Joseph rolls a fair 6-sided dice repeatedly until he gets 3 of the same side in a row. What is the expected value of the number of times he rolls? [i]Lightning 3.1[/i]

At an IMOTC party, all people have pairwise distinct ages. Some pairs of people are friends and friendship is mutual. Call a person [i]junior[/i] if they are younger than all their friends, and [i]senior[/i] if they are older than all their friends. A person with no friends is both [i]junior[/i] and [i]senior[/i]. A sequence of pairwise distinct people $A_1, \dots, A_m$ is called [i]photogenic[/i] if: 1. $A_1$ is [i]junior[/i], 2. $A_m$ is [i]senior[/i], and 3. $A_i$ and $A_{i+1}$ are friends, and $A_{i+1}$ is older than $A_i$ for all $1 \leq i \leq m-1$. Let $k$ be a positive integer such that for every [i]photogenic[/i] sequence $A_1, \dots, A_m$, $m$ is not divisible by $k$. Prove that the people at the party can be partitioned into $k$ groups so that no two people in the same group are friends. [i]Proposed by Shantanu Nene[/i]

Find all triples $(a,b,c)$ of positive real numbers satisfying the system of equations \[ a\sqrt{b}-c \&= a,\qquad b\sqrt{c}-a \&= b,\qquad c\sqrt{a}-b \&= c. \]

In triangle $ABC$, $Q$ and $R$ are points on segments $AC$ and $AB$, respectively, and $P$ is the intersection of $CR$ and $BQ$. If $AR=RB=CP$ and $CP=PQ$, find $ \angle BRC $.

Suppose that a sequence $a_0, a_1, \ldots$ of real numbers is defined by $a_0=1$ and \[a_n=\begin{cases}a_{n-1}a_0+a_{n-3}a_2+\cdots+a_0a_{n-1} & \text{if }n\text{ odd}\\a_{n-1}a_1+a_{n-3}a_3+\cdots+a_1a_{n-1} & \text{if }n\text{ even}\end{cases}\] for $n\geq1$. There is a positive real number $r$ such that \[a_0+a_1r+a_2r^2+a_3r^3+\cdots=\frac{5}{4}.\] If $r$ can be written in the form $\frac{a\sqrt{b}-c}{d}$ for positive integers $a,b,c,d$ such that $b$ is not divisible by the square of any prime and $\gcd (a,c,d)=1,$ then compute $a+b+c+d$. [i]Proposed by Tristan Shin[/i]

The real numbers $x$, $y$, $z$, and $t$ satisfy the following equation: \[2x^2 + 4xy + 3y^2 - 2xz -2 yz + z^2 + 1 = t + \sqrt{y + z - t} \] Find 100 times the maximum possible value for $t$.

Consider $S=\{1, 2, 3, \cdots, 6n\}$, $n>1$. Find the largest $k$ such that the following statement is true: every subset $A$ of $S$ with $4n$ elements has at least $k$ pairs $(a,b)$, $a<b$ and $b$ is divisible by $a$.

Let $ABC$ be a triangle and let $P$ be a point not lying on any of the three lines $AB$, $BC$, or $CA$. Distinct points $D$, $E$, and $F$ lie on lines $BC$, $AC$, and $AB$, respectively, such that $\overline{DE}\parallel \overline{CP}$ and $\overline{DF}\parallel \overline{BP}$. Show that there exists a point $Q$ on the circumcircle of $\triangle AEF$ such that $\triangle BAQ$ is similar to $\triangle PAC$. [i]Andrew Gu[/i]

The line $\ell$ is perpendicular to the side $AC$ of the acute triangle $ABC$ and intersects this side at point $K$, and the circumcribed circle $\vartriangle ABC$ at points $P$ and $T$ (point P on the other side of line $AC$, as the vertex $B$). Denote by $P_1$ and $T_1$ - the projections of the points $P$ and $T$ on line $AB$, with the vertices $A, B$ belong to the segment $P_1T_1$. Prove that the center of the circumscribed circle of the $\vartriangle P_1KT_1$ lies on a line containing the midline $\vartriangle ABC$, which is parallel to the side $AC$. (Anton Trygub)

Given $n$ real numbers $a_1 \leq a_2 \leq \cdots \leq a_n$, define \[M_1=\frac 1n \sum_{i=1}^{n} a_i , \quad M_2=\frac{2}{n(n-1)} \sum_{1 \leq i<j \leq n} a_ia_j, \quad Q=\sqrt{M_1^2-M_2}\] Prove that \[a_1 \leq M_1 - Q \leq M_1 + Q \leq a_n\] and that equality holds if and only if $a_1 = a_2 = \cdots = a_n.$