NZMOSA 2014 June Problems

SOLUTIONS
1. Solution 1:
The bracelet has beads of 4 colours. Lets say theyre red, blue, green and yellow. Something that turns out to be important is that if two beads are right next to each other, no
matter how much we flip or rotate the bracelet, the two beads are still next to each other.
Lets just focus on the red and blue beads. Since the bracelet is the same no matter how
we rotate or flip it, there are only two possibilities: (1) the red and blue beads are right
next to each other, and (2) the red and blue beads are opposite each other.
Case 1: This gives us two possible bracelets: RBGY (blue and green are next to each
other) and RGYG (green and yellow are next to each other). Note: the two ends of
the bracelets are connected.
Case 2: Here, there is only one possible bracelet: RGBY.
Because only an answer was required, you could have listed, drawn out, or maybe even
made all the possibilities and found out that there are only 3 different types of bracelets.
Solution 2:
We will use the fact that different bracelets have beads with different neighbours. Let
us make a table of each bead and its neighbours. We will put a X in a cell if two beads
are neighbours.
Case 1: R is next to G and B
R
G
B
Y

R
X
X
X
X

G
X
X
X
X

B
X
X
X

But R cannot be adjacent to anything else anymore, and G and B cannot be adjacent, so
we have:
R
G
B
Y

R
X
X
X
X

G
X
X
X
X

B
X
X
X
X

Y
X

But Y must also have two neighbours, so:

R
G
B
Y

R
X
X
X
X

G
X
X
X
X

B
X
X
X
X

Y
X
X
X
X

This is the first bracelet: BRGY

Case 2: R is next to B and Y

With the same process, we end up with:
R
G
B
Y

R
X
X
X
X

G
X
X
X
X

B
X
X
X
X

Y
X
X
X
X

This is the second bracelet: BRYG

Case 3: R is next to G and Y
With the same process, we end up with:
R
G
B
Y

R
X
X
X
X

G
X
X
X
X

B
X
X
X
X

Y
X
X
X
X

This is the third bracelet: YRGB

Solution 3: (due to Malcolm Granville)
Two opposite beads uniquely identify bracelets and each bracelet has two such pairs. So
4
C2
there are
= 3.
2
2. If some player starts with 4 lollies, he will only be able to remove a maximum of 3 lollies,
and the other player will be able to clear the table on his turn. So the player starting
with 4 lollies must lose.
If some player (lets say player 1) starts with 8 lollies, he will only be able to remove
a maximum of 3 lollies, and the other player (player 2) will remove the corresponding
number of lollies so that there are 4 lollies left. Then player 1 begins his turn with 4
lollies, but we have already established that the player starting with 4 lollies must lose.
So the player starting with 8 lollies must also lose.
In fact, we can continue this so that if player 1 begins with 4n lollies, he must lose. 24 is
a multiple of 4, so Tamatis strategy is to start by removing just one lolly (to leave 24),
and every time Hemi removes i lollies (where i is either 1, 2 or 3), Tamati removes 4 i
lollies to always leave a multiple of 4. This way, Tamati can always win.

3. Lets cut up the hexagon into six triangles, which all have the same area (they all have
equal side lengths, so they are congruent).

The shaded area takes up 4 of the 6 triangles, so the area of the total is

2
4
= .
6
3

Note: There were other ways to do this, but this one is nice and clean.
4. Solution 1:
The last digits of 7(some number) repeat in this pattern: 7, 9, 3, 1, 7, 9, 3, 1, and so on.
So the last digit of 7n depends on what the remainder of n is when divided by 4 (if it has
remainder 1, the last digit is 7; if it has remainder 2, the last digit is 9, and so on).
2014 has remainder 2 when divided by 4, so the last digit is 9.
Solution 2:
The same thing can be written more succinctly using modulo notation. Essentially, writing
a b (mod n) means that a and b have the same remainder when divided by n. So
15 3 1 (mod 4) and in particular, mod 10 tells us the last digit of a number.
503

74 1 (mod 10), so 72014 = (74 )

72 1503 49 9 (mod 10). So the last digit is 9.

Solution 3:
This technique is useful for much harder situations: if we have a large number that we
dont know how to deal with, there is a theorem that comes to the rescue, known as
Eulers theorem:
For a and n which are integers that share no common factors greater than 1 (i.e. they
are coprime),
a(n) 1 (mod n)
where (n) is the number of integers from 1 to n 1 inclusive which are coprime to n.
In our situation, (10) = 4 (the coprime integers are 1, 3, 7 and 9), so 74 1 (mod 10).
The rest of the solution follows as in Solution 2.

5. For a number to be divisible by 72, it must be divisible by both 9 and 8.

If a number is divisible by 8, the last three digits are divisible by 8 (divisibility test for
8). If a number is divisible by 9, the sum of its digits is divisible by 9 (divisibility test for
9).
So the three-digit number 54b is divisible by 8, which means that b = 4 (there is no other
single digit number for which this works), and a + 6 + 5 + 4 + b = a + 6 + 5 + 4 + 4 = a + 19
is divisible by 9. Again, a = 8 is the only digit for which this is true.
So 10a + b = 84.
6. The first player has the winning strategy by writing a 4 in the centre cell.
Now the first player plays according to what the second player has done. He/she should
follow these steps even if it wont make him win immediately for example, if player 2
puts a 1 in the top left-hand corner, player 1 should put a 9 in the bottom right-hand
corner, even though diagonals arent counted; also, if player 2 places a 5 in the top middle
square, player 1 should put a 6 in the bottom middle square, even though the sum is 15.
What player 2 did
Place a 1 anywhere
Place a 2 anywhere
Place a 3 anywhere
Place a 5 anywhere
Place a 6 anywhere
Place a 7 anywhere
Place a 8 anywhere
Place a 9 anywhere

What player 1 should do

Place a 9 in the opposite square
Place a 8 in the opposite square
Place a 7 in the opposite square
Place a 6 in the opposite square
Place a 5 in the opposite square
Place a 3 in the opposite square
Place a 2 in the opposite square
Place a 1 in the opposite square

Now, there are 4 pairs of numbers that are placed by the end of the game. One of these
pairs was not useful because it does not give a sum of 14 to allow player 1 to win.
This leaves 3 pairs of numbers which must not be placed in a row or column if player 2
wants to win (the ones that are not italicised above). However, there are only 2 diagonals,
so at least one pair must be placed on a row or column, making player 1 win.
Thus by following this strategy, player 1 can always win.