Found problems: 1488
1985 IMO Longlists, 35
We call a coloring $f$ of the elements in the set $M = \{(x, y) | x = 0, 1, \dots , kn - 1; y = 0, 1, \dots , ln - 1\}$ with $n$ colors allowable if every color appears exactly $k$ and $ l$ times in each row and column and there are no rectangles with sides parallel to the coordinate axes such that all the vertices in $M$ have the same color. Prove that every allowable coloring $f$ satisfies $kl \leq n(n + 1).$
2008 Bundeswettbewerb Mathematik, 3
Through a point in the interior of a sphere we put three pairwise perpendicular planes. Those planes dissect the surface of the sphere in eight curvilinear triangles. Alternately the triangles are coloured black and wide to make the sphere surface look like a checkerboard. Prove that exactly half of the sphere's surface is coloured black.
2014 Benelux, 2
Let $k\ge 1$ be a positive integer.
We consider $4k$ chips, $2k$ of which are red and $2k$ of which are blue. A sequence of those $4k$ chips can be transformed into another sequence by a so-called move, consisting of interchanging a number (possibly one) of consecutive red chips with an
equal number of consecutive blue chips. For example, we can move from $r\underline{bb}br\underline{rr}b$ to $r\underline{rr}br\underline{bb}b$ where $r$ denotes a red chip and $b$ denotes a blue chip.
Determine the smallest number $n$ (as a function of $k$) such that starting from any initial sequence of the $4k$ chips, we need at most $n$ moves to reach the state in which the first $2k$ chips are red.
2003 Tournament Of Towns, 7
A $m \times n$ table is filled with signs $"+"$ and $"-"$. A table is called irreducible if one cannot reduce it to the table filled with $"+"$, applying the following operations (as many times as one wishes).
$a)$ It is allowed to flip all the signs in a row or in a column. Prove that an irreducible table contains an irreducible $2\times 2$ sub table.
$b)$ It is allowed to flip all the signs in a row or in a column or on a diagonal (corner cells are diagonals of length $1$). Prove that an irreducible table contains an irreducible $4\times 4$ sub table.
2006 Estonia National Olympiad, 5
Consider a rectangular grid of $ 10 \times 10$ unit squares. We call a [i]ship[/i] a figure made up of unit squares connected by common edges. We call a [i]fleet[/i] a set of ships where no two ships contain squares that share a common vertex (i.e. all ships are vertex-disjoint). Find the least number of squares in a fleet to which no new ship can be added.
1994 Baltic Way, 16
The Wonder Island is inhabited by Hedgehogs. Each Hedgehog consists of three segments of unit length having a common endpoint, with all three angles between them $120^{\circ}$. Given that all Hedgehogs are lying flat on the island and no two of them touch each other, prove that there is a finite number of Hedgehogs on Wonder Island.
2005 Kurschak Competition, 2
A and B play tennis. The player to first win at least four points and at least two more than the other player wins. We know that A gets a point each time with probability $p\le \frac12$, independent of the game so far. Prove that the probability that A wins is at most $2p^2$.
2014 Tuymaada Olympiad, 2
A $k\times \ell$ 'parallelogram' is drawn on a paper with hexagonal cells (it consists of $k$ horizontal rows of $\ell$ cells each). In this parallelogram a set of non-intersecting sides of hexagons is chosen; it divides all the vertices into pairs.
Juniors) How many vertical sides can there be in this set?
Seniors) How many ways are there to do that?
[asy]
size(120);
defaultpen(linewidth(0.8));
path hex = dir(30)--dir(90)--dir(150)--dir(210)--dir(270)--dir(330)--cycle;
for(int i=0;i<=3;i=i+1)
{
for(int j=0;j<=2;j=j+1)
{
real shiftx=j*sqrt(3)/2+i*sqrt(3),shifty=j*3/2;
draw(shift(shiftx,shifty)*hex);
}
}
[/asy]
[i](T. Doslic)[/i]
2005 China Team Selection Test, 1
Let $a_{1}$, $a_{2}$, …, $a_{6}$; $b_{1}$, $b_{2}$, …, $b_{6}$ and $c_{1}$, $c_{2}$, …, $c_{6}$ are all permutations of $1$, $2$, …, $6$, respectively. Find the minimum value of $\sum_{i=1}^{6}a_{i}b_{i}c_{i}$.
1974 IMO Longlists, 43
An $(n^2+n+1) \times (n^2+n+1)$ matrix of zeros and ones is given. If no four ones are vertices of a rectangle, prove that the number of ones does not exceed $(n + 1)(n^2 + n + 1).$
1999 Mexico National Olympiad, 6
A polygon has each side integral and each pair of adjacent sides perpendicular (it is not necessarily convex). Show that if it can be covered by non-overlapping $2 x 1$ dominos, then at least one of its sides has even length.
2014 Contests, 1
A basket is called "[i]Stuff Basket[/i]" if it includes $10$ kilograms of rice and $30$ number of eggs. A market is to distribute $100$ Stuff Baskets. We know that there is totally $1000$ kilograms of rice and $3000$ number of eggs in the baskets, but some of market's baskets include either more or less amount of rice or eggs. In each step, market workers can select two baskets and move an arbitrary amount of rice or eggs between selected baskets. Starting from an arbitrary situation, what's the minimum number of steps that workers provide $100$ Stuff Baskets?
1985 Kurschak Competition, 1
We have triangulated a convex $(n+1)$-gon $P_0P_1\dots P_n$ (i.e., divided it into $n-1$ triangles with $n-2$ non-intersecting diagonals). Prove that the resulting triangles can be labelled with the numbers $1,2,\dots,n-1$ such that for any $i\in\{1,2,\dots,n-1\}$, $P_i$ is a vertex of the triangle with label $i$.
1988 IMO Longlists, 56
Given a set of 1988 points in the plane. No four points of the set are collinear. The points of a subset with 1788 points are coloured blue, the remaining 200 are coloured red. Prove that there exists a line in the plane such that each of the two parts into which the line divides the plane contains 894 blue points and 100 red points.
2005 MOP Homework, 3
Squares of an $n \times n$ table ($n \ge 3$) are painted black and white as in a chessboard. A move allows one to choose any $2 \times 2$ square and change all of its squares to the opposite color. Find all such n that there is a finite number of the moves described after which all squares are the same color.
1999 All-Russian Olympiad, 8
There are $2000$ components in a circuit, every two of which were initially joined by a wire. The hooligans Vasya and Petya cut the wires one after another. Vasya, who starts, cuts one wire on his turn, while Petya cuts two or three. The hooligan who cuts the last wire from some component loses. Who has the winning strategy?
1984 IMO Longlists, 1
The fraction $\frac{3}{10}$ can be written as the sum of two positive fractions with numerator $1$ as follows: $\frac{3}{10} =\frac{1}{5}+\frac{1}{10}$ and also $\frac{3}{10}=\frac{1}{4}+\frac{1}{20}$. There are the only two ways in which this can be done. In how many ways can $\frac{3}{1984}$ be written as the sum of two positive fractions with numerator $1$?
Is there a positive integer $n,$ not divisible by $3$, such that $\frac{3}{n}$ can be written as the sum of two positive fractions with numerator $1$ in exactly $1984$ ways?
1992 Kurschak Competition, 3
Consider finitely many points in the plane such that no three are collinear. Prove that we can paint the points with two colors such that there is no half-plane that contains exactly three points such that those three points have the same color.
1984 Canada National Olympiad, 2
Alice and Bob are in a hardware store. The store sells coloured sleeves that fit over keys to distinguish them. The following conversation takes place:
[color=#0000FF]Alice:[/color] Are you going to cover your keys?
[color=#FF0000]Bob:[/color] I would like to, but there are only $7$ colours and I have $8$ keys.
[color=#0000FF]Alice:[/color] Yes, but you could always distinguish a key by noticing that the red key next to the green key was different from the red key next to the blue key.
[color=#FF0000]Bob:[/color] You must be careful what you mean by "[i]next to[/i]" or "[i]three keys over from[/i]" since you can turn the key ring over and the keys are arranged in a circle.
[color=#0000FF]Alice:[/color] Even so, you don't need $8$ colours.
[b]Problem:[/b] What is the smallest number of colours needed to distinguish $n$ keys if all the keys are to be covered.
1997 Pre-Preparation Course Examination, 6
A polygon can be dissected into $100$ rectangles, but it cannot be dissected into $99$ rectangles. Prove that this polygon cannot be dissected into $100$ triangles.
2011 Mongolia Team Selection Test, 3
Let $n$ and $d$ be positive integers satisfying $d<\dfrac{n}{2}$. There are $n$ boys and $n$ girls in a school. Each boy has at most $d$ girlfriends and each girl has at most $d$ boyfriends. Prove that one can introduce some of them to make each boy have exactly $2d$ girlfriends and each girl have exactly $2d$ boyfriends. (I think we assume if a girl has a boyfriend, she is his girlfriend as well and vice versa)
(proposed by B. Batbaysgalan, folklore).
2001 Tournament Of Towns, 3
Kolya is told that two of his four coins are fake. He knows that all real coins have the same weight, all fake coins have the same weight, and the weight of a real coin is greater than that of a fake coin. Can Kolya decide whether he indeed has exactly two fake coins by using a balance twice?
2007 China Girls Math Olympiad, 8
In a round robin chess tournament each player plays every other player exactly once. The winner of each game gets $ 1$ point and the loser gets $ 0$ points. If the game is tied, each player gets $ 0.5$ points. Given a positive integer $ m$, a tournament is said to have property $ P(m)$ if the following holds: among every set $ S$ of $ m$ players, there is one player who won all her games against the other $ m\minus{}1$ players in $ S$ and one player who lost all her games against the other $ m \minus{} 1$ players in $ S$. For a given integer $ m \ge 4$, determine the minimum value of $ n$ (as a function of $ m$) such that the following holds: in every $ n$-player round robin chess tournament with property $ P(m)$, the final scores of the $ n$ players are all distinct.
2005 Postal Coaching, 22
Consider the points $P$ =$(0,0)$,$Q$ = $(1,0)$, $R$= $(2,0)$, $S$ =$(3,0)$ in the $xy$-plane. Let $A,B,C,D$ be four finite sets of colours(not necessarily distinct nor disjoint). In how many ways can $P,Q,R$ be coloured bu colours in $A,B,C$ respectively if adjacent points have to get different colours? In how many ways can $P,Q,R,S$ be coloured by colours in $A,B,C,D$ respectively if adjacent points have to get different colors?
2007 All-Russian Olympiad, 4
Arutyun and Amayak show another effective trick. A spectator writes down on a board a sequence of $N$ (decimal) digits. Amayak closes two adjacent digits by a black disc. Then Arutyun comes and says both closed digits (and their order). For which minimal $N$ they may show such a trick?
[i]K. Knop, O. Leontieva[/i]