Mathematics Department, Nueva Ecija High School

MATHEMATICS COMPETITION (School Level)

NAME:
YEAR and SECTION:

Give the CORRECT answer for each problem. (1 point each)

1. What is the value of (sin 15◦ )2 (cos 15◦ )2 ?

SOLUTION: Recall that 2 sin θ cos θ = sin(2θ). Hence,

 sin 30◦ 2  1 2 1
(sin 15◦ )2 (cos 15◦ )2 = (sin 15◦ cos 15◦ )2 = = =
2 4 16

1 √
2. What is the inverse of the function f (x) = ln(x + x2 + 1)?
3
SOLUTION: To switch the input √ and output of the function first interchange x and y in
1
the function’s formula y = 3 ln(x + x2 + 1), and then solve for y.

1 p
x= ln(y + y 2 + 1)
3
p
e3x = y + y 2 + 1
To solve for y, we have
(e3x − y)2 = y 2 + 1
e6x − 2ye3x + y 2 = y 2 + 1
2ye3x = e6x − 1
e6x − 1 e3x − e−3x
y= =
2e3x 2
3. The two roots of the quadratic equation x2 − 85x + c = 0 are prime numbers. What is the
value of c?

SOLUTION: Assuming that two prime numbers x1 and x2 4 are the solutions, then x1 +x2 = 85.
Since 85 is an odd number, either x1 or x2 must be an even number. The only even prime
number is 2. Therefore, one number must be 2 and the other 83. Hence c = 2 · 83 = 166.

4. There are 29 people in a room. Of these, 11 speak French, 24 speak English and 3 speak neither
French nor English. How many people in the room speak both French and English?

SOLUTION: There are 29 − 3 = 26 people in the room each one of whom speaks at least
one of French or English. Since 11 speak French and 24 speak English, there are exactly
11 + 24 − 26 = 9 that speak both languages.

5. What is the units digit of 625 − 324 ?

SOLUTION: Every power of six ends in 6. Also note that 324 = 816 . Since the last digit
of 81 is 1, any power of it will also end in 1. (Alternatively, for the powers of 3 we have 31 = 3,
32 = 9, 33 = 27, 34 = 81, 35 = 243, ... - the units digits repeat in cycles of length 4. Since 24
is divisible by 4, the final digit of 324 is the same as the final digit of 34 = 81, i.e. 1.) Thus the
units digit of 625 − 324 is 6 − 1 = 5.
 6. In the language BadSpeak, the alphabet contains only the letters a, b, and c. How many
4-letter words in BadSpeak contain the letter ”c”?

SOLUTION: There are 34 = 81 4-letter words in BadSpeak. Of these, 24 = 16 do not contain

the letter ”c”. Hence 81 − 16 = 65 words do contain the letter ”c”.
7. The top of a rectangular box has area 40 square inches, the front has area 48 square inches,
and the side has area 30 square inches. How high is the box?

SOLUTION: Let x, y, z be the width, depth, and height of the box, respectively. Then xy = 40,
xz = 48 and yz = 30. Hence
x2 y 2 z 2 = (xy)(yz)(xz) = 40 · 48 · 30 = 57600
xyz 240
Therefore, xyz = 240 and z = = = 6.
xy 40
2π 4π 6π 8π
8. What is the value of sin( ) + sin( ) + sin( ) + sin( )?
5 5 5 5
8π
SOLUTION: Since sin(2π − x) = sin(−x) = − sin(x) for all real numbers x, we have sin( ) =
5
2π 6π 4π
− sin( ), and sin( ) = − sin( ). Therfore, the sum is 0.
5 5 5
√
q p
9. Find x if x + x + x + x + · · · = 2.

SOLUTION: We have r
√
q
x+ x+ x+ x+···=2
r
√
q
x+ x+ x+···=2−x
r
√
q
( x + x + x + · · ·)2 = (2 − x)2
r
√
q
x + x + x + x + · · · = 4 − 4x + x2
2 = 4 − 4x + x2
x2 − 4x + 2 = 0
√ √
By the quadratic
r formula, q we obtain x = 2 + 2 and x = 2 − 2.
√ √ √ p √
But 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + · · · = 2 means that
s r
√ √ √ √
q
2+ 2+ 2+ 2+ 2+ 2+ 2+···=0
√
, which is impossible. Therefore, the only solution is x = 2 − 2.
10. Suppose that the angle between the minute hand and hour hand of a clock is 60◦ . If the minute
hand is 16 inches long and the hour hand is 10 inches long, then what is the distance between
the tip ends of the hands in inches?

SOLUTION: This is a direct application of the Law of Cosines with two sides of a triangle
having lengths 10 inches and 16 inches and the angle between them being 60◦ . If x denotes the
distance between the tips of the hands in inches, then
x2 = 102 + 162 − 2(10)(16) cos(60◦ ) = 100 + 256 − 160 = 196
Hence, x = 14.
11. The squares of three consecutive positive integers are added to obtain 770. What is the smallest
of these integers?

SOLUTION: Suppose that n denotes the middle number. Then, we have

(n − 1)2 + n2 + (n + 1)2 = n2 − 2n + 1 + n2 + n2 + 2n + 1
= 3n2 + 2

Then, 3n2 = 768, n2 = 256 and n = 16.

Therefore, the smallest number is 15 since 152 + 162 + 172 = 770.
√ √
12. There are unique integers a and b for which (1 + 3)3 = a + b 5. What is a + b?
√ √ √ √ √
SOLUTION: We have (1 + 5)3 = 1 + 3 5 + 3( 5)2 + ( 5)3 = 16 + 8 5. Then, a + b =
16 + 8 = 24.

13. What is the probability of obtaining an ace on both the first and second draws from an ordinary
deck of 52 playing cards when the first card is not replaced before the second is drawn?
4 1
SOLUTION: The probability of obtaining an ace on the first draw is = . If the first
52 13
card drawn is an ace there are 3 aces remaining in the deck, which now consists of 51 cards.
3 1
Thus, the probability of getting an ace on the second draw is = . The required probability
51 17
1
is the product of the two, which is .
221
14. A ladder is leaning against a wall with the top of the ladder 8 feet above the ground. If the
bottom of the ladder is moved 2 feet farther from the wall, the top of the ladder slides all the
way down the wall and rests against the foot of he wall. How long is the ladder?

SOLUTION: If the base is x feet from the wall in the initial position, then the ladder must be
x + 2 feet long. The Pythagoras theorem gives x2 + 82 = (x + 2)2 which yields x = 15. The
length of the ladder is 17 feet.

15. Let the number a be defined as follows.

loga (10) + loga (102 ) + · · · + loga (1010 ) = 110

What is a?

SOLUTION: By the rules for logarithms, the expression given is

loga (10 · 102 · 103 · · · 1010 ) = loga (101+2+3+···+10 )

10·11
= loga (10 2 )
= loga (1055 )
55
= 55 loga (10) =
log10 (a)
√
Therefore, log10 (a) = 12 , so that a = 10.

16. The four angles of a quadrilateral form an arithmetic sequence. The largest is 15 degrees less
than twice the smallest. What is the degree measure of the largest angle?

SOLUTION: Let the angles be a, a + d, a + 2d, and a + 3d. Then 4a + 6d = 360 and
a + 3d + 15 = 2a. Thus a = 3d + 15, so we can replace a with 3d + 15 in the first equation.
Solve this to get 3d = 50 and a = 50 + 15 = 65, so the largest angle is 65 + 50 = 115 degrees.
17. The mean of the 7-member list x, 3x − 4, 4x − 3,−16, 9, 5x + 2, and x − 2 is 4. What is the
median of the list?

SOLUTION: The sum of the seven is 7x − 7 = 7(x − 1) which is 28 because the mean is
4. It follows that x = 3 and the list in order by value is −16, 1, 3, 5, 9, 9, 17, so the median is
5.
sin(3x) + sin(x)
18. For all values of x, what is the exact value of ?
sin 2x cos x
SOLUTION:
sin(3x) + sin(x) sin(2x + x) + sin(2x − x)
=
sin 2x cos x sin 2x cos x
sin(2x) cos(x) + cos(2x) sin(x) + sin(2x) cos(x) − cos(2x) sin(x)
=
sin 2x cos x
2 sin(2x) cos(x)
=
sin 2x cos x
=2

19. How many two-digit integers are there where the tens digit is greater than the units digit?

SOLUTION: If the units digits is 0 then there are 9 possible tens digit which is greater than 0.
Now discuss the cases when the units digit is 1 through 9. We have total 9 + 8 + · · · + 2 + 1 = 45.

20. The base of a regular square pyramid is inscribed in the base of a cylinder. The height of the
cylinder is triple the height of the pyramid. Find the ratio of the volume of the pyramid to the
volume of the cylinder.

SOLUTION: Let r be the radius of the base of the cylinder, and s be the side of the square
s2 h
base of the pyramid. Then s2 = r2 + r2 = 2r2 . The volume Vp of the pyramid is . The
3
Vp 2
volume Vc of the cylinder is πr2 (3h). The ratio is therefore = .
Vc 9π
21. Five test scores have a mean (average score) of 91, a median (middle score) of 92 and a mode
(most frequent score) of 95. What is the sum of the two lowest test scores?

SOLUTION:The five scores must be of the form x,y, 92, 95, 95 and have a sum of 5 · 91 = 455.
Therefore x + y = 173.

22. Suppose m and n are positive integers with mn = 40000. Suppose further that neither m nor
n is divisible by 10. What is the value of m + n?

SOLUTION: Note that 40000 = 4 · 104 = 26 54 . Since mn = 26 54 and neither m nor n is

divisible by 10 we get that one of the numbers m and n equals 26 and the other is 54 . So,
m + n = 26 + 54 = 689.

23. If you expand (x + 2y)6 , what is the sum of all the coefficients?

SOLUTION: We have (x + 2y)6 = x6 + 6 · 2x5 y + 15 · 4x4 y 2 + 20 · 8x3 y 3 + 15 · 16x2 y 4 + 6 · 32xy 5 +

64y 6 ,then 1 + 6 · 2 + 15 · 4 + 20 · 8 + 15 · 16 + 6 · 32 + 64 = 1 + 12 + 60 + 160 + 240 + 192 + 64 = 729.

24. The line y = x intersects the circle (x − 3)2 + (y − 2)2 = 1 in two points. What is the sum of
the x-coordinates of the two points?

SOLUTION: Replacing y with x yields (x−3)2 +(x−2)2 = 1 which reduces to 2x2 −10x+12 = 0,
the sum of whose zeros is −(−10/2) = 5. Alternatively, solve the quadratic for x = 2andx = 3.
 For yet another solution, notice that the center of the circle is the point (3, 2) and the radius is
1. Since 3 − 3 = 0 and 3 − 2 = 1, one of the points is (3, 3). The other is (2, 2) since (2 − 3)2 = 1
and 2 − 2 = 0. Thus the sum is 5.

25. Find the value of

1 1 1 1
+ + +···+
log2 (2019!) log3 (2019!) log4 (2019!) log2019 (2019!)

SOLUTION: Converting all logarithms to the same base, say 10, we obtain that the sum in
the problem is equal to

log10 (2) log10 (3) log10 (4) log10 (2019)

+ + +···+
log10 (2019!) log10 (2019!) log10 (2019!) log10 (2019!)

The denominators are all the same and the numerators sum to log10 (2 × 3 × 4 · · · ×2019) =
log10 (2019!). It follows that the above sum is equal to 1.

26. A group of people, cats, and birds has seventy legs, thirty heads, and twenty tails. How many
cats are among this group?

SOLUTION: Write P, C, and B for the number of people, cats, and birds respectively, so
that we have 2P + 4C + 2B = 70, P + C + B = 30 and C + B = 20. Comparing the last two
equations we obtain P = 10, and the first equation simplifies to 4C + 2B = 50, or 2C + B = 25.
Therefore,
C = (2C + B) − (C + B) = 25 − 20 = 5

27. We roll three (six-sided) dice at once. What is the probability that at least two of the dice will
show the same number?
1
SOLUTION: There are 63 = 216 possible outcomes, each occurring with probability .
216
For six of these, all three numbers will be same. The number of times exactly two are the same
is 3 · 6 · 5 = 90: choose which die is different and that value (3 · 6 = 18 choices for this), then
choose the number that is the same for the other two die (5 choices). So the probability at least
96 4
two are the same is = . Or count how many where all three are different, 6 · 5 · 4 = 120,
216 9
subtract this number from 216 and then divide by 216.

28. In a course ”Leadership in Mathematics” there are several tests. Each test is worth 100 points.
After the last test John realized that if he had received 97 points for the last test, his average
score for the course would have been a 90, and that if he had made a 73, his average score
would have been an 87. How many tests are there in the course?

SOLUTION: Denote by N the number of tests in the course and by S the sum of John’s
scores for all but the last test. Then we can write the following system of equations:
S + 97
= 90
N
S + 73
= 87
N
Solving this system for N we obtain N = 8.

29. What is the largest prime divisor of 216 − 16?

SOLUTION: 216 − 16 = 24 (212 − 1) = 24 (26 − 1)(26 + 1) = 24 · 63 · 65 = 24 · 9 · 7 · 5 · 13.

Therefore, the largest prime divisor is 13.
 √
30. If x2 + xy + y 2 = 84 and x − xy + y = 6, then what is xy?
√
SOLUTION: Rewrite the second equation as x+y = 6+ xy. Squaring then gives x2 +y 2 +2xy =
√
36 + xy + 12 xy. Subtracting this equation from x2 + xy + y 2 = 84 and simplifying gives
√
48 = 12 xy, thus xy = 16.

31. Danica was driving in a 500 mile race. After 250 miles, Danica’s average speed was 150 miles
per hour. Approximately how fast should Danica drive the second half of the race if she wants
to attain an overall average of 180 miles per hour?
250 5
SOLUTION: Danica has driven for = hours so far. If she drives the remaining 250
150 3
500 10
miles in x hours we need 5 = 180. This gives x = so her average speed must be
3+x
9
250
= 225 mph.
x
32. Seven women and seven men attend a party. At this party, each man shakes hands with each
other person once. Each woman shakes hands only with men. How many handshakes took
place at the party?
7·6
SOLUTION: Seven men can shake hands with each other in = 21 ways. The men can
2
shake hands with the women in 7 · 7 = 49 ways. Adding these, we get 70 handshakes.

33. Find the value/s of x such that (2x − 4x )2 + (2x + 4x )2 = 144.

SOLUTION: To simplify the calculation, let t = 2x . Then

144 = (t − t2 )2 + (t + t2 )2 = 2(t2 + t4 )
3
Thus t4 + t2 − 72 = (t2 + 9)(t2 − 8) = 0 and hence t2 = 22x = 8 = 23 . Therefore x = .
2
34. Let O be a point inside the square ABCD such that its distances to the vertices are OA = 10,
OB = 9, OC = 5, OD = x. What is the value of x?

SOLUTION: Let a, b, c, and d be the lengths of the perpendiculars drawn from the point O
to the sides AB, BC, CD, and DA, respectively. Then, by the Pythagorean theorem, we have
OA2 = a2 + d2 , OB 2 = a2 + b2 , OC 2 = b2 + c2 , and OD2 = c2 + d2 . Adding the third equation to
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
the first, and the fourth to the second,
√ we find that OA√+OC = OB +OD = a +b +c +d .
2 2 2 2
Thus 10 + 5 = 9 + x , and x = 100 + 25 − 81 = 44.

35. The equation x3 − 4x2 − 11x + a has three roots x1 , x2 , and x3 . If x1 = x2 + x3 , what is a?

SOLUTION: Because the polynomial in question can be written as (x − x1 )(x − x2 )(x − x3 ),

we have x1 + x2 + x3 = 4. Thus x1 = x2 + x3 = 2.
Similarly x1 x2 + x1 x3 + x2 x3 = −11, and we have

−11 = x1 x2 + x1 x3 + x2 x3 = x1 (x2 + x3 ) + x2 x3 = 4 + x2 x3

so that x2 x3 = −15. Thus, a = −x1 x2 x3 = 30.

36. Suppose A and B are sets with 5 and 7 elements respectively and A ∩ B has 2 elements. How
many elements does A ∪ B have?

SOLUTION: The inclusion-exclusion principle states that for any pair of sets A and B, |A∪B| =
|A| + |B| − |A ∩ B|, which in this case yields |A ∪ B| = 5 + 7 − 2 = 10.
37. The area bounded by the graph of the function y = |x| and by the line y = c is 5. What is c
equal to?

SOLUTION: The area bounded by √ the two graphs is a triangle with base 2c and height c.
2
Thus its area is c = 5, hence c = 5.

38. Consider the number x defined by the periodic continued fraction

1
1
2+
1
3+
1
2+
3+···
Then, what is the value of x?

SOLUTION: Note that x is embedded in its defining fraction, and that

1
x= 1
2 + 3+x
√
2 −3 − 15
This is equivalent to the quadratic 2x + 6x − 3 = 0 which has two solutions, and
√ √ 2
−3 + 15 −3 + 15
, the first of which is extraneous. Therefore, x = .
2 2
39. In five years Vic will be half as old as his dad. Twenty five years ago he was one-eighth as old
as his dad. How old was his dad on the day Vic was born?

SOLUTION:Let x denote Vic’s current age and y Vic’s dads current age. The problem in-
1 1
formation yields the following linear system: x + 5 = (y + 5) and x − 25 = (y − 25). The
2 8
system can be solved for x = 30, y = 65. So, Vic’s dad was 65 − 30 = 35 on the day Vic was
born.
Alternatively, let x be Vic’s current age and y be ”’Dad’s” current age. In making equations,
1
convert ”half” to ”twice” and ” ” to ”eight times” to get the relations 2(x + 5) = y + 5 and
8
8(x − 25) = y − 25. From these, 2x + 5 = 8x − 175, so x = 30 and y = 65. Thus Dad was
35 = 65 − 30 when Vic was born.

40. Let 3a = 4, 4b = 5, 5c = 6, 6d = 7, 7e = 8, and 8f = 9. What is value of the product abcdef ?

SOLUTION: From 3abcdef = (3a )bcdef = (4b )cdef = (5c )def = (6d )ef = (7e )f = 8f = 9, we
deduce abcdef = 2.
5x − 11 A B
41. The fraction 2
was obtained by adding the two fractions and . Find
2x + x − 6 x+2 2x − 3
the value of A − B.

5x − 11 A B A(2x − 3) B(x + 2)
SOLUTION: = + = + . Also, note
2x2 + x − 6 x + 2 2x − 3 (x + 2)(2x − 3) (x + 2)(2x − 3)
that 5x − 11 = (2A + B)x − (3A − 2B), 2A + B = 5 and 3A − 2B = 11. Solving this system
of equations we obtain A = 3 and B = −1, so A − B = 4.

42. A 4×4×4 wooden cube is painted on all 6 faces and then cut into 64 unit cubes. One unit cube
is randomly selected and rolled. What is the probability that exactly one of the five visible
faces is painted?

SOLUTION: There are 6 · 4 = 24 cubes with one face painted, and these show one painted face
 5
with probability . There are 12 · 2 = 24 cubes with two painted faces and these show one
6
1
painted face with probability . The other 16 cubes show one painted face with probability 0.
3
24 5 24 1 7
So the probability that one painted face shows is p = · + · = .
64 6 64 3 16
43. Factor completely: x4 + 4y 4 .

SOLUTION: Add and subtract 4x2 y 2 to get x4 + 4y 4 = x4 + 4x2 y 2 + 4y 4 − 4x2 y 2 = (x2 +

2y 2 )2 − (2xy)2 = (x2 − 2xy + 2y 2 )(x2 + 2xy + 2y 2 ).
44. Suppose that f (x) = ax + b, where a and b are real numbers. Given that f (f (f (x))) = 8x + 21,
what is the value of ab + ba ?

SOLUTION: f (f (f (x))) = a3 x + a2 b + ab + b = 8x + 21 so a = 2 and 7b = 21. Therefore

ab + ba = 23 + 32 = 17.
45. How many solutions of the equation cos(7x) = cos(5x) are in the interval [0, π]?

SOLUTION: We have cos(5x) − cos(7x) = cos(6x − x) − cos(6x + x) = 2 sin(6x) sin(x). There-

π
fore, the solutions in [0, π] are the numbers k for k = 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Therefore, there are six
6
solutions.
46. Find the number of odd divisors of 7!.

SOLUTION: The prime factorization of 7! is 24 · 32 · 5 · 7. Each odd factor of 7! is a product of

odd prime factors, and there are 3 · 2 · 2 = 12 ways to choose the three exponents.
47. How many times in a 24 hour period do the hour and minute hands of a clock form a right angle?

SOLUTION: The minute hand moves 360 degrees in 60 minutes, or 6 degrees per minute.
The hour hand moves 360 degrees in 12 hours or 0.5 degrees per minute. Since the minute
90
hand travels 5.5 degrees per minute faster than the hour hand, it gains 90 degrees every
5.5
1440
minutes. In 24 hours (1440 minutes) 90 degrees is gained = 88 times. For half of these
90
5.5
times, the angular difference between the hands is 180 or zero degrees. The hands are at a
right angle the remaining 44 times.
48. What is the range of the following function?
x+1
f (x) =
x2 + 1

SOLUTION: Assume λ ∈ R is in the range of this function. Solve for x in the equation
x+1
=λ
x2 + 1
to get the equivalent (quadratic) equation λx2 − x + (λ − 1) = 0. The discriminant of the
solution, ∆ = 1 − 4λ(λ − 1) indicates precisely what values of √ λ are acceptable.
√ Solving the
1− 2 1+ 2
corresponding inequality λ ≥ 0 offers the answer, which is [ , ]
2 2
49. The triangle 4ABC has sides of the following lengths: AB = 24, BC = 7, and AC = 25. Let
M be the midpoint of AB. What is the length of CM ?

SOLUTION: Since 242 + 72 = 252 , 4ABC is a right triangle. Thus, √

4M BC is also a right
2 2 2 2 2
triangle and CM = BM + BC = 12 + 7 = 193.Therefore, CM = 193.
 p √ p √
50. What is the value of 10 + 4 6 − 10 − 4 6?

SOLUTION: Square the expression algebraically, and simplify. Several easy cancellations give
us 16, and now we take the square root, which is 4.

GOOD LUCK and GOD BLESS!!!