THE 32nd ANNUAL (2010) UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND

HIGH SCHOOL MATHEMATICS COMPETITION

PART II SOLUTIONS
1. (a) If the number between 10 and 20 is x, then the numbers in the second row are x + 10 and x + 20,
while the number at the top is 2x + 30. Since the latter equals 2010, we obtain 2x = 1980 or
x = 990. This gives the magic triangle
2010
1000
10

1010
990

20

(b) If the number between 20 and 201 is x, then the number at the top is (x + 20) + (x + 201) =
2x + 221. Since 2x is an even integer, the number 2x + 221 is odd, and hence can never equal
2010. Therefore, no such triangle exists.
1
1
1
1
1
1
= + , and more generally =
+
for any positive integer n.
6
7 42
n
n + 1 n(n + 1)
Apply this identity when n = 42 to the second given equality to obtain

2. (a) Notice that

1
1
1 1 1
+ + +
+
= 1.
2 3 7 43 42 43
(b) We use induction on m, with the base case of the induction already done in part (a). Assume
that for some integer m 3, we have m positive integers d1 < d2 < < dm such that
1
1
1
+
+ +
= 1.
d1 d2
dm
We then get a similar identity with m + 1 summands as follows:
1
1
1
1
1
+
+ +
+
+
= 1.
d1 d2
dm1 dm + 1 dm (dm + 1)
3. First Solution: The number b is balance point for P if and only if the point (b, P (b)) is a center
of symmetry for the graph of P . If there are two distinct balance points, then the graph of P has
two centers of symmetry, say the points B1 and B2 . This implies that the line passing through B1
and B2 contains infinitely many points on the graph of P : namely, the point B3 such that B2 is
the midpoint of B1 B3 , the point B4 such that B1 is the midpoint of B3 B4 , the point B5 such that
B2 is the midpoint of B4 B5 , etc. But if the degree n of P is strictly greater than one, then the
line y = mx + c can intersect the curve y = P (x) in only finitely many points, since the equation
P (x) mx c = 0 has at most n solutions in x. Therefore, we must have n 1, and the graph of
P is the line passing through B1 and B2 .
Second Solution: If b is a balance point for P (x), then 0 is a balance point for P (x b). Moreover,
the degrees of the polynomials P (x) and P (x b) are the same. By replacing P (x) by P (x b), we
may therefore assume that 0 is a balance point of P . It follows that P (x) + P (x) is equal to the
constant 2P (0) for all real numbers x, and hence that the polynomial P (x) contains no positive, even
powers of x. We deduce that
P (x) = a2m+1 x2m+1 + a2m1 x2m1 + + a3 x3 + a1 x + a0
for some m 0, where a2m+1 6= 0. Now suppose that b 6= 0 is a second balance point for P . Then
0 is a balance point of P (x b ), and by the above reasoning, P (x b ) contains no positive, even
powers of x. But
P (x b ) = a2m+1 (x b )2m+1 + a2m1 (x b )2m1 +

= a2m+1 x2m+1 a2m+1 (2m + 1)b x2m + (lower order terms),

which contains the even power x2m with non-zero coefficient. This gives a contradiction, unless
m = 0, i.e., P is a linear function.
4. The answer is 59 rides. First note that 59 is clearly the maximum possible number of rides that the
students can take, since e.g. student 60 must sit next to a different student for each ride, and there
are only 59 other students available. To show that 59 rides are possible, we represent students 1
through 59 by the vertices of a regular 59-gon P , and student 60 by its center O. If two students are
seated next to each other during a certain ride, we connect the points which represent them by a line
segment. In this way, each ride corresponds to a collection of 30 line segments whose endpoints are
all the 59 vertices of P and its center O.
For each i with 1 i 59, we define ride i by the following collection of 30 segments. If vertex
i is located at point A, then connect A to O, so that student i sits next to student 60. There are
precisely 29 segments which are a diagonal or side of P and perpendicular to the line OA; these
segments determine the remaining pairs of students which sit together during ride i. Moreover, the
construction ensures that no two students will ever sit next to each other more than once.
d 1 = ABD,
d and 2 = CBD.
d Since |AM | + |M C| = |AC| is a rational
5. Consider the angles = ABC,
number, it will suffice to show that the ratio |AM |/|M C| is rational. We compute that
1
|AB| |BM | sin 1
|AM |
|AB| sin 1
Area(AM B)
=
=
= 12

.
|M C|
Area(BM C)
|BC| sin 2
2 |BC| |BM | sin 2

As |AB| and |BC| are rational numbers, we are reduced to showing that sin 1 / sin 2 is rational. The theorem of the cosine for the triangles ABC, ABD, and BCD implies that cos , cos 1 ,
and cos 2 are rational, respectively. Since cos = cos(1 + 2 ) = cos 1 cos 2 sin 1 sin 2 , we
deduce that sin 1 sin 2 is rational. Finally, sin2 2 = 1 cos2 2 is rational, so sin 1 / sin 2 =
(sin 1 sin 2 )/(sin2 2 ) is rational as well, and we are done.