2014 SOLUTIONS

Australian Mathematics Competition

sponsored by the Commonwealth Bank

A u s t r a l i a n M at h e mat i c s T r u s t

www.amt.edu.au
2014 SOLUTIONS
Australian Mathematics Competition
sponsored by the Commonwealth Bank

CONTENTS
Middle Primary Division 1

Upper Primary Division 12

Junior Division 26

Intermediate Division 39

Senior Division 54

Answers 69

A u s t r a l i a n M a t h e ma t i c s T r u s t
 Published by

AM T P u b l i s h i n g

Australian Mathematics Trust

University of Canberra
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Canberra GPO ACT 2601
AUSTRALIA
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www.amt.edu.au

Copyright ©2014 AMT Publishing

AMTT Limited ACN 083 950 341
ISSN 1833-8658
 Middle Primary Division
Solutions – Middle Primary Division
1. 8+4=
(A) 4 (B) 8 (C) 12 (D) 32 (E) 84

8 + 4 = 12,
hence (C).

2. Today is Thursday. What day will it be in 10 days time?

(A) Monday (B) Tuesday (C) Wednesday

(D) Saturday (E) Sunday

Seven days from today is also Thursday, and three days after that is Sunday,
hence (E).

3. Simon has a collection of 27 toy cars. He wants to put them into groups of 3 cars.
How many groups will he have?

(A) 24 (B) 9 (C) 12 (D) 8 (E) 30

The number of groups will be 27 ÷ 3 = 9,

hence (B).

4. I have a $10 note and an ice-cream costs $2.20. What is the greatest number of
ice-creams I can buy?

(A) 3 (B) 4 (C) 5 (D) 6 (E) 7

4 times $2.20 equals $8.80.

5 times $2.20 is more than $10,
hence (B).

5. Which one of the following shapes has a line of symmetry?

(A) (B) (C)

(D) (E)

Shape (A) has a line of symmetry.

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Division 1 1
 None of the others have a line of symmetry, since for each one, its reflection

cannot be placed directly on top of the original,

hence (A).

6. Bill types a number into his calculator so that upside down, it looks like BILL. What
is the number?
(A) 8111 (B) 8177 (C) 7713 (D) 3177 (E) 7718

8111 8177 7713 3177

The given numbers upside down are (A) , (B) , (C) , (D) , and
7718 7718
(E) . The one that resembles BILL is , and on a calculator this looks like
and right way up ,
hence (E).

7. Tom wasn’t feeling well. His doctor read his temperature at 1.8◦ C above normal,
which is usually 37◦ C. What, in degrees Celsius, was Tom’s temperature?

(A) 35.2 (B) 37.18 (C) 37.8 (D) 38.7 (E) 38.8

37 + 1.8 = 38.8,
hence (E).

8. (Also UP2)
Which shape can make a pyramid if you fold along the dotted lines?

(A) (B) (C)

(D) (E)

Since each of (A)–(E) have a square, the only possible pyramid is a square-based
pyramid, which has one square face and 4 triangular faces,
hence (A).

2 2014 AMC – Middle Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Middle Primary Division2
 9. The chairs on the main ski lift at Thredbo are numbered from 26 to 100. How many
such chairs are there?
(A) 24 (B) 25 (C) 74 (D) 75 (E) 76

This is all the numbers from 1 to 100 except the first 25. Then 100 − 25 = 75,
hence (D).

10. Cecily is 10 years older than Naida. Naida is 6 years younger than Joycelyn. If Cecily
is now 42, how old is Joycelyn?

(A) 32 (B) 34 (C) 36 (D) 38 (E) 40

This year Naida is 42 − 10 = 32 and Joycelyn is 32 + 6 = 38,

hence (D).

11. Stuart and Susan are brother and sister. She says ‘I have a sister’ and he says ‘I have
a brother’. What is the smallest possible number of children in their family?

(A) 2 (B) 3 (C) 4 (D) 5 (E) 6

Other than Stuart and Susan, there is at least one sister who is not Susan and one
brother who is not Stuart. So the smallest number of children possible is 4,
hence (C).

12. (Also UP4)

The year 5 students at my local school were surveyed to find which one of the four
teams in the local football competition they followed.

8
7
6
5
Followers
4
3
2
1
0
Butcher- Gang- Lorikeets Rosellas
birds gangs
Team

How many more students followed the most popular team than followed the least
popular team?

(A) 3 (B) 4 (C) 5 (D) 6 (E) 8

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Division 3 3
 The most popular team is the Butcherbirds with 8 followers, and the least is the
Lorikeets with 2 followers. So 8 − 2 = 6 more students followed the Butcherbirds
than the Lorikeets,
hence (D).

13. Lesley needs to catch the school bus at 7:30 am on school mornings. She takes
25 minutes to get ready and 10 minutes to walk to the bus stop from home. In order
to catch the bus, what is the latest time she can get up?

(A) 6:45 am (B) 6:55 am (C) 7:00 am (D) 7:05 am (E) 7:10 am

She needs to get up 35 minutes before 7:30 am, which is 5 minutes before 7:00 am,
hence (B).

14. (Also UP3)

A square of paper is folded in half to make a triangle, then in half to make a smaller
triangle, then in half again to make an even smaller triangle.

How many layers of paper are in the final triangle?

(A) 3 (B) 4 (C) 6 (D) 8 (E) 12

Each folding doubles the number of layers:

1
8
4
2
hence (D).

4 2014 AMC – Middle Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Middle Primary Division4
 15. (Also UP9)
This 4 × 4 square grid can be covered by three shapes made from 1 × 1 squares. None
of the shapes overlap.

If two of the shapes are

then the third shape is

(A) (B) (C)

(D) (E)

The ‘L’ can fit either with both arms along the sides of the square or with only the
short arm.
(i) (ii)

However, the ‘S’ will only fit in (i). The ‘S’ will fit in several positions, but only one
position will keep the remaining space to be filled in one piece,

hence (B).

16. Miranda ties two ribbons in her hair each day before school. She can choose from
her school’s colours of red, blue and white. She has a bag of school ribbons with at
least four of each colour in it. Without looking, she pulls out some ribbons. How
many must she pull out to be sure of a pair of the same colour?

(A) 2 (B) 3 (C) 4 (D) 5 (E) 6

If she pulls out 3 ribbons or fewer, they could all be different colours, so she can’t be
sure of a pair.

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Division 5 5
 However, with 4 (or more) ribbons they can’t all be different colours. That is, there
must be a pair of ribbons the same colour,
hence (C).

17. Four rectangles, each 100 cm long and 20 cm wide,

are arranged around a square without overlapping, as
shown.
How long is each side of the middle square?

(A) 60 cm (B) 80 cm (C) 90 cm

(D) 100 cm (E) 120 cm

The 100 cm length of one of the rectangles is equal to the side of the shaded square
plus the 20 cm width of the rectangle. So the side of the square is 100 − 20 = 80 cm,
hence (B).

18. In this diagram, when you multiply the two num-

bers in the circles you get the same answer as when 12 ?
you multiply the two numbers in the squares. What
is the missing number?

(A) 3 (B) 4 (C) 5

(D) 6 (E) 10 15 5

The numbers in the circles multiply to 60, so the unknown square has 60 ÷ 15 = 4 in
it,
hence (B).

19. Li has some small tiles, each 3 cm by 2 cm, which he puts together without overlapping
to make a filled-in square. What is the smallest number of these tiles for which this
can be done?
(A) 2 (B) 3 (C) 4 (D) 5 (E) 6

Each tile has area 6 cm2 and so the square’s area must be a multiple of 6. The first
square number that is a multiple of 6 is 36 = 62 . A 6 × 6 square can be tiled

and this uses six tiles,

hence (E).

6 2014 AMC – Middle Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Middle Primary Division6
 20. A party game played with a six-sided dice is fair if the chance of winning is equal to
the chance of losing each time the dice is rolled. Which one of these games is fair?

(A) You win if you roll a 6.

(B) You win if you roll a 2 or a 5.
(C) You win if you roll a number greater than 4.
(D) You win if you roll a number less than 3.
(E) You win if you roll an odd number.

For each game there are 6 possible numbers you can roll and each is just as likely.
So a game will be fair if there are 3 winning rolls and 3 losing rolls.

Game (A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

Winning rolls 6 2,5 5,6 1,2 1,3,5
Losing rolls 1,2,3,4,5 1,3,4,6 1,2,3,4 3,4,5,6 2,4,6

hence (E).

21. (Also UP13)

Which of the shaded areas below is the largest?

A B C D E

(A) A (B) B (C) C (D) D (E) E

Alternative 1
Counting = 1 and = 1 , the areas are A = 8 1 , B = 7, C = 6, D = 8, E = 7,
2 2
hence (A).
Comment
There are some direct comparisons that rule out some areas as being largest. For
instance, B is clearly smaller than D, so B is not the largest. Also B and E have the
same area, so E is not the largest.
Alternative 2
A common area to all shapes is a triangle , so we count these:

17 14 12 16 14

hence (A).

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 22. Joseph had some cash in his pocket. He had three of each of the Australian coins.

5
20 1
cents
cents dollar
50
10 cents 2
cents dollars

When he took them out to count them, he dropped the coins and lost some down
the drain! He found $11.05. How much did he lose?
(A) $1.05 (B) 90c (C) 60c (D) 50c (E) 45c

Counting three of each coin, we get 0.15 + 0.30 + 0.60 + 1.50 + 3.00 + 6.00 = 11.55.
Then 11.55 − 11.05 = 0.50, so Joseph must have lost 50c,
hence (D).

23. There are 15 children attending a birthday party and we order some pizzas. Each
pizza will be sliced into 8 equal pieces. What is the smallest number of pizzas we
need to order to make sure that each child can eat 3 pieces?

(A) 4 (B) 5 (C) 6 (D) 7 (E) 8

We need 15 × 3 = 45 slices. Five pizzas only give us 40 slices so we need six,

hence (C).

24. Jack is 8 years old and his sister Charlotte is 14 years old. When Jack’s and Char-
lotte’s ages add up to 48, how old will Jack be?

(A) 18 (B) 21 (C) 22 (D) 24 (E) 31

Alternative 1
Now, their ages add to 8 + 14 = 22, which is 26 less than the total of 48 needed.
Every year from now, the sum of their two ages will go up by 2 years, and so it will
take 13 years before the sum of their ages is 48. Then Jack will be 21 and Charlotte
will be 27,
hence (B).
Alternative 2
Their average age is currently 11, and Jack is 3 years younger than this. When their
ages add to 48, their average age will be 48 ÷ 2 = 24 and Jack will still be 3 years
younger than this, or 21 years old,
hence (B).

8 2014 AMC – Middle Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Middle Primary Division8
 25. In this magic square, the even numbers
18
2, 4, 6, . . . , 18

are placed so that the sums of the numbers in each 14 6

row, column and diagonal are equal.
What is the sum of the two numbers in the shaded 16
squares?

(A) 12 (B) 14 (C) 18

(D) 22 (E) 28

The total of nine numbers in the square is

2 + 4 + 6 + 8 + 10 + 12 + 14 + 16 + 18 = 90.

Then each row, and each column, must add to 30. Looking at the last column and
the middle row, the shaded squares can be filled in to make totals of 30.

18 8

14 10 6

16

The two shaded squares are 10 + 8 = 18,

hence (C).

26. Six different whole numbers, chosen from the numbers from 1 to 100, add up to 100.
What is the greatest possible value of the largest of these numbers?

To make the largest number as large as possible, we make all the others as small as
possible. The smallest five numbers from 1 to 100 are 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 = 15, and so
the largest the sixth can be is 100 − 15 = 85,
hence (85).

27. A number is palindromic if it reads the same forwards as backwards. For example,
686 is palindromic. How many numbers from 100 to 300 are palindromic?

From 100 to 199 the numbers must start and end with 1. So 101, 111, 121, . . . , 191,
giving 10 palindromes. Similarly there are another 10 from 200 to 299, and 300 is
not one. In total there are 20,
hence (20).

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Division 9 9
 28. A group of 64 students went rowing. They were given 12 rowing boats, each boat
either large or small. The large boats each carried 6 students and the small ones 4
students. How many large boats were they given?

Alternative 1
There can’t be as many as 11 large boats, so make a table:

Large boats Boats 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Students 0 6 12 18 24 30 36 42 48 54 60
Small boats Boats 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
Students 48 44 40 36 32 28 24 20 16 12 8
All boats Boats 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12
Students 48 50 52 54 56 58 60 62 64 66 68

So the only possibility is 4 small and 8 large boats,

hence (8).
Alternative 2
With 12 small boats, only 48 of the students fit, so 16 students would miss out. For
each large boat replacing a small boat, an additional 2 students fit, so 8 large boats
are required,
hence (8).

29. In the school hall there are square tables and chairs to put around them.

Each table is big enough to seat 4 people. The tables can be joined in a long row to
seat more people. For example, a row of four tables can seat 10 people.

If the school needs to set up three long rows to seat 240 people, how many tables are
needed?

Alternative 1
There will be 6 seats at the ends of the rows and 234 down the sides of the tables.
Since there are two ‘side’ chairs for every table, there will be 234 ÷ 2 = 117 tables,
hence (117).
Alternative 2
Putting 80 seats per row, each row will be 1 across and 39 long, and so have 39 tables.
So there will be 3 × 39 = 117 tables,
hence (117).

10 2014 AMC – Middle Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Middle Primary Division10
 30. How many 2-digit numbers are there where one digit is a multiple of the other and
neither digit is zero? For example, 11 and 26, but not 96 or 40.

In this table we identify the 90 two-digit numbers by the possible first and last digit
and mark those where one digit divides the other.

Second digit Count

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
1 9
2 5
3 4
First digit

4 4
5 2
6 4
7 2
8 4
9 + 3
37

hence (37).
Comment
A nice way to work with this table is to use its symmetry. Along the diagonal are
9 numbers: 11, . . . , 99. Above the diagonal (shaded) are the 14 numbers where the
first digit is less than the second. Below the diagonal there are another 14, due to
mirror symmetry in the diagonal. Then 2 × 14 + 9 = 37.

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Division 11 11
 Upper Primary Division
Solutions – Upper Primary Division

1. What is the value of 7 + 6 + 4 + 3?

(A) 20 (B) 19 (C) 18 (D) 17 (E) 16

7 + 3 = 10 and 6 + 4 = 10 so 7 + 6 + 4 + 3 = 20,
hence (A).

2. (Also MP8)
Which shape can make a pyramid if you fold along the dotted lines?

(A) (B) (C)

(D) (E)

Since each of (A)–(E) have a square, the only possible pyramid is a square-based
pyramid, which has one square face and 4 triangular faces,
hence (A).

3. (Also MP14)
A square of paper is folded in half to make a triangle, then in half to make a smaller
triangle, then in half again to make an even smaller triangle.

How many layers of paper are in the final triangle?

(A) 3 (B) 4 (C) 6 (D) 8 (E) 12

Each folding doubles the number of layers:

1
8
4
2
hence (D).

12 2014 AMC – Upper Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Upper Primary Division12
 4. (Also MP12)
The year 5 students at my local school were surveyed to find which one of the four
teams in the local football competition they followed.

8
7
6
5
Followers
4
3
2
1
0
Butcher- Gang- Lorikeets Rosellas
birds gangs
Team

How many more students followed the most popular team than followed the least
popular team?

(A) 3 (B) 4 (C) 5 (D) 6 (E) 8

The most popular team is the Butcherbirds with 8 followers, and the least is the
Lorikeets with 2 followers. So 8 − 2 = 6 more students followed the Butcherbirds
than the Lorikeets,
hence (D).

5. (Also J4)
This week at my lemonade stand I sold $29 worth of lemonade, but I had spent $34
on lemons and $14 on sugar. My total loss for the week was

(A) $1 (B) $9 (C) $19 (D) $21 (E) $29

In dollars, the total amount spent was 34 + 14 = 48, so the loss was 48 − 29 = $19,
hence (C).

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Division 13 13
 6. A piece of paper is cut out and labelled as shown. It is folded
along the dashed lines to form an open box and placed so A
that the top is open. Which letter is on the bottom of the
box? B C

(A) A (B) B (C) C (D) D (E) E D E

Since the top of the box is open, the bottom is the only square which will share a side
with every other square. The arrows show that when folded, the squares labelled C
and E will be joined, so that C has a square joined to each side.

B C

D E

hence (C).

7. Which of the following gives an odd number?

1
(A) 122 (B) 141 − 57 (C) 36 × 9 (D) 308 ÷ 7 (E) of 123
3

Since a multiple of an even number is even, both (A) and (C) are even. Also the
difference between two odd numbers is even, so (B) is even. Then 308 ÷ 7 = 44 and
1
× 123 = 41, and only 41 is odd,
3
hence (E).

8. A new block of flats is being built and Trudy is buying the letterbox numbers. The
letterboxes are to be labelled from 190 to 212. How many zeros will she need to
buy?

(A) 22 (B) 13 (C) 12 (D) 10 (E) 4

Alternative 1
A ‘0’ will be required in the units place for 190, 200 and 210 (three ‘0’s) and in the
tens place for 200, . . . , 209 (ten ‘0’s).
Alternative 2
The ‘0’s can be counted directly from a list:
190 , 191, . . . , 199, 20 0 , 20 1, 20 2, 20 3, 20 4, 20 5, 20 6, 20 7, 20 8, 20 9, 210 , 211, 212,
1 23 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
hence (B).

14 2014 AMC – Upper Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Upper Primary Division14
 9. (Also MP15)
This 4 × 4 square grid can be covered by three shapes made from 1 × 1 squares. None
of the shapes overlap.

If two of the shapes are

then the third shape is

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

The ‘L’ can fit either with both arms along the sides of the square or with only the
short arm.
(i) (ii)

However, the ‘S’ will only fit in (i). The ‘S’ will fit in several positions, but only one
position will keep the remaining space to be filled in one piece,

hence (B).

1001 100.1
10. Given that = 13, what is the value of ?
77 770
(A) 0.13 (B) 1.3 (C) 13 (D) 130 (E) 1300

1001 10010 100.1

13 = = , which is 100 times bigger than ,
77 770 770
hence (A).
Comment
100.1 100 1
A useful estimate for this answer is ≈ = = 0.125.
770 800 8

2014 AMC
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Primary Division
Division 15 15
 11. These two squares, each with a side length of
10 cm, overlap as shown in the diagram. The
shape of the overlap is also a square which has 10 cm
an area of 16 square centimetres. In centime-
tres, what is the perimeter of the combined
shape? 10 cm
(A) 40 (B) 56 (C) 64
(D) 80 (E) 92

Alternative 1
The small square has side 4 cm.

10

6
10 4 6
4 4
6 4 10
6

10
So the perimeter of the figure is 4 × 10 + 4 × 6 = 40 + 24 = 64 cm,
hence (C).
Alternative 2
The internal square has side 4 cm and perimeter 16 cm. The total perimeter of the
two 10 cm squares is 80 cm. Subtracting the 16 cm perimeter of the internal square
leaves 80 − 16 = 64 cm,
hence (C).

12. Six boys looked in the fridge and found this much leftover
pizza. They shared the leftover pizza equally. How much
of the whole pizza did each boy get?
1 1 1
(A) (B) (C)
12 8 6
1 1
(D) (E)
4 3

Alternative 1
Each quarter pizza is shared between two boys.

16 2014 AMC – Upper Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Upper Primary Division16
 These slices are each one-eighth of the original pizza,
hence (B).
Alternative 2
3 6 1 1
The amount of pizza is = = 6 × , so each boy gets ,
4 8 8 8
hence (B).

13. (Also MP21)

Which of the shaded areas below is the largest?

A B C D E

(A) A (B) B (C) C (D) D (E) E

Alternative 1
Counting = 1 and = 1 , the areas are A = 8 1 , B = 7, C = 6, D = 8, E = 7,
2 2
hence (A).
Comment
There are some direct comparisons that rule out some areas as being largest. For
instance, B is clearly smaller than D, so B is not the largest. Also B and E have the
same area, so E is not the largest.
Alternative 2
A common area to all shapes is a triangle , so we count these:

17 14 12 16 14

hence (A).

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Primary Division
Division 17 17
 14. (Also J7)
A map, 40 cm wide and 20 cm high, is folded along the dashed lines indicated to form
a 10 cm × 10 cm square so that it just fits in its envelope. It is then pinned to a notice
board.

Which one of the following could be the pattern of pinholes on the map?

(A) (B) (C)

(D) (E)

Wherever there is a fold, the two 10 cm × 10 cm squares either side will be mirror
images of each other, with the line of symmetry being the fold,
hence (A).

15. Sally thinks of a number, multiplies it by 2, adds 2, divides by 2 and then subtracts
2. Her answer is 2. What was her original number?

(A) 1 (B) 2 (C) 3 (D) 4 (E) 5

The process can be visualised as in the following diagram.

×2 +2 ÷2 −2
X 2

Backtracking from the right, each step can be reversed. Then the boxes are filled in
with 4, then 8, then 6, then 3.

×2 +2 ÷2 −2
3 6 8 4 2
÷2 −2 ×2 +2

hence (C).

16. The paint colour ‘Roebourne Red’ is made by mixing 2 parts yellow, 5 parts red and
1 part black.
If a batch of paint was made using 3 litres of yellow, how many litres of paint would
be in the whole batch?
(A) 6 (B) 8 (C) 9 (D) 10 (E) 12

For every 2 parts of yellow, a total of 8 parts of paint are made. So the yellow is
one-quarter of the paint. Then for 3 litres of yellow, there are 12 litres of paint,
hence (E).

18 2014 AMC – Upper Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Upper Primary Division18
 17. A square of paper has its corners folded in as shown to make a smaller square with
an internal square, as shown on the right. What is the area of this internal square?

10 cm

3 cm

(A) 4 cm2 (B) 9 cm2 (C) 16 cm2 (D) 49 cm2 (E) 58 cm2

Alternative 1
The sides of the four equal right-angled triangles are 3, 7, x. So the internal square
has side 7 − 3 = 4 cm and area 42 = 16 cm2 ,
hence (C).
Alternative 2
21
The four equal triangles each have area , and there are 8 of these plus the internal
2
square in the original square.

21
So the internal square has area 100 − 8 × = 100 − 84 = 16 cm2 ,
2
hence (C).

18. Ancient Egyptian mathematicians used fractions but only with a numerator of 1,
1 1 1
such as or or . They made other fractions by adding these fractions together.
2 7 14
3 1 1
For example, was written as + . Which of the following is an Ancient Egyptian
4 2 4
11
way of writing ?
16
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
(A) + + (B) + + (C) + +
2 4 10 2 8 16 4 8 16
1 1 1 1 1 1 1
(D) + + + (E) + +
2 4 8 16 3 6 2

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Primary Division
Division 19 19
 11 1
The fraction is more than , so we subtract
16 2
11 1 11 8 3
− = − = .
16 2 16 16 16
3 1
The remaining fraction is less than . This rules out (A), (D) and (E) as too
16 4
large.
1
The next smallest fraction used in the answers is , and subtracting this,
8
3 1 3 2 1
− = − = .
16 8 16 16 16
11 1 1 1
Thus = + + ,
16 2 8 16
hence (B).
Comment
Choices (A), (D) and (E) have been ruled out as too large. Choice (C) is also
incorrect, since it is clearly smaller than choice (B).
11 11 1 1 1
We can also write as an Egyptian fraction this way = + + .
16 16 2 6 48

19. This symmetrical star is made up of two overlapping equilateral

triangles of the same size. The area of the star is 60 square
centimetres. What is the area of the shaded region in square
centimetres?
(A) 30 (B) 36 (C) 42 (D) 45 (E) 48

Drawing some extra lines creates 12 equal triangles, 9 of which are shaded.

Each triangle is 60 ÷ 12 = 5 cm2 and the total shaded area is 9 × 5 = 45 cm2 ,

hence (D).

20. In this correctly worked addition, P , Q, R and S represent 5 P +

different digits, and all seven digits are different. What is
Q R
the sum of P , Q, R and S?
S 4 3
(A) 23 (B) 22 (C) 18
(D) 16 (E) 14

S = 1 since only 1 can carry across from the tens to the hundreds.
In the units column, either P + R = 3 or P + R = 13.
The case P + R = 3 can only be completed using 0 + 3 or 1 + 2, but we already have
digits 1 and 3 in the sum, so P + R = 3.
So P + R = 13, and then 5 + Q + 1 = 14 so that Q = 8. Then P + Q + R + S =
13 + 8 + 1 = 22,
hence (B).

20 2014 AMC – Upper Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Upper Primary Division20
 21. In a competition between four people, Sally scored twice as many points as Brian
and 30 points more than Corrie. Donna scored 50 points more than Brian. Which of
the following statements is definitely true?

(A) Sally won the competition.

(B) Brian came last in the competition.
(C) Donna won the competition.
(D) Corrie beat Brian.
(E) Sally and Donna together scored more than Brian and Corrie.

Make a table with some possibilities:

Sally Brian Corrie Donna

30 15 0 65
40 20 10 70
50 25 20 75
60 30 30 80

Given the first row of the table, clearly (A), (B) and (D) are false.
Also, for every 10 point increase for Sally and Corrie, there is a 5 point increase in
the scores of Brian and Donna. So Sally’s score would overtake Donna’s score when
it passed 100.
Sally Brian Corrie Donna
90 45 60 95
100 50 70 100
110 55 80 105
So (C) can be false. We are told that Sally scored 30 points more than Corrie and
Donna scored 50 points more than Brian, and so together Sally and Donna always
scored 80 points more than Corrie and Brian,
hence (E).

22. A plane was travelling at an altitude of 4500 metres for 20 minutes. It then climbed
at a rate of 500 metres per minute for 5 minutes before descending at 350 metres per
minute for 8 minutes. Which of the following graphs best describes the altitude of
the plane over this time?

(A) (B) (C)

Altitude

Altitude

Altitude

Time Time Time

(D) (E)
Altitude

Altitude

Time Time

2014 AMC
2014Solutions – Upper
AMC – Upper Primary
Primary Division
Division 21 21
 The graph will have a level section −→ (altitude not changing), followed by a section
sloping uphill  (plane climbing), followed by a section sloping downhill  (plane
descending). This rules out (C) and (D).
The plane climbed a total of 5×500 = 2500 metres and descended a total of 8×350 =
2800 metres. So its final altitude will be slightly lower than the initial altitude. This
rules out (B) whose final altitude is higher, and (A) whose final descent is about
twice its ascent,
hence (E).
Comment
Other observations can be used to eliminate (A). For instance, the steepness of the
slopes relate to the rate of ascent or descent (in metres per minute), so the ascent
slope should be steeper than the descent slope. Also the time ascending should be
less than the time descending.

23. Mrs Graham wants to fill her swimming pool for the summer. She knows that if she
uses the backyard hose it will take 12 hours, or if she uses the frontyard hose it will
take 4 hours. How long will it take if she uses both hoses together?

(A) 3 hours (B) 2.5 hours (C) 2 hours (D) 1.5 hours (E) 1 hour

Alternative 1
1 1
Each hour, the backyard hose fills of the pool and the frontyard hose fills of the
12 4
pool, for a total of
1 1 1 3 4 1
+ = + = =
12 4 12 12 12 3
of the pool. Using both hoses the pool will be filled in 3 hours.,
hence (A).
Alternative 2
If she had a number of identical swimming pools, then in 12 hours, the front hose
would fill 3 pools and the back hose would fill 1 pool. Filling 4 pools in 12 hours is
the same rate as filling 1 pool in 3 hours,
hence (A).

24. Four soccer teams played each other four times in a season of competition. Each
winning team was awarded 3 points. Teams that had a draw were awarded 1 point
each, and losing teams were awarded no points. The season ended with Kangaroos
on 21 points, Kookaburras on 17 points, Koalas on 16 points and Crocodiles on 12
points. How many games ended in a draw?

(A) 7 (B) 6 (C) 5 (D) 4 (E) 3

The competition had 12 rounds, each with 2 games, for a total of 24 games. Consider
the total of all points awarded: 21 + 17 + 16 + 12 = 66.
If every game had a winner, there would be 24 × 3 = 72 points awarded in total. This
is 6 more points than the total of 66, so there must have been some drawn games.
For each drawn game, one point less is awarded than if there was a winner. So there
were 6 drawn games,
hence (B).

22 2014 AMC – Upper Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Upper Primary Division22
 Comment
There are many ways for these points to arise from the competition. For instance,
with teams labelled A, B, C and D:

Team 1 Team 2 Games Results (games won) Points

Team 1 Drawn Team 2 A B C D
A B 4 2 1 1 7 4
A C 4 2 1 1 7 4
A D 4 2 1 1 7 4
B C 4 2 1 1 7 4
B D 4 2 0 2 6 6
C D 4 2 2 0 8 2
6 21 17 16 12

25. Five different whole numbers, chosen from the numbers from 1 to 30, add up to 30.
What is the greatest possible value of the largest of these numbers?

(A) 6 (B) 10 (C) 15 (D) 20 (E) 26

To make the largest number as large as possible, we make all the others as small as
possible. The smallest four numbers from 1 to 30 are 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 = 10, and so the
largest the fifth can be is 30 − 10 = 20,
hence (D).

26. (Also J20, I16)

A 3 by 5 grid of dots is set out as shown. How many
straight line segments can be drawn that join two of
these dots and pass through exactly one other dot?

We draw all such line segments—horizontal, vertical, at 45◦ , and others:

9 + 5 + 6 + 2 = 22,

hence (22).

2014 AMC
2014Solutions – Upper
AMC – Upper Primary
Primary Division
Division 23 23
 27. A cube is made up of 1 cm × 1 cm × 1 cm blocks and
measures 12 cm × 12 cm × 12 cm. Sharyn is using the
same set of blocks to make a set of stairs.
The picture shows how she started, making a set of
stairs 4 blocks high, 4 blocks from front to back and 5
blocks wide.
Her finished set of stairs will use all the blocks and be
8 blocks high and 8 blocks from front to back. How
many blocks wide will they be?

The end of the staircase has 8 + 7 + · · · + 2 + 1 = 36 blocks. The number of blocks

available is 12 × 12 × 12.
12 × 12 × 12 12 × 12 × 4 × 3 12 × 4
= = = 48
36 12 × 3 1
So the width of the staircase is 48 blocks,
hence (48).

28. Three whole numbers add up to 149 and multiply to give 987. What is the largest
of the three numbers?

Each of the three numbers will be a factor of 987, so we find a factorisation of 987
by first finding its prime factorisation.
Now 987 ÷ 3 = 329 and 329 ÷ 7 = 47, which is prime, so 987 = 3 × 7 × 47.
Then 141 × 7 × 1 = 987 and 141 + 7 + 1 = 149. So the three numbers are 1, 7 and
141,
hence (141).

29. Which three-digit number is 11 times the sum of its digits?

Alternative 1
The digit sum must be at least 10 (or else 11 times is not a 3-digit number) and at
most 27 (three 9s). So the three-digit number is a multiple of 11 between 10 × 11
and 27 × 11. We consider these possibilities:
Number 110 121 132 143 154 165 176 187 198
Digit sum 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
×11 22 44 66 88 110 132 154 176 198
Number 209 220 231 242 253 264 275 286 297
Digit sum 11 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
×11 121 44 66 88 110 132 154 176 198

Of these, only 198 is 11 times the sum of its digits,

hence (198).
Alternative 2
If the digits are a, b and c then
100a + 10b + c = 11(a + b + c)
100a + 10b + c = 11a + 11b + 11c
89a = b + 10c

24 2014 AMC – Upper Primary Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Upper Primary Division24
 This suggests a = 1, b = 9, c = 8. There are no other solutions, since b + 10c is the
two-digit number cb and 89a only has two digits when a = 1,
hence (198).
Comment
This alternative is intended for those students comfortable with solving algebraic
equations.

30. (Also J29)

How many three-digit numbers are there in which one of the digits is the sum of the
other two?

The possibilities can be counted by considering three cases.

(i) The smallest digit is 0, so the digits are 0, a and a, for a = 1, . . . , 9. For
example, 404. These digits can form two numbers like 404 and 440. So this
case has 18 numbers.
(ii) The two smallest digits are equal, so the digits are a, a and 2a, for a = 1, 2, 3, 4.
For example, 633. These digits can form three numbers like 336, 363 and 633.
So this case has 12 numbers.
(iii) All three digits are different, so there is a smallest digit a, a second smallest
digit b and a largest digit a + b. For example, 385. These digits can form six
numbers like 358, 385, 538, 583, 835 and 853.
To fully count case (iii) we b
need to know how many 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
pairs of digits a and b are
1 123 134 145 156 167 178 189
possible. This table shows
a 2 235 246 257 268 279
possible choices of a and b,
3 347 358 369
and the three digits
4 459
obtained.
For each of these 7 + 5 + 3 + 1 = 16 selections of digits, six numbers can be formed,
and so there are 16 × 6 = 96 numbers in case (iii).
There are 18 + 12 + 96 = 126 numbers in total,
hence (126).

2014 AMC
2014Solutions – Upper
AMC – Upper Primary
Primary Division
Division 25 25
 Junior Division
Solutions – Junior Division

1. What is the value of 17 + 16 + 14 + 13?

(A) 60 (B) 61 (C) 63 (D) 68 (E) 70

As 17 + 13 = 30 and 16 + 14 = 30, so 17 + 16 + 14 + 13 = 60,

hence (A).

2. (Also I2)
In the diagram the value of x is
50◦
(A) 80 (B) 70 (C) 60
x◦ 120◦
(D) 50 (E) 40

Alternative 1
The three interior angles of the triangle are x◦ , 50◦ and 60◦ . These add to 180◦ , so
x + 110 = 180 and x = 70,
hence (B).
Alternative 2
Using the exterior angle formula, x + 50 = 120, so that x = 70,
hence (B).

3. What is the perimeter of the figure below in centimetres?

1 cm
2 cm
8 cm

10 cm

(A) 21 (B) 30 (C) 36 (D) 39 (E) 78

The combined height of the two right-hand boundaries is 8 cm and the combined
length of the two top boundaries is 10 cm. So the total perimeter is 2 × 10 + 2 × 8 =
36 cm,
8 cm 2 cm
1 cm

8 cm
7 cm

10 cm

hence (C).

26 2014 AMC – Junior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Junior Division26

 4. (Also UP5)
This week at my lemonade stand I sold $29 worth of lemonade, but I had spent $34
on lemons and $14 on sugar. My total loss for the week was

(A) $1 (B) $9 (C) $19 (D) $21 (E) $29

In dollars, the total amount spent was 34 + 14 = 48, so the loss was 48 − 29 = $19,
hence (C).

5. (Also S2)
1
The value of is
0.04
(A) 15 (B) 20 (C) 25 (D) 40 (E) 60

1 1 × 100 100
= = = 25,
0.04 0.04 × 100 4
hence (C).

6. (Also I5)
5 3
If of a number is 30, what is of the number?
6 4
(A) 22.5 (B) 24 (C) 25 (D) 27 (E) 40

1 3
One-sixth of the number is 6, so the number is 36. Then of the number is 9 and
4 4
of the number is 27,
hence (D).

7. (Also UP14)
A map, 40 cm wide and 20 cm high, is folded along the dashed lines indicated to form
a 10 cm × 10 cm square so that it just fits in its envelope. It is then pinned to a notice
board.

Which one of the following could be the pattern of pinholes on the map?

(A) (B) (C)

(D) (E)

2014 AMC
2014Solutions – Junior
AMC – Junior Division
Division 27 27
 Wherever there is a fold, the two 10 cm × 10 cm squares either side will be mirror
images of each other, with the line of symmetry being the fold,
hence (A).

8. (Also I6)
This diagram is called an open square of order 4, since the
three sides are all the same length and each side has four
posts spaced evenly along it. The total number of posts
which would be evenly spaced along an open square of order
10 would be
(A) 26 (B) 27 (C) 28
(D) 30 (E) 32

There will be 10 posts on the left and on the right, and ignoring the corner posts, 8
posts along the top, giving a total of 28 posts,
hence (C).

9. A train is scheduled to leave the station at 10:14 am and it takes 2 hours and 47 min-
utes to arrive at its destination. If the train leaves 8 minutes late, when does it
arrive?
(A) 7:28 am (B) 7:35 am (C) 12:09 pm (D) 1:01 pm (E) 1:09 pm

The train leaves at 10:22 am and arrives 2 hours and 47 minutes later. Since 22+47 =
69, this is at 13:09, or 1:09 pm,
hence (E).
Comment
The train will arrive 2 hours and 55 minutes after 10:14 am, or almost 3 hours. So
counting back from 1:14 pm is a natural way of arriving at the answer.

10. Consecutive numbers are written on five separate cards, one on each card. If the sum
of the smallest three numbers is 60, what is the sum of the largest three numbers?

(A) 62 (B) 63 (C) 64 (D) 65 (E) 66

Alternative 1
The average of the three smallest is 20, so they will be 19, 20 and 21. Then the
largest three numbers are 21, 22 and 23, which add to 66,
hence (E).
Alternative 2
Comparing the largest three to the smallest three:

+2
+2
+2
  
  
smallest = 60
largest = 60 + 2 + 2 + 2 = 66

hence (E).

28 2014 AMC – Junior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Junior Division28

 11. The width of a rectangle is one-third of its length. If its area is 108 cm2 then its
perimeter in centimetres is

(A) 54 (B) 48 (C) 42 (D) 36 (E) 24

Alternative 1
The rectangle can be divided into three squares.

Then each square has area 108 ÷ 3 = 36 cm2 . So each square is 6 cm × 6 cm, the
rectangle is 6 cm × 18 cm and its perimeter is 6 + 18 + 6 + 18 = 48 cm,
hence (B).
Alternative 2
Suppose the rectangle has width w cm, then it has length 3w cm and area 3w × w =
3w2 cm2 . Then

3w2 = 108
w2 = 36
w=6

So the rectangle has width 6 cm, length 18 cm and perimeter 2 × (6 + 18) = 48 cm,
hence (B).

12. Six people are standing in a line. The height of the first person is 150 cm and the
height of the sixth person is 180 cm. The height of each other person is the average
of the heights of the person directly in front and the person directly behind. What
is the height of the fourth person in the line?

(A) 165 cm (B) 168 cm (C) 170 cm (D) 172 cm (E) 174 cm

Let the people be A, . . . , F. Then B’s height is halfway between A’s and C’s, C’s
height is halfway between B’s and D’s, and so on. Consequently, the six heights are
equally spaced from 150 cm to 180 cm. Since there are five jumps in height, they
are 6 cm apart and so the heights of A, . . . , F must be 150, 156, 162, 168, 174 and 180
centimetres. The fourth person is 168 cm tall,
hence (B).

13. An unusual tower is built with cubes starting with one in the bottom layer, then 4
in the second layer, 9 in the third, then 16, and so on. Altogether 91 cubes are used
to build the tower. How many layers does the tower have?

(A) 7 (B) 6 (C) 5 (D) 4 (E) 3

The layers are square numbers, and as we progressively add square numbers we find
that
12 + 22 + 32 + 42 + 52 + 62 = 1 + 4 + 9 + 16 + 25 + 36 = 91
The tower has 6 layers,
hence (B).

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AMC – Junior Division
Division 29 29
 14. At my school, there are 76 students who are placed as evenly as possible in six classes,
so that no two classes differ in size by more than one student. How many classes at
the school have exactly 12 students?

(A) 2 (B) 3 (C) 4 (D) 5 (E) 6

The classes cannot all be the same size, since 76 ÷ 6 = 12 r4. The difference between
the smallest and largest classes must be equal to 1, so if we put 12 students in each
class, the remaining 4 students must go into 4 different classes. The classes have sizes
12, 12, 13, 13, 13 and 13,
hence (A).

15. Four equilateral triangles of the same size are arranged

with horizontal bases inside a larger equilateral trian-
gle, as shown. What fraction of the area of the larger
triangle is covered by the smaller triangles?
2 1 4
(A) (B) (C)
3 2 9
4 16
(D) (E)
7 25

The shortest length in the figure is half the side of one of the shaded triangles, so we
use this length as the basis of a triangular grid:

Then 16 out of the 25 equal triangles are shaded,

hence (E).

16. After 9 weeks Mikayla has an average mark of 5 out of 10 in the weekly spelling tests.
What is the minimum number of extra weeks now required to raise her average to 7?

(A) 4 (B) 5 (C) 6 (D) 7 (E) 8

Alternative 1
Total marks gained after 9 weeks is 9 × 5 = 45. Suppose she can get full marks for
the remaining n weeks, then she scores 45 + 10n marks in 9 + n weeks.
45 + 10n
=7
9+n
45 + 10n = 63 + 7n
3n = 18
n=6

Therefore 6 more weeks are needed,

hence (C).

30 2014 AMC – Junior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Junior Division30

 Alternative 2
Mikayla’s target is 7 marks per test. After the 9 weeks, she is 18 marks behind her
target. However, the best she can do after this is to score 10, which is 3 marks per
test over target. Consequently the earliest she can make up the 18 marks is in 6
weeks. Then in all 15 weeks, she obtains 9 × 5 + 6 × 10 = 105 marks, for an average
of 105 ÷ 15 = 7 marks,
hence (C).

17. Anne has four cards, each with a different number written on it. She makes a list
of all the different totals that can be obtained by choosing two or more cards and
adding the numbers on them. What is the maximum number of different totals that
she could have in her list?
(A) 7 (B) 8 (C) 9 (D) 10 (E) 11

Let the numbers on the cards be a, b, c and d.

The possible sums if two numbers are chosen are

a + b, b + c, c + d, a + c, b + d, a + d.

The possible sums if three numbers are chosen are

a + b + c, a + b + d, a + c + d, b + c + d.

There is only one way to choose all four numbers, giving the sum

a+b+c+d

This gives 11 different ways of adding the numbers. These will give 11 different totals
for most choices of a, b, c, d. For instance, using the coin denominations a = 5, b = 10,
c = 20, d = 50 will give 11 different totals,
hence (E).

18. In the months of March, April and May, my lawn grows 0.7 cm every day. On the
day that it reaches a height of 20 cm, I always mow it back to a height of 2.5 cm. If I
mow my lawn on the first day of March, how many times in total do I need to mow
the lawn during these three months?

(A) 2 (B) 3 (C) 4 (D) 5 (E) 6

Between mowings, the grass grows from 25 mm to 200 mm, giving 175 mm of growth,
at 7 mm per day. The number of days between mowings is 175 ÷ 7 = 25. The months
in question have a total of 92 days, so the lawn is mowed on the 1st, 26th, 51st and
76th days but not the 101st,
hence (C).

19. There are n people sitting equally spaced around a circle. The people are numbered
in order around the circle from 1 up to n. Person 31 notices that person 7 and person
14 are the same distance from him. How many people are sitting around the circle?

(A) 42 (B) 41 (C) 40 (D) 39 (E) 38

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2014Solutions – Junior
AMC – Junior Division
Division 31 31
 There are 7 places from 7 to 14, and since there are 17
17 places from 14 to 31, there are also 17 places 7
from 31 to 7. So in all there are 7 + 17 + 17 = 41 31 7
places around the table,
17 14

hence (B).

20. (Also UP26, I16)

A 3 by 5 grid of dots is set out as shown. How many
straight line segments can be drawn that join two of
these dots and pass through exactly one other dot?

(A) 14 (B) 20 (C) 22

(D) 24 (E) 30

Alternative 1
We draw all such line segments—horizontal, vertical, at 45◦ , and others:

9 + 5 + 6 + 2 = 22,

hence (C).
Alternative 2
The line segments can be classified by the midpoint dot, since then each line segment
is counted only once. Also the number of line segments through each dot form a
symmetric pattern of numbers:

1 1 1
1 4 6 4 1
1 1 1

There are 22 line segments,

hence (C).

21. What is the sum of ten consecutive two-digit whole numbers where the first and last
numbers are perfect squares?

(A) 205 (B) 210 (C) 215 (D) 225 (E) 230

The difference between the first and last numbers is 9. The two-digit square numbers
are 16, 25, 36, 49, 64 and 81 and the differences between these are increasing odd
numbers 9, 11, 13, 15 and 17. Consequently the only two-digit square numbers that
differ by 9 are 16 and 25.
So the numbers are 16, 17, . . . , 25 and 16 + 17 + · · · + 24 + 25 = 10 (16 + 25) = 205,
2
hence (A).

32 2014 AMC – Junior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Junior Division32

 22. (Also I17)
A hotel has rooms that can accommodate up to two people. Couples can share a
room, but otherwise men will share only with men and women only with women.
How many rooms are needed to guarantee that any group of 100 people can be
accommodated?
(A) 50 (B) 51 (C) 67 (D) 98 (E) 99

At worst, 51 rooms will be needed. There are an even number of people coming as
couples. So if there are an even number of single men there must be an even number
of single women too, so that everyone can be paired up and 50 rooms will do. If, on
the other hand, there are an odd number of single men, there will be an odd number
of single women. So everyone can be paired except for one man and one woman, with
98 pairs in 49 rooms, plus one man and one woman who need a room each,
hence (B).

23. A three-digit number, written abc, is called fuzzy if abc is divisible by 7, the two-digit
number bc is divisible by 6, the digit c is divisible by 5 and the three digits a, b and c
are all different. How many fuzzy numbers are there?

(A) 0 (B) 1 (C) 2 (D) 3 (E) 4

If c is divisible by 5 then it must be 0 or 5.

If bc is divisible by 6, then c must be even, so that c = 0 and b = 0. Thus bc must be
30, 60 or 90.
If abc = ab0 is divisible by 7 then so is ab, where b = 3, 6 or 9. The multiples of 7
ending in 3, 6 or 9 are 49, 56 and 63, so abc must be one of 490, 560 or 630. Therefore
there are 3 fuzzy numbers,
hence (D).

24. If a is the number 1111 . . . 1111, with 100 digits all 1, and b is the number 999 . . . 999
with 50 digits all 9, how many digits are 1 in the number a − b?

(A) 49 (B) 50 (C) 97 (D) 98 (E) 99

Alternative 1
We can see from the subtraction
1 1 1 . . . 1 0  1 10  1 10  1 . . . 10  1 10  1 1
1
9 9 . . . 9 9 9 −
1 1 1 . . . 1 0 1 1 . . . 1 1 2
that the units digit in the result is 2, then there are 49 digits 1, one digit of 0 and
the remaining 49 digits are 1, so there are 98 digits equal to 1,
hence (D).
Alternative 2
Adding 1 to both a and b,
111111 . . . 111111 − 999 . . . 999 = 111111 . . . 111112 − 1000 . . . 000
           
100 digits 50 digits 100 digits 51 digits

= 11111 . . . 1111011111 . . . 11112

  
100 digits

2014 AMC
2014Solutions – Junior
AMC – Junior Division
Division 33 33
 So 98 of the digits in a − b are 1,
hence (D).

25. Zac has three jackets, one black, one brown and one blue. He has four shirts, one
white, one blue, one red and one yellow. He has three pairs of trousers, one brown,
one white and one yellow. How many combinations of jacket, shirt and trousers are
possible if no two items are of the same colour?

(A) 23 (B) 25 (C) 26 (D) 27 (E) 29

Alternative 1
This tree shows all the possibilities of choosing jacket, then shirt, then trousers, each
of a different colour:
brown
white yellow
brown
blue white
black yellow
brown
red white
yellow
yellow brown
white
white yellow
• blue white
brown yellow
red white
yellow
yellow white
brown
white yellow
brown
blue red white
yellow
yellow brown
white

hence (A).
Alternative 2
If colour does not matter, there are 3 × 4 × 3 = 36 combinations. Of these 4 have
two browns, 3 have two blues, 3 have two whites and 3 have two yellows, and none
have all three the same. So there are 36 − 13 = 23 combinations,
hence (A).

34 2014 AMC – Junior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Junior Division34

 26. The diagram shows a grid 3 units high and 4 units
wide that uses 31 matches. How many matches would
you need to create a grid of squares that is 13 units
high and 33 units wide?

The required grid contains 14 rows of horizontal matches and each row contains 33
matches. So there are 14 × 33 = 462 horizontal matches. The grid contains 34
columns of vertical matches and each column contains 13 matches. So there are
34 × 13 = 442 vertical matches. Therefore, the total number of matches needed is
462 + 442 = 904,
hence (904).

27. Eighteen points are equally spaced on a circle, from which you will choose a certain
number at random. How many do you need to choose to guarantee that you will
have the four corners of at least one rectangle?

The four corners of an inscribed rectangle appear as the ends of two diameters. It is
possible to choose 10 points without having two complete diameters, as for example,
the 10 consecutive points shaded below:

However, once 11 or more points are chosen, then at most 7 diameters are incomplete.
So at least 2 diameters are complete, forming a rectangle.

Consequently 11 points are needed to guarantee one rectangle,

hence (11).

2014 AMC
2014Solutions – Junior
AMC – Junior Division
Division 35 35
 28. (Also I26)
In a 3 × 3 grid of points, many triangles can be formed using 3 of the points as
vertices. Three such triangles are shown below. Of all these possible triangles, how
many have all three sides of different lengths?

Here are three non-congruent scalene triangles in the grid.

B C
A

To see that there are no others, consider the longest side of such a triangle.
√ √
(i) If the longest side has length 22 + 22 = 2 2, then it must be a diagonal of
the grid. The third vertex cannot be a corner dot, so it must be an edge dot,
giving triangle C.
√ √
(ii) If the longest side has length 2 2 + 12 = 5 then the other sides can only be
√ √
1, 2 or 2. With 1 and√ 2 we get triangle B and with 1 and 2 we get triangle
A. But with 2 and 2 we don’t get a grid point.
√
(iii) If the longest side has length 2 then√ the other sides must be 1 and 2, but
there is no triangle with sides 1, 2 and 2 on the grid.
Triangle A can be in 8 different orientations—4 rotations and the reflections of these.
Since it only occupies 2 × 1 cells on the grid, each of these orientations can be in 2
positions, giving 16 triangles. Triangle B is similar, also giving 16 triangles.
Triangle C can be in 8 different orientations, but it occupies 2 × 2 cells on the grid,
and so each orientation can only be in one position, giving 8 triangles. So in total
there are 16 + 16 + 8 = 40 triangles,
hence (40).

29. (Also UP30)

How many three-digit numbers are there in which one of the digits is the sum of the
other two?

The possibilities can be counted by considering three cases.

(i) The smallest digit is 0, so the digits are 0, a and a, for a = 1, . . . , 9. For
example, 404. These digits can form two numbers like 404 and 440. So this
case has 18 numbers.
(ii) The two smallest digits are equal, so the digits are a, a and 2a, for a = 1, 2, 3, 4.
For example, 633. These digits can form three numbers like 336, 363 and 633.
So this case has 12 numbers.

36 2014 AMC – Junior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Junior Division36

 (iii) All three digits are different, so there is a smallest digit a, a second smallest
digit b and a largest digit a + b. For example, 385. These digits can form six
numbers like 358, 385, 538, 583, 835 and 853.
To fully count case (iii) we b
need to know how many 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
pairs of digits a and b are
1 123 134 145 156 167 178 189
possible. This table shows
a 2 235 246 257 268 279
possible choices of a and b,
3 347 358 369
and the three digits
4 459
obtained.
For each of these 7 + 5 + 3 + 1 = 16 selections of digits, six numbers can be formed,
and so there are 16 × 6 = 96 numbers in case (iii).
There are 18 + 12 + 96 = 126 numbers in total,
hence (126).

30. (Also S26)

What is the largest three-digit number with the property that the number is equal
to the sum of its hundreds digit, the square of its tens digit and the cube of its units
digit?

Alternative 1
Let the number be abc.
Then

100a + 10b + c = a + b2 + c3
99a + 10b − b2 = c(c2 − 1)
99a + b(10 − b) = (c − 1)c(c + 1)

Consider the possibilities:

99a b(10 − b) (c − 1)c(c + 1)

99 × 1 = 99 1×9=9 1×2×3=6
99 × 2 = 198 2 × 8 = 16 2 × 3 × 4 = 24
99 × 3 = 297 3 × 7 = 21 3 × 4 × 5 = 60
99 × 4 = 396 4 × 6 = 24 4 × 5 × 6 = 120
99 × 5 = 495 5 × 5 = 25 5 × 6 × 7 = 210
99 × 6 = 594 6 × 4 = 24 6 × 7 × 8 = 336
99 × 7 = 693 7 × 3 = 21 7 × 8 × 9 = 504
99 × 8 = 792 8 × 2 = 16 8 × 9 × 10 = 720
99 × 9 = 891 9×1=9

Looking at the possibilities for 99a + b(10 − b) = (c − 1)c(c + 1), we have two:
99 + 21 = 120 =⇒ a = 1, b = 3 or 7, c = 5 =⇒ n = 135 or n = 175.
495 + 9 = 504 =⇒ a = 5, b = 1 or 9, c = 8 =⇒ n = 518 or n = 598.
So, there are four 3-digit numbers which satisfy the requirements and the largest of
these four numbers is 598,
hence (598).

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Division 37 37
 Alternative 2
The number abc is equal to a + b2 + c3 , and these are the possible values of b2 and c3 :

Digit 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Square 0 1 4 9 16 25 36 49 64 81
Cube 0 1 8 27 64 125 216 343 512 729

We try these numbers in an addition grid, trying the large values of c first, then filling
in possible values for a and b. This trial-and-error search is presented here as a tree.

8 8
8+2+9 2
(no b2 )
729 = 19 729
8b9 8b9
a a=8
7 8
729 a=7 7+3+9 3
(no b2 )
ab9 729 = 19 729
7b9 8b9
c=9
a: a
6 6+0+2 6
b2 :
a =8 00
c3 : + c=8
512 b=0 512
ab c a=6
512 6b8 608
ab8
a=5
 5
c=7 5+1+2
8 1
5 =8
51 2
b=9 59 8
512
5b8 b=1
 5
a 0 1
abc < 598 51 2
343 Likewise for 51 8
ab7 c = 6, 5, . . .

The largest solution found is 598, and any solutions on branches c = 7, c = 6, . . . ,

c = 1 must be less than this,
hence (598).

38 2014 AMC – Junior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Junior Division38

 Intermediate Division
Solutions – Intermediate Division
1. 1 + 2 − 3 − 4 + 5 + 6 − 7 − 8 + 9 + 10 =
(A) 0 (B) 1 (C) 10 (D) 11 (E) 19

1 + (2 − 3) + (5 − 4) + (6 − 7) + (9 − 8) + 10 = 1 − 1 + 1 − 1 + 1 + 10 = 11,
hence (D).

2. (Also J2)
In the diagram the value of x is
50◦
(A) 80 (B) 70 (C) 60
x◦ 120◦
(D) 50 (E) 40

Alternative 1
The three interior angles of the triangle are x◦ , 50◦ and 60◦ . These add to 180◦ , so
x + 110 = 180 and x = 70,
hence (B).
Alternative 2
Using the exterior angle formula, x + 50 = 120, so that x = 70,
hence (B).

3. (Also S3)
If p = 9 and q = −3 then p2 − q 2 is equal to

(A) 64 (B) 72 (C) 84 (D) 90 (E) 96

Now p2 = 81 and q 2 = 9, so p2 − q 2 = 81 − 9 = 72,

hence (B).

4. What value can be placed in the shape to make this statement true?

2014 ÷ = 100

(A) 0.02014 (B) 0.2014 (C) 2.014 (D) 20.14 (E) 201.4

For any a and b, a ÷ b = 100 only if a = 100b. So the number in the shape must be
2014 ÷ 100 = 20.14,
hence (D).

5. (Also J6)
5 3
If of a number is 30, what is of the number?
6 4
(A) 22.5 (B) 24 (C) 25 (D) 27 (E) 40

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Division 39 39
 1 3
One-sixth of the number is 6, so the number is 36. Then of the number is 9 and
4 4
of the number is 27,
hence (D).

6. (Also J8)
This diagram is called an open square of order 4, since the
three sides are all the same length and each side has four
posts spaced evenly along it. The total number of posts
which would be evenly spaced along an open square of order
10 would be
(A) 26 (B) 27 (C) 28
(D) 30 (E) 32

There will be 10 posts on the left and on the right, and ignoring the corner posts, 8
posts along the top, giving a total of 28 posts,
hence (C).

7. Which of the objects below is not the same as

the one on the right?

(A) (B) (C)

(D) (E)

If each of the shapes is oriented so that the L-shaped section is in this orientation,
, then the sample shape as well as B, C, D and E have the pyramid pointing
towards the viewer, whereas A has the pyramid pointing away,
hence (A).

8. This graph shows the number of goals scored by

Ranjit’s soccer team in each of the first thirteen 6
5
frequency

matches. After the fourteenth match, the me- 4

dian has increased but the mode has remained 3
the same. Which of the following best describes 2
1
the team’s score in this last game? 0
1 2 3 4 5
(A) Goals = 1 (B) Goals = 2 (C) Goals ≥ 2
number of goals
(D) Goals < 3 (E) Goals ≥ 3

40 2014 AMC – Intermediate Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Intermediate Division40

 Currently
(i) The mode is 2.
(ii) The median is 2 (there are 7 scores up to and including 2, and 6 scores 3 or
more).
The mode won’t change with another match, no matter what the score, but the
median will increase to 2.5 if there is another score of 3 or more,
hence (E).

9. Forty-eight pavers, each 1 m × 1 m in size, are used to form a path 1 metre wide
around a square garden. What is the area, in square metres, inside this path?

(A) 100 (B) 110 (C) 121 (D) 132 (E) 144

Four pavers are used on the corners, leaving 44 = 4 × 11 along the sides:

Then the central square is 11 m × 11 m = 121 m2 ,

hence (C).

10. Each May a farmer plants barley seed and then in October he harvests 12 times the
weight of seed planted. From each harvest, he sells 50 tonnes and the rest he keeps as
seed for the next year’s crop. This year he has planted enough to harvest 120 tonnes.
How many tonnes did he plant last year?

(A) 5 (B) 10 (C) 20 (D) 30 (E) 60

This year he planted 10 tonnes. So last year he harvested 60 tonnes. Thus last year
he planted 5 tonnes,
hence (A).

11. If x is an integer and x < −1, which of the following expressions has the greatest
value?
1 1 1 1
(A) (B) (C) x + 1 (D) − (E) −
x x2 x2 x

1 1 −1
Since x < −1, the only positive values are and − . But then 0 < < 1 and
x2 x x
1 −1 −1 −1
0< = <
x2 x x x
hence (E).
Comment
1 1
Evaluating the five expressions with the trial value x = −2 gives (A) − , (B) ,
2 4
1 1
(C) −1, (D) − and (E) . So the only possible answer is (E).
4 2

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Division 41 41
 12. The 11 boys in Tom’s cricket team have a contest to see how far they can throw a
cricket ball. Their results, to the nearest metre, are

19, 26, 31, 31, 31, 33, 37, 42, 42, 48, 56

Which of the following lists the statistical measures for these results in the correct
ascending order?

(A) mean, median, mode (B) median, mean, mode (C) mode, mean, median
(D) median, mode, mean (E) mode, median, mean

396
We can calculate mode = 31, median = 33, and mean = = 36,
11
hence (E).
Comment
Rather than calculating the mean, we can use an estimation strategy. For each of the
‘nested’ pairs {19, 56}, {26, 48}, {31, 42}, {31, 42} and {31, 37}, the midpoint (mean)
is greater than the median 33, so the overall mean must be greater than 33.

13. I have 800 mL of water in jug X and 800 mL of milk in jug Y . I pour 200 mL from jug
X into jug Y and stir the mixture thoroughly. I then pour 200 mL of the resulting
mixture from jug Y into jug X. What is the volume of milk that is now in jug X?

(A) 150 mL (B) 160 mL (C) 175 mL (D) 180 mL (E) 200 mL

Alternative 1
After pouring 200 mL from jug X into jug Y , the mixture in jug Y contains 80%
milk. So 80% of the 200 mL that is poured from jug Y into jug X is milk. Hence,
the volume of milk that ends up in jug X is 0.8 × 200 = 160 mL,
hence (B).
Alternative 2

1000 mL
4
800 mL 800 mL milk 800 mL
5 800 mL 4
water milk 600 mL 1 milk
water ? water 5
mix water 5
1
? milk water
200 mL water 200 mL 5

At the end, jug Y has 4 × 800 mL = 640 mL of milk, so jug X has 160 mL of milk,
5
hence (B).

14. The women’s world record for running 400 metres was set in Canberra at 47.60 sec-
onds. Which of the following is closest to the runner’s average speed, in kilometres
per hour?

(A) 22 (B) 24 (C) 26 (D) 28 (E) 30

42 2014 AMC – Intermediate Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Intermediate Division42

 Running 47.60 seconds for 400 metres represents 47.6 × 2.5 = 47.6 + 47.6 + 23.8 =
1
119 seconds for a kilometre. So the speed in kilometres per hour is × 60 × 60 =
119
120
× 30, which is slightly more than 30,
119
hence (E).

15. Ten points Q, R, S, T , U , V , W , X, Y and Z are equally and consecutively spaced

on a circle. What is the size, in degrees, of the angle ∠QT W ?

(A) 36 (B) 54 (C) 60 (D) 72 (E) 75

Alternative 1
Let O be the centre of the circle and draw congruent isosceles triangles QOT and
T OW , and let x be the acute angle in these two triangles.

Q
Z R
x
Y S
O x
X x T
x
W U
V

3
Each of the ten angles ∠QOR, ∠ROS, . . . are equal, so that ∠QOT = × 360◦ =
10
108◦ . In the triangle QOT , 108◦ +2x = 180◦ , so that x = 36◦ . Therefore ∠QT W =
2x = 72◦ ,
hence (D).
Alternative 2
Q The pentagon QSU W Y is regular, so that ∠QY W = 108◦ .
Z R The quadrilateral QT W Y is cyclic, so opposite angles add to
Y S 180◦ . Thus ∠QT W = 180◦ − 108◦ = 72◦ ,
108◦ hence (D).
X T
W U
V

16. (Also UP26, J20)

A 3 by 5 grid of dots is set out as shown. How many
straight line segments can be drawn that join two of
these dots and pass through exactly one other dot?

(A) 14 (B) 20 (C) 22

(D) 24 (E) 30

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Division 43 43
 Alternative 1
We draw all such line segments—horizontal, vertical, at 45◦ , and others:

9 + 5 + 6 + 2 = 22,

hence (C).
Alternative 2
The line segments can be classified by the midpoint dot, since then each line segment
is counted only once. Also the number of line segments through each dot form a
symmetric pattern of numbers:

1 1 1
1 4 6 4 1
1 1 1

There are 22 line segments,

hence (C).

17. (Also J22)

A hotel has rooms that can accommodate up to two people. Couples can share a
room, but otherwise men will share only with men and women only with women.
How many rooms are needed to guarantee that any group of 100 people can be
accommodated?
(A) 50 (B) 51 (C) 67 (D) 98 (E) 99

At worst, 51 rooms will be needed. There are an even number of people coming as
couples. So if there are an even number of single men there must be an even number
of single women too, so that everyone can be paired up and 50 rooms will do. If, on
the other hand, there are an odd number of single men, there will be an odd number
of single women. So everyone can be paired except for one man and one woman, with
98 pairs in 49 rooms, plus one man and one woman who need a room each,
hence (B).

18. Two rectangular prisms are constructed. One measures 4 cm × 6 cm × x cm and the
other measures 3 cm × 8 cm × y cm where both x and y are integers. If they have
equal surface area, what is the smallest possible value of x + y?

(A) 11 (B) 21 (C) 26 (D) 42 (E) 63

Alternative 1
The surface areas are 8x + 12x + 48 and 6y + 16y + 48 so 20x + 48 = 22y + 48 and
y = 10 x. The smallest integer value of x which satisfies this equation is x = 11 when
11
y = 10, so the smallest value of x + y is 21,
hence (B).
Comment
The other values are 20 + 22, 30 + 33 and so on.

44 2014 AMC – Intermediate Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Intermediate Division44

 Alternative 2
Each box has two 24 cm2 faces, so these can be ignored. The remaining 4 faces on
the first form a 20 × x rectangle, and on the second a 22 × y rectangle, shown here
on nets:

x y

6 4 6 4 8 3 8 3

The smallest integer solution to 20x = 22y has x = 11, y = 10 and x + y = 21,
hence (B).

19. A four-digit number abcd is called cool if a is divisible by 4, the two-digit number ab
is divisible by 5, the three-digit number abc is divisible by 6 and abcd is divisible by
7. How many cool numbers are there where 8 is not one of the digits?

(A) 3 (B) 4 (C) 5 (D) 6 (E) more than 6

The first digit has to be 4 (the alternative 8 is not allowed). The second digit can
only be 0 or 5.
Consider 40cd. For 40c to be divisible by 6, either c = 2 or c = 8, but 8 is not
included. Now for 402d to be divisible by 7, try 4020 ÷ 7 = 574r2. So 4025 is
divisible by 7, and is cool.
Consider 45cd. For 45c to be divisible by 6, either c = 0 or c = 6. Now 4500 ÷ 7 =
642r6 and 4560 ÷ 7 = 651r3 so that 4501 and 4564 are the only cool numbers of this
form.
So there are three cool numbers without an 8: 4025, 4501 and 4564,
hence (A).

20. The shape shown is formed from four identical arcs, each a
quarter of the circumference of a circle of radius 5 cm. What
is the area of the shape, in square centimetres?

(A) 100 − 20π (B) 100 (C) 25π + 25

(D) 25π (E) 100 − 25π

The shape is that left when four 90◦ sectors with radius 5
are removed from a square of side 10. Since the four sectors 5
make a circle of radius 5, the shaded area is
5
2 2
10 − π5 = 100 − 25π ,
hence (E).

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Division 45 45
 21. Standard six-sided dice have their dots arranged so that the opposite faces add up
to 7. If 27 standard dice are arranged in a 3 × 3 × 3 cube on a solid table what is the
maximum number of dots that can be seen from one position?

(A) 90 (B) 94 (C) 153 (D) 154 (E) 189

There are at most three 3 × 3 faces of the cube visible, and the maximum will occur
with exactly three cube faces visible. A total of 153 is possible.

dice face count pips

1 4
7 35
19 114
153

To see that no greater total is possible, of the 19 visible dice, one has 3 faces visible,
six have 2 faces visible and 12 have one face visible. So the sum of all visible faces
cannot exceed 1 × 15 + 6 × 11 + 12 × 6 = 153,
hence (C).

22. There are 10 integers in a set. Some are odd and some are even. For each possible
pair selected from the set, the sum is written down. Of these 45 numbers, exactly 20
are even. How many of the numbers in the original set are even?

(A) 0 (B) 3 (C) 5 (D) 8 (E) 10

There are 25 odd numbers in the list, each obtained by adding even to odd from the
original 10 numbers. This can only occur if there are 5 odd and 5 even in the set,
giving 5 × 5 = 25 odd numbers in the list,
hence (C).

23. (Also S21)

2
Starting with of a tank of fuel, I set out to drive the 550 km from Scone to Canberra.
3 1
At Morisset, 165 km from Scone, I have of a tank remaining. If I continue with the
2
same fuel consumption per kilometre and without refuelling, what happens?
1
(A) I will arrive in Canberra with of a tank to spare.
9
1
(B) I will arrive in Canberra with of a tank to spare.
20
(C) I will run out of fuel precisely when I reach Canberra.
(D) I will run out of fuel 110 km from Canberra.
(E) I will run out of fuel 220 km from Canberra.

46 2014 AMC – Intermediate Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Intermediate Division46

 2 1 1
Driving 165 km uses − = of a tank, so on a full tank I can travel 6 × 165 =
3 2 6
5
990 km. Consequently the trip to Canberra uses 550 ÷ 990 = of a tank. Since
9
2 6 1
the car started with = of a tank, I will make it to Canberra with of a tank
3 9 9
remaining,
hence (A).

24. At a party, each person shakes hands with exactly three other people and no two
people shake hands with each other more than once. If fewer than fifteen handshakes
take place, what is the maximum number of people who can be at the party?

(A) 6 (B) 7 (C) 8 (D) 9 (E) 10

Let N be the number of people at the party and let H be the number of handshakes
that take place. Since two people are involved in each handshake, we know that
2
3N = 2H. We are told that H < 15, so N = H < 10. The equation 3N = 2H
3
implies that N must be even, so we have N ≤ 8.
The answer is indeed 8, since the handshakes could have taken place as indicated
in the following diagram. Here, the dots represent people at the party and the line
segments represent handshakes.

hence (C).

25. (Also S22)

Thanom has a roll of paper consisting of a very long sheet of
thin paper tightly rolled around a cylindrical tube, forming
the shape indicated in the diagram.
Initially, the diameter of the roll is 12 cm and the diameter
of the tube is 4 cm. After Thanom uses half of the paper,
the diameter of the remaining roll is closest to

(A) 6 cm (B) 8 cm (C) 8.5 cm

(D) 9 cm (E) 9.5 cm

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Division 47 47
 Working in centimetres, let the half-roll’s radius be r. 16π
From end on, the full roll had area π(62 − 22 ) = 32π, so 16π
half the roll has area 16π. Including the tube, the end r
of the half-roll has area 20π = πr2 . 4π
2
Then r2 = 20, but 4.52 = 20.25 and 4.42 = 19.36, so 6
that 4.4 < r < 4.5, and the diameter is twice that,

hence (D).

26. (Also J28)

In a 3 × 3 grid of points, many triangles can be formed using 3 of the points as
vertices. Three such triangles are shown below. Of all these possible triangles, how
many have all three sides of different lengths?

Here are three non-congruent scalene triangles in the grid.

B C
A

To see that there are no others, consider the longest side of such a triangle.
√ √
(i) If the longest side has length 22 + 22 = 2 2, then it must be a diagonal of
the grid. The third vertex cannot be a corner dot, so it must be an edge dot,
giving triangle C.
√ √
(ii) If the longest side has length 2 2 + 12 = 5 then the other sides can only be
√ √
1, 2 or 2. With 1 and√ 2 we get triangle B and with 1 and 2 we get triangle
A. But with 2 and 2 we don’t get a grid point.
√
(iii) If the longest side has length 2 then√ the other sides must be 1 and 2, but
there is no triangle with sides 1, 2 and 2 on the grid.
Triangle A can be in 8 different orientations—4 rotations and the reflections of these.
Since it only occupies 2 × 1 cells on the grid, each of these orientations can be in 2
positions, giving 16 triangles. Triangle B is similar, also giving 16 triangles.
Triangle C can be in 8 different orientations, but it occupies 2 × 2 cells on the grid,
and so each orientation can only be in one position, giving 8 triangles. So in total
there are 16 + 16 + 8 = 40 triangles,
hence (40).

48 2014 AMC – Intermediate Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Intermediate Division48

 27. Small squares of side x cm have been removed from
the corners, sides and centre of a square of side y cm
to form the gasket shown.
If x and y are prime numbers and the sum of the inside
and outside perimeters of the gasket, in centimetres, is
equal to the area of the gasket, in square centimetres,
what is the smallest possible value of the area of the
gasket?

The outer perimeter is 4y + 8x, the inner perimeter is 4x, and the area is y 2 − 9x2 .
So 4y + 12x = (y + 3x)(y − 3x), which reduces to y − 3x = 4. So we need to
minimise 4(y + 3x) subject to y − 3x = 4 and x, y both prime. But the area is
(4 + 3x)2 − 9x2 = 16 + 24x = 4(6x + 4).
Try x = 2, then y = 10, which is not prime.
Try x = 3, then y = 13, which is prime. So the minimum area is 88 cm2 ,
hence (88).

28. In the diagram on the right, each circle has three or

six neighbours. Each circle will contain a number, and 0
each of the five missing numbers is the average of its
neighbours. What is the largest of the five missing
numbers?

1000

Alternative 1
Labelling the unknown circles with a, b, c in a symmetric pattern:

0 a

a b c

c 1000

For this arrangement, the requirement that circles with a, b and c are averages of
their neighbours gives a system of three equations:
a = 1 (0 + b + c) =⇒ 3a = b + c (1)
3
1
b= (2a + 2c + 1000) =⇒ 3b = a + c + 500 (2)
6
1
c= (a + b + 1000) =⇒ 3c = a + b + 1000 (3)
3
We solve simultaneously, first finding a + b + c,
3a + 3b + 3c = b + c + a + c + 500 + a + b + 1000 (1)+(2)+(3)
3(a + b + c) = 2(a + b + c) + 1500
a + b + c = 1500 (4)

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Division 49 49
 Then substituting, in turn, each of equations (1), (2) and (3) into equation (4) to
find a, b and c

a + (3a) = 1500 =⇒ a = 375

b + (3b − 500) = 1500 =⇒ b = 500
(3c − 1000) + c = 1500 =⇒ c = 625

The largest of the missing numbers is 625,

hence (625).
Alternative 2
We can try the following arrangment, as it has as much symmetry as possible. The
full reasons for this symmetry are discussed below.

0 a

a 500 a

a 1000

where a = 1000 − a. Then 3a = 500 + a = 1500 − a so that a = 1500 ÷ 4 = 375 and

a = 625.
The completed diagram can now be verified to be a solution to the original problem.

0 375
0 + 500 + 625 = 1125 = 3 × 375 
375 500 625 0 + 2 × 375 + 2 × 625 + 1000 = 3000 = 6 × 500 
375 + 500 + 1000 = 1875 = 3 × 625 
625 1000

This motivation to start with an arrangement with the above symmetry follows from
some manipulations of the diagram as a whole.
Claim: The solution is unique.
The difference between any two solutions will still have the average property, but will
have
0

and the only way for the largest of the empty circles to equal the average of its
neighbours is if all the circles are equal to 0. So there is no difference between the
solutions.
Consequently if there is a solution as in the first diagram below, then the ‘reflected’
second diagram (also a solution) must be equal to the first. The third diagram has
a reflection along with the algebraic transformation x = 1000 − x. This is also a

50 2014 AMC – Intermediate Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Intermediate Division50

 solution, so it is also equal to the first.

0 a 0 d 0 c

d b c a b e e b a

e 1000 c 1000 d 1000

Then b = b = 500 and a = d = c = e, as was assumed above,

hence (625).

29. As shown in the diagram, you can create a grid

of squares 3 units high and 4 units wide using 31
matches. I would like to make a grid of squares
a units high and b units wide, where a < b are
positive integers. Determine the sum of the areas
of all such rectangles that can be made, each using
exactly 337 matches.

Alternative 1
There are a + 1 rows of horizontal matches and each row contains b matches. There
are b + 1 columns of vertical matches and each column contains a matches. So the
total number of matches is (a + 1)b + (b + 1)a = 2ab + a + b.
We would like to solve the equation 2ab + a + b = 337, where a < b are positive
integers. By multiplying the equation by 2 and adding 1 to both sides, we obtain

4ab + 2a + 2b + 1 = 675 ⇒ (2a + 1)(2b + 1) = 675

The only ways to factorise 675 into two positive integers are

1 × 675, 3 × 225, 5 × 135, 9 × 75, 15 × 45, 25 × 27

We must have 2a + 1 correspond to the smaller factor and 2b + 1 to the larger factor.
So the solutions we obtain for (a, b) are

(0, 337), (1, 112), (2, 67), (4, 37), (7, 22), (12, 13)

We must disregard the first solution, but one can check that the remaining ones are
all valid. So the sum of the areas of all such rectangles is

1 × 112 + 2 × 67 + 4 × 37 + 7 × 22 + 12 × 13 = 704

hence (704).
Alternative 2
There are (a + 1)b horizontal and a(b + 1) vertical matches. Then

337 − a
(a + 1)b + a(b + 1) = 2ab + a + b = 337 =⇒ b=
2a + 1

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Division 51 51
 In this table, for each a we work out b and the area ab, keeping only those where b is
a whole number and b > a.

a 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 ···
336 335 334 333 331 332 330 329 328 327 326 325 324
b
3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27
112 67 × 37 × × 22 × × × × 13 (12) · · ·
ab 112 134 148 154 156

Then the total area is 112 + 134 + 148 + 154 + 156 = 704 square units,
hence (704).

30. (Also S28)

Consider the sequence a1 , a2 , a3 , a4 , . . . such that a1 = 2 and for every positive
integer n,

an+1 = an + pn , where pn is the largest prime factor of an .

The first few terms of the sequence are 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, 15, 20. What is the largest value
of n such that an is a four-digit number?

Alternative 1
Let us write out some terms of the sequence.

n 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
an 2 4 6 9 12 15 20 25 30 35 42 49
pn 2 2 3 3 3 5 5 5 5 7 7 7

n 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
an 56 63 70 77 88 99 110 121 132 143 156 169
pn 7 7 7 11 11 11 11 11 11 13 13 13

The crucial observation is that if p is a prime, then a2p−2 = p2 . If we assume that

this is true, then we have a192 = 972 . The next few terms can then be calculated as
follows.

n 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199

an 972 97 × 98 97 × 99 97 × 100 97 × 101 98 × 101 99 × 101 100 × 101
pn 97 97 97 97 101 101 101 101

Since a198 = 99 × 101 = 9999 and a199 = 100 × 101 = 10100, the answer to the
problem is 198.
In order to prove our crucial observation above, suppose that a2p−2 = p2 for some
prime p. Let q be the next largest prime after p. Then the next q − p terms of the
sequence after a2p−2 = p2 are

p(p + 1), p(p + 2), p(p + 3), . . . , pq .

To see this, note that the difference between consecutive terms is p and that p divides
each term. Furthermore, no prime larger than p can divide any term apart from the
last. That is because each of those terms is of the form pk, where p < k < q. Since k

52 2014 AMC – Intermediate Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Intermediate Division52

 lies between the consecutive primes p and q, it cannot be divisible by a prime larger
than p.
The next q − p terms of the sequence are

(p + 1)q, (p + 2)q, (p + 3)q, . . . , q 2 .

To see this, note that the difference between consecutive terms is q and that q divides
each term. Furthermore, no prime larger than q can divide any term. That is because
each term is of the form kq, where p < k ≤ q. Since k is at most q, it cannot be
divisible by a prime larger than q.
We have shown that if a2p−2 = p2 for a prime p, then 2q − 2p terms further along
in the sequence we find q 2 . In other words, a2q−2 = q 2 , where q is the next largest
prime after p. By induction on the prime numbers, this shows that a2p−2 = p2 for all
primes p,
hence (198).
Alternative 2
Let q1 , q2 , . . . be the primes in ascending order. In the sequence described, the dif-
ference between two terms is always a prime. It can be seen from examining a few
terms that the change in difference occurs at a product of two successive primes. So
the length of each sequence of common differences qm is qm+1 − qm−1 .
(Note that these terms with common differences qm are the elements of a multipli-
cation table for qm between qm−1 qm and qm qm+1 and so can never divide by a higher
prime.)
So adding the lengths of sequences with a common difference we find:

Difference Number of terms Cumulative count

q1 q2 − 1 1
q2 q3 − q1 q3 − q1 − 1
q3 q4 − q2 q4 + q3 − q1 − 1
q4 q5 − q3 q5 + q4 − q1 − 1
q5 q6 − q4 q6 + q5 − q1 − 1

and, in general, the common difference changes to qm at term qm + qm+1 − 2, so that

aqm +qm+1 −2 = qm × qm−1 .

Now, we find two consecutive primes with a product just less than 10000. 97 × 101 =
9797 and 101 × 103 > 10000 so a97+101−2 = a196 = 9797. From there, a197 = 9898,
a198 = 9999,
hence (198).

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Division 53 53
 Senior Division
Solutions – Senior Division

1. The expression that has the same meaning as 9x−3 is

−9 3 1 3 9
(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)
x3 x 9x3 x3 x3

1 9
9x−3 = 9 × 3
= 3,
x x
hence (E).

2. (Also J5)
1
The value of is
0.04
(A) 15 (B) 20 (C) 25 (D) 40 (E) 60

1 1 × 100 100
= = = 25,
0.04 0.04 × 100 4
hence (C).

3. (Also I3)
If p = 9 and q = −3 then p2 − q 2 is equal to

(A) 64 (B) 72 (C) 84 (D) 90 (E) 96

Now p2 = 81 and q 2 = 9, so p2 − q 2 = 81 − 9 = 72,

hence (B).

4. A circle has circumference π units. In square units, its area is

π π
(A) (B) (C) π (D) 2π (E) 4π
4 2

1 π
This circumference is 2πr = π so that r = . Then A = πr2 = ,
2 4
hence (A).

6
5. If K = L + and L = 4 and K = 7, then R equals
R

(A) −18 (B) 1 (C) 12 (D) 8 (E) 2

6 6
We have 7 = 4 + so that = 3 and R = 2,
R R
hence (E).

6. If x, x2 and x3 lie on a number line in the order shown below, which of the following
could be the value of x?

x3 x2 x

1 3 3
(A) −2 (B) − (C) (D) 1 (E)
2 4 2
54 2014 AMC – Senior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Senior Division54
 We have 0 < x2 < x so that x is positive and x < 1. The only possibility is x = 3 ,
4
and x3 = 27 , x2 = 9 = 36 and x = 3 = 48 ,
64 16 64 4 64
hence (C).

7. A 2 metre broom is leaning against a wall, with the bottom of the broom making
an angle of 45◦ with the ground. The broom slowly slides down the wall until the
bottom of the broom makes an angle of 30◦ with the ground.

2m

45◦

How far, in metres, has the top of the broom slid down the wall?
√ √ √ √ √ √
(A) 2 − 1 (B) 2 − 3 (C) 3 − 1 (D) 3 − 2 (E) 2 − 2

2
x 2
y
45◦ 30◦
x 1 √ y 1
Beforehand, = sin 45◦ = √ so that x = 2. Afterwards, = sin 30◦ = so that
2 √ 2 2 2
y = 1. Then x − y = 2 − 1,
hence (A).

8. The base of a triangle is increased by 25% and its height is increased by 50%. Its
area has increased by

(A) 25% (B) 50% (C) 66.6̇% (D) 75% (E) 87.5%

1 5
Consider the formula A = bh. As the triangle is enlarged, b is multiplied by and
2 4
3 5 3 15
h is multiplied by . In total, A is multiplied by × = = 1.875, which gives
2 4 2 8
an increase of 87.5%,
hence (E).

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Division 55 55
 9. On a section of the number line five intervals are marked as shown.

A C E
      
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
    
B D

If a number x falls in the interval A and a number y falls in the interval D, then the
1
number (x + y + 1) must fall in which interval?
2
(A) A (B) B (C) C (D) D (E) E

The number x + y + 1 is larger than 0 + 3 + 1 = 4 and less than 2 + 5 + 1 = 8, so

that 12 (x + y + 1) is between 2 and 4,
hence (C).

p p
10. If = 3 then equals
p − 2q q
1 2
(A) −3 (B) 3 (C) (D) (E) 2
3 3
p
We have p = 3(p − 2q), so 6q = 2p and p = 3q. Then = 3,
q
hence (B).

11. In a car park there are 3 Fords, 4 Holdens and 2 Hondas. If a parking inspector
chooses 2 cars at random, the probability that both are Holdens is
1 4 1 4 16
(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)
4 27 6 9 81

4
The probability the first car is a Holden is , and then the probability that the second
9
3 4 3 1
is also a Holden is . Thus the probability is × = ,
8 9 8 6
hence (C).

12. In this figure, P and Q are the centres of two circles.

Each circle has an area of 10 m2 . The area, in square
metres, of the rectangle is P Q
10 40 50 60
(A) 20 (B) 20 − (C) (D) (E)
π π π π

10
If r is the radius of both circles, then πr2 = 10 and r2 = . Then the area of the
π
60
rectangle is 3r × 2r = 6r2 = ,
π
hence (E).
√
13. The value of 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + · · · + 99 + 100 lies between

(A) 14 and 15 (B) 25 and 26 (C) 30 and 31 (D) 71 and 72 (E) 100 and 101

56 2014 AMC – Senior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Senior Division56

 2
√ be x, then√x = 1 + 2 + 3 +√· · · + 99 + 100 = 50 × (1 + 100) = 5050 so
Let the value
that x = 5050. Since 4900 = 70 and 6400 = 80, this suggests that x is slightly
more than 70. Checking, 712 = 5041 and 722 = 5184,
hence (D).

x−a x−b
14. If = and a = b, what is the value of x?
x−b x−a
a−b a2 + b2 a2 + b2 a+b
(A) (B) (C) (D) a + b (E)
2 a+b 2(a + b) 2

Alternative 1
Multiplying the equation by both denominators yields the equivalent equation which
we solve
(x − a)2 = (x − b)2
−2ax + a2 = −2bx + b2
a2 − b2 a+b
x= =
2(a − b) 2
where the last cancellation is valid, since a = b,
hence (E).
Alternative 2
x−a 1
With u = and a = b, we have u = 1 and u = . Then u2 = 1 and so u = −1.
x−b u
Consequently x − a = −(x − b) and 2x = a + b,
hence (E).

15. In the diagram, P S = 5, P Q = 3, P QS is

R
right-angled at Q, ∠QSR = 30◦ and QR = RS. Q ||
The length of RS is
√
||

3 √ 3
(A) (B) 3 (C) 2 30◦
2
√ P S
4 3 5
(D) (E) 4
3

Due to the right-angled triangle P QS, Pythagoras’ theorem gives QS = 4. Then

QRS is isosceles, so its altitude RT bisects QS.

R
Q ||
60◦
2 x
||

3
T 30◦
2
P S
5
√
Now, SRT is standard 30◦ , 60◦√
, 90◦ triangle with RT : RS : ST = 1 : 2 : 3 so
2 4 4 3
that x = RS = √ ST = √ = ,
3 3 3
hence (D).

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Division 57 57
 Comment
This problem can also be solved using trigonometry.

2 4
x= ◦
=√
cos 30 3

16. Billy, a seasonal worker in the town of Cowra, collected an even number of buckets
of cherries on his first day. Each day after that he increased the number of buckets
he picked by 2 buckets per day. In the first 50 days he collected 3250 buckets. The
number of buckets Billy collected on the 50th day was

(A) 66 (B) 110 (C) 114 (D) 116 (E) 120

Alternative 1
Let n be the number of buckets collected on the first day. Then he collected n + 2
on the 2nd day, n + 4 on the third day, and so on up to n + 98 on the 50th day. The
sum of this arithmetic progression is
50
3250 = (n + (n + 98))
2
= 50n + 2450

Then n = (3250 − 2450) ÷ 50 = 16 and n + 98 = 114,

hence (C).
Alternative 2
On average, Billy picked 3250 ÷ 50 = 65 buckets per day. His picking rate increased
steadily from the 1st day to the 50th day with an increase of 98 buckets overall. So
he must have started with 65 − 49 = 16 buckets and finished with 65 + 49 = 114
buckets,
hence (C).

17. A farmer walks 1 km east across his paddock, then 1 km north-east and then another
1 km east. Find the distance, in kilometres, between the farmer’s initial position and
his final position.
 
√ √ √ √ 11 √
(A) 5 + 2 2 (B) 10 (C) 5 (D) 2 + 2 (E) + 2 10
2

Let d be the distance in kilometres.

 2  1 2
1 d2 = 2 + √1 + √
2 2
1
√1 d = 4+ + +√4 1 1
2 2 2 2
√
1 = 5+2 2
 √
2 + √1 d = 5+2 2
2

hence (A).

58 2014 AMC – Senior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Senior Division58

 18. Two machines move at constant speeds around a circle of circumference 600 cm,
starting together from the same point. If they travel in the same direction then they
next meet after 20 seconds, but if they travel in opposite directions then they next
meet after 5 seconds. At what speed, in centimetres per second, is the faster one
travelling?

(A) 60 (B) 65 (C) 70 (D) 75 (E) 85

Let the speeds in centimetres per second be v (for the faster) and w. Then

5v + 5w = 600 and 20v − 20w = 600.

Then
v + w = 120 and v − w = 30,
so that 2v = 150 and v = 75,
hence (D).

19. The equation x2 − kx + 374 = 0 has two integer solutions. How many distinct values
of k are possible?

(A) 2 (B) 4 (C) 6 (D) 8 (E) 10

If the solutions are α and β, then αβ = 374 and α + β = k, and so α or β have the
same sign. Since 374 = 2 × 11 × 17 as prime factors and α and β are integers we have
the following solutions.
α, β k
1, 374 375
2, 187 189
11, 34 45
17, 22 39
−1, −374 −375
−2, −187 −189
−11, −34 −45
−17, −22 −39
hence (D).

x
20. Given that f1 (x) = and fn+1 (x) = f1 (fn (x)), then f2014 (x) equals
x+1
x 2014x x 2014x x
(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)
2014x + 1 2014x + 1 x + 2014 x+1 2014(x + 1)

Alternative 1
  x
x x+1 x x
f2 (x) = f = x = =
x+1 1x+1
+
x+x+1 2x + 1
x
x x
f3 (x) = x2x+1 = =
2x+1
+1 x + 2x + 1 3x + 1
and in general, by induction
x
x x x
fn (x) = =⇒ fn+1 (x) = xnx+1 = = ,
nx + 1 nx+1
+1 x + nx + 1 (n + 1)x + 1

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Division 59 59
 x
so f2014 (x) = ,
2014x + 1
hence (A).
Alternative 2
1
Consider .
fn (x)

1 1 1 1
=1+ =⇒ = f1 (fn (x)) = 1 +
f1 (x) x fn+1 (x) fn (x)
1 1 1
=⇒ =1+ =2+ = ···
f2014 (x) f2013 (x) f2012 (x)
1 1 2014x + 1
· · · = 2013 + = 2014 + =
f1 (x) x x
x
Hence f2014 (x) = ,
2014x + 1
hence (A).

21. (Also I23)

2
Starting with of a tank of fuel, I set out to drive the 550 km from Scone to Canberra.
3 1
At Morisset, 165 km from Scone, I have of a tank remaining. If I continue with the
2
same fuel consumption per kilometre and without refuelling, what happens?
1
(A) I will arrive in Canberra with of a tank to spare.
9
1
(B) I will arrive in Canberra with of a tank to spare.
20
(C) I will run out of fuel precisely when I reach Canberra.
(D) I will run out of fuel 110 km from Canberra.
(E) I will run out of fuel 220 km from Canberra.

2 1 1
Driving 165 km uses − = of a tank, so on a full tank I can travel 6 × 165 =
3 2 6
5
990 km. Consequently the trip to Canberra uses 550 ÷ 990 = of a tank. Since
9
2 6 1
the car started with = of a tank, I will make it to Canberra with of a tank
3 9 9
remaining,
hence (A).

22. (Also I25)

Thanom has a roll of paper consisting of a very long sheet of
thin paper tightly rolled around a cylindrical tube, forming
the shape indicated in the diagram.
Initially, the diameter of the roll is 12 cm and the diameter
of the tube is 4 cm. After Thanom uses half of the paper,
the diameter of the remaining roll is closest to

(A) 6 cm (B) 8 cm (C) 8.5 cm

(D) 9 cm (E) 9.5 cm

60 2014 AMC – Senior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Senior Division60

 Working in centimetres, let the half-roll’s radius be r. 16π
From end on, the full roll had area π(62 − 22 ) = 32π, so 16π
half the roll has area 16π. Including the tube, the end r
of the half-roll has area 20π = πr2 . 4π
2
Then r2 = 20, but 4.52 = 20.25 and 4.42 = 19.36, so 6
that 4.4 < r < 4.5, and the diameter is twice that,

hence (D).

23. For every 100 people living in the town of Berracan, 50 live in two-person households,
30 live in three-person households and 20 live in four-person households. What is the
average number of people living in a household?

(A) 2.0 (B) 2.5 (C) 2.7 (D) 2.8 (E) 3.0

Alternative 1
Let N be the population of Berracan, then
(i) 0.5N people live in 2-person households, in 0.5N = 0.25N houses
2
0.3N
(ii) 0.3N people live in 3-person households, in = 0.1N houses
3
0.2N
(iii) 0.2N people live in 4-person households, in = 0.05N houses.
4
Thus there are 0.4N households in Berracan and the average number of residents per
household is N ÷ 0.4N = 2.5,
hence (B).
Alternative 2
50 30 20
For every 100 people there are + + = 40 households, so there are 100 ÷ 40 =
2 3 4
2.5 people per household,
hence (B).

24. In the diagram, QS, RT and SV are

tangents to the circle. The length of
RS is 1 m and ∠SRT = 60◦ . What is
the diameter of the circle, in metres?
√ √
(A) 3 + 3 (B) 4 (C) 2 3 + 2
√ 9 Q
(D) 3 3 (E)
2

R
◦
1 m 60

S T V

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Division 61 61
 Alternative 1
Let the radius be r metres, and label points thus:

r
Q O

R
60◦

S T
√
Then RO bisects the 120◦ angle ∠QRT , so that ∠QRO = 60◦ and r = QO = 3RQ.
Then

SQ = SR + RQ
1
r = 1+ √ r
3
√ √
( 3 − 1)r = 3
√ √ √
2r = 3( 3 + 1) = 3 + 3 ,

hence (A).
Alternative 2
Q O In the diagram, note that the tangents from T to
the circle are of equal length x and likewise the tan-
y gents from R are√of length y. Then the perimeter
r of RST is 3 + 3 but this is also QS + SV = 2r,
R the diameter of the circle,
y U hence (A).
x
S
T x V
Alternative 3
Draw two squares around the circle:

√
There are 8 congruent triangles
√ with sides 1, 3 and 2. So the side of the square
(and the diameter) is 1 + 3 + 2,
hence (A).

62 2014 AMC – Senior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Senior Division62

 25. The sequence
2 22
2 , 2 2 , 22 , 22 ,...
is defined by a1 = 2 and an+1 = 2an for all n ≥ 1. What is the first term in the
sequence greater than 10001000 ?
2
2 22 22
2 22 22 22 22
22 22 22 22 22
(A) a4 = 2 (B) a5 = 2 (C) a6 = 2 (D) a7 = 2 (E) a8 = 2

We want an > 10001000 = 103000 . We know that a1 = 2, a2 = 22 = 4, a3 = 24 = 16

and a4 = 216 = 65536, all less than 103000 . Also 210 = 1024 > 103 , so that we can
estimate a5 ,

a5 = 265536 = (210 )6553 26 > (103 )6553 26 = 64 × 1019659

This is greater than 103000 ,

hence (B).

26. (Also J30)

What is the largest three-digit number with the property that the number is equal
to the sum of its hundreds digit, the square of its tens digit and the cube of its units
digit?

Alternative 1
Let the number be abc.
Then

100a + 10b + c = a + b2 + c3
99a + 10b − b2 = c(c2 − 1)
99a + b(10 − b) = (c − 1)c(c + 1)

Consider the possibilities:

99a b(10 − b) (c − 1)c(c + 1)

99 × 1 = 99 1×9=9 1×2×3=6
99 × 2 = 198 2 × 8 = 16 2 × 3 × 4 = 24
99 × 3 = 297 3 × 7 = 21 3 × 4 × 5 = 60
99 × 4 = 396 4 × 6 = 24 4 × 5 × 6 = 120
99 × 5 = 495 5 × 5 = 25 5 × 6 × 7 = 210
99 × 6 = 594 6 × 4 = 24 6 × 7 × 8 = 336
99 × 7 = 693 7 × 3 = 21 7 × 8 × 9 = 504
99 × 8 = 792 8 × 2 = 16 8 × 9 × 10 = 720
99 × 9 = 891 9×1=9

Looking at the possibilities for 99a + b(10 − b) = (c − 1)c(c + 1), we have two:
99 + 21 = 120 =⇒ a = 1, b = 3 or 7, c = 5 =⇒ n = 135 or n = 175.
495 + 9 = 504 =⇒ a = 5, b = 1 or 9, c = 8 =⇒ n = 518 or n = 598.
So, there are four 3-digit numbers which satisfy the requirements and the largest of
these four numbers is 598,
hence (598).

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Division 63 63
 Alternative 2
The number abc is equal to a + b2 + c3 , and these are the possible values of b2 and c3 :

Digit 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Square 0 1 4 9 16 25 36 49 64 81
Cube 0 1 8 27 64 125 216 343 512 729

We try these numbers in an addition grid, trying the large values of c first, then filling
in possible values for a and b. This trial-and-error search is presented here as a tree.

8 8
8+2+9 2
(no b2 )
729 = 19 729
8b9 8b9
a a=8
7 8
729 a=7 7+3+9 3
(no b2 )
ab9 729 = 19 729
7b9 8b9
c=9
a: a
6 6+0+2 6
b2 :
a =8 00
c3 : + c=8
512 b=0 512
ab c a=6
512 6b8 608
ab8
a=5
 5
c=7 5+1+2
8 1
5 =8
51 2
b=9 59 8
512
5b8 b=1
 5
a 0 1
abc < 598 51 2
343 Likewise for 51 8
ab7 c = 6, 5, . . .

The largest solution found is 598, and any solutions on branches c = 7, c = 6, . . . ,

c = 1 must be less than this,
hence (598).

27. Igor wants to make a secret code of five-letter words. To make them easy to say, he
follows these two rules:
(i) no more than two consonants or two vowels in succession
(ii) no word to start or end with two consonants
He rejects the letter ‘Q’ as too hard, so he has 20 consonants and 5 vowels to choose
from. If N is the number of code words possible, what are the first three digits of N ?

Alternative 1
First find the various arrangements of consonants (C) and vowels(V):

64 2014 AMC – Senior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Senior Division64

 Three consonants, two vowels: CVCCV, CVCVC, VCCVC.
Two consonants, three vowels: CVCVV, CVVCV, VCCVV, VCVCV, VCVVC,
VVCCV, VVCVC.
One consonant, four vowels: VVCVV.
There are 203 .52 arrangements of each 3C2V type, 202 .53 arrangements of each 2C3V
type and 20.54 arrangements of the 4C1V type. So the total number of possible words
is

3.203 .52 + 7.202 .53 + 20.54 = 3.20.1002 + 7.5.1002 + 125.100 = 962 500

The first three digits are 962,

hence (962).
Alternative 2
These tree diagrams show the number of choices available for each letter in the code
word, depending on whether the letter chosen is a consonant (C) or a vowel (V).

C VCCVC
C V 200 000
C V CVCCV 2000 10 000 V VCCVV
40 000 200 000 C 50 000
C
2000
C CVCVC 100 C V VCVCV
V 200 000 V 10 000 50 000
C V 10 000 V CVCVV 2000 V C VCVVC
20 100
V
50 000 5 2500 50 000
V C V CVVCV C V VVCCV
500 10 000 50 000 10 000 50 000
V C
25 500
C VVCVC
V 50 000
2500 V VVCVV
1250

Then the total number of possibilities is 3 × 200 000 + 7 × 50 000 + 12 500 = 962 500,
hence (962).

28. (Also I30)

Consider the sequence a1 , a2 , a3 , a4 , . . . such that a1 = 2 and for every positive
integer n,

an+1 = an + pn , where pn is the largest prime factor of an .

The first few terms of the sequence are 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, 15, 20. What is the largest value
of n such that an is a four-digit number?

Alternative 1
Let us write out some terms of the sequence.

n 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
an 2 4 6 9 12 15 20 25 30 35 42 49
pn 2 2 3 3 3 5 5 5 5 7 7 7

n 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
an 56 63 70 77 88 99 110 121 132 143 156 169
pn 7 7 7 11 11 11 11 11 11 13 13 13

2014 AMC
2014Solutions – Senior
AMC – Senior Division
Division 65 65
 The crucial observation is that if p is a prime, then a2p−2 = p2 . If we assume that
this is true, then we have a192 = 972 . The next few terms can then be calculated as
follows.

n 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199

an 972 97 × 98 97 × 99 97 × 100 97 × 101 98 × 101 99 × 101 100 × 101
pn 97 97 97 97 101 101 101 101

Since a198 = 99 × 101 = 9999 and a199 = 100 × 101 = 10100, the answer to the
problem is 198.
In order to prove our crucial observation above, suppose that a2p−2 = p2 for some
prime p. Let q be the next largest prime after p. Then the next q − p terms of the
sequence after a2p−2 = p2 are

p(p + 1), p(p + 2), p(p + 3), . . . , pq .

To see this, note that the difference between consecutive terms is p and that p divides
each term. Furthermore, no prime larger than p can divide any term apart from the
last. That is because each of those terms is of the form pk, where p < k < q. Since k
lies between the consecutive primes p and q, it cannot be divisible by a prime larger
than p.
The next q − p terms of the sequence are

(p + 1)q, (p + 2)q, (p + 3)q, . . . , q2 .

To see this, note that the difference between consecutive terms is q and that q divides
each term. Furthermore, no prime larger than q can divide any term. That is because
each term is of the form kq, where p < k ≤ q. Since k is at most q, it cannot be
divisible by a prime larger than q.
We have shown that if a2p−2 = p2 for a prime p, then 2q − 2p terms further along
in the sequence we find q 2 . In other words, a2q−2 = q 2 , where q is the next largest
prime after p. By induction on the prime numbers, this shows that a2p−2 = p2 for all
primes p,
hence (198).
Alternative 2
Let q1 , q2 , . . . be the primes in ascending order. In the sequence described, the dif-
ference between two terms is always a prime. It can be seen from examining a few
terms that the change in difference occurs at a product of two successive primes. So
the length of each sequence of common differences qm is qm+1 − qm−1 .
(Note that these terms with common differences qm are the elements of a multipli-
cation table for qm between qm−1 qm and qm qm+1 and so can never divide by a higher
prime.)
So adding the lengths of sequences with a common difference we find:

Difference Number of terms Cumulative count

q1 q2 − 1 1
q2 q3 − q 1 q 3 − q1 − 1
q3 q4 − q 2 q4 + q3 − q1 − 1
q4 q5 − q 3 q5 + q4 − q1 − 1
q5 q6 − q 4 q6 + q5 − q1 − 1

66 2014 AMC – Senior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Senior Division66

 and, in general, the common difference changes to qm at term qm + qm+1 − 2, so that

aqm +qm+1 −2 = qm × qm−1 .

Now, we find two consecutive primes with a product just less than 10000. 97 × 101 =
9797 and 101 × 103 > 10000 so a97+101−2 = a196 = 9797. From there, a197 = 9898,
a198 = 9999,
hence (198).

29. A lattice point in the plane is a point whose coordinates are both integers. Consider
a triangle whose vertices are lattice points (0, 0), (a, 0), and (0, b), where a ≥ b > 0.
Suppose that the triangle contains exactly 74 lattice points in its interior, not includ-
ing those lattice points on the sides of the triangle. Determine the sum of the areas
of all such triangles.

Inside the a×b rectangle, there are (a−1)(b−1) lattice points, and with g = gcd(a, b),
the diagonal passes through g − 1 of these. So the number of lattice points inside the
triangle is
(a − 1)(b − 1) − g + 1
= 74
2
and so we require
(a − 1)(b − 1) = 147 + g
Since we can write a = cg, b = dg then

cdg 2 − (c + d)g = 146 + g

so that g is a divisor of 146 = 2 × 73, that is, g ∈ {1, 2, 73, 146}.

But a ≥ b ≥ g, so that

(g − 1)2 ≤ (a − 1)(b − 1) = 147 + g

which fails for g = 73 and g = 146, so that g = 1 or g = 2.

Then 147 + g = 148 or 149, which we need to factorise as (a − 1)(b − 1). Since
148 = 22 × 37 and 149 is prime, there are only four cases to check.

g 147 + g a − 1 b − 1 a b g = gcd(a, b)? A = 1 ab

2
1 148 148 1 149 2  149
1 148 74 2 75 3 ×
1 148 37 4 38 5  95
2 149 149 1 150 2  150
394

So there are three such triangles, and the sum of their areas is 394,
hence (394).

2014 AMC
2014Solutions – Senior
AMC – Senior Division
Division 67 67
 30. A polynomial p(x) is called self-centered if it has integer coefficients and p(100) = 100.
If p(x) is a self-centred polynomial, what is the maximum number of integer solutions
k to the equation p(k) = k 3 ?

Write q(x) = p(x) − x3 . Then we are looking for (distinct) zeros a1 , . . . , an of q(x).
By the factor theorem, each (x − ak ) will be a factor of q(x). Then using the long
division algorithm to divide out each factor (x − ak ) in turn, the quotient polynomial
at each stage has integer coefficients. Consequently there is a factorisation q(x) =
(x − a1 ) . . . (x − an )q0 (x) where q0 (x) is a polynomial with integer coefficients.
Then

q(100) = 100 − 1003 = −999900 = −99 · 100 · 101 = −22 · 32 · 52 · 11 · 101

but also we have a factorisation into integers

q(100) = (100 − a1 ) . . . (100 − an )q0 (100)

where the (100 − ak ) are distinct factors of q(100).

The largest number of distinct factors multiplying to give q(100) is

q(100) = 1 · (−1) · 2 · (−2) · 3 · (−3) · 5 · (−5) · (−11) · 101

and so n ≤ 10. That is, every self-centred polynomial has 10 or fewer integer solutions
to p(x) = x3 .
On the other hand, the above factorisation of −999900 into distinct integer factors
allows us to write a polynomial

q(x) = (x − 99)(x − 101)(x − 98)(x − 102)(x − 97)(x − 103)

(x − 95)(x − 105)(x − 111)(x + 1)

This has 10 integer zeros and q(100) = −999900. So if we write p(x) = q(x) + x3
then p(100) = 100 and there are 10 integer solutions to the equation p(x) = x3 ,
hence (10).

68 2014 AMC – Senior Division 2014 AMC Solutions – Senior Division68

 Answers
Answers
Question Middle Upper Junior Inter- Senior
Primary Primary mediate
1 C A A D E
2 E A B B C
3 B D C B B
4 B D C D A
5 A C C D E
6 E C D C C
7 E E A A A
8 A B C E E
9 D B E C C
10 D A E A B
11 C C B E C
12 D B B E E
13 B A B B D
14 D A A E E
15 B C E D D
16 C E C C C
17 B C E B A
18 B B C B D
19 E D B A D
20 E B C E A
21 A E A C A
22 D E B C D
23 C A D A B
24 B B D C A
25 C D A D B
26 85 22 904 40 598
27 20 48 11 88 962
28 8 141 40 625 198
29 117 198 126 704 394
30 37 126 598 198 10

2014 AMC
2014Answers
AMC – Answers 69 69
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