2000 AIME II Problem 15

Below is the professionally curated solution for Problem 15 of the 2000 AIME II, from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 2000 AIME II solutions, or check the answer key.

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Concepts:trigonometric identitytelescoping

Difficulty rating: 3060

15.

Find the least positive integer nn such that 1sin45sin46+1sin47sin48++1sin133sin134=1sinn.\frac{1}{\sin 45^\circ \sin 46^\circ} + \frac{1}{\sin 47^\circ \sin 48^\circ} + \cdots + \frac{1}{\sin 133^\circ \sin 134^\circ} = \frac{1}{\sin n^\circ}.

Solution:

Since sin1=sin((k+1)k)=sin(k+1)coskcos(k+1)sink,\sin 1^\circ = \sin\big((k+1)^\circ - k^\circ\big) = \sin(k+1)^\circ \cos k^\circ - \cos(k+1)^\circ \sin k^\circ, dividing by sinksin(k+1)\sin k^\circ \sin(k+1)^\circ gives 1sinksin(k+1)=cotkcot(k+1)sin1.\frac{1}{\sin k^\circ \sin(k+1)^\circ} = \frac{\cot k^\circ - \cot(k+1)^\circ}{\sin 1^\circ}. So the sum times sin1\sin 1^\circ equals cot45cot46+cot47cot48++cot133cot134,\cot 45^\circ - \cot 46^\circ + \cot 47^\circ - \cot 48^\circ + \cdots + \cot 133^\circ - \cot 134^\circ, with ++ signs on odd arguments and - signs on even arguments.

Because cot(180x)=cotx\cot(180^\circ - x) = -\cot x and supplementary arguments here have the same parity, the terms cancel in supplementary pairs: +cot133+\cot 133^\circ cancels +cot47,+\cot 47^\circ, cot134-\cot 134^\circ cancels cot46,-\cot 46^\circ, and so on for every pair of arguments summing to 180.180^\circ. The only survivors are cot45=1\cot 45^\circ = 1 (its partner 135135^\circ is out of range) and cot90=0.-\cot 90^\circ = 0.

Hence the sum equals cot45sin1=1sin1,\frac{\cot 45^\circ}{\sin 1^\circ} = \frac{1}{\sin 1^\circ}, so the least such nn is 1.1.

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