounts of money that Ricardo can have?

80628062

80688068

80728072

80768076

80828082

Video solution:
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Written solution:

Let pp be the number of pennies Ricardo has and let nn be the number of nickels he has.

We know that p+n=2020,p+n=2020, p1,p \geq 1, and n1n \geq 1 by the problem statement.

This means 2020n=p    2020n1.\begin{align*}2020 -n &=p \\ \implies 2020 -n &\geq 1.\end{align*} Therefore, 1n2019.1 \leq n \leq 2019. It follows, then, that Ricardo has p+5n=p+n+4n=2020+4n\begin{align*}p+5n &= p+n + 4n\\ &= 2020 + 4n \end{align*} cents.

Therefore, to maximize the money he has, we maximize the number of nickels he has, and minimizing the money he has involves minimizing the number of nickels he has. The maximum number of nickels he can have is 2019,2019, so he can have at most 2020+2019(4)2020+2019(4) cents. The minimum number of nickels he can have is 1,1, so he has at least 2020+1(4)2020+1(4) cents. The difference between the maximum and minimum amount of money he can have is: 2020+2019(4)(2020+1(4))=2018(4)=8072. \begin{align*} &2020+2019(4) - (2020+1(4)) \\ &= 2018(4) = 8072 . \end{align*}

Thus, the correct answer is C.

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