Let $(a_n), n = 0, 1, . . .,$ be a sequence of real numbers such that $a_0 = 0$ and \[a^3_{n+1} = \frac{1}{2} a^2_n -1, n= 0, 1,\cdots\] Prove that there exists a positive number $q, q < 1$, such that for all $n = 1, 2, \ldots ,$ \[|a_{n+1} - a_n| \leq q|a_n - a_{n-1}|,\] and give one such $q$ explicitly.

With about six hours left on the van ride home from vacation, Wendy looks for something to do. She starts working on a project for the math team. There are sixteen students, including Wendy, who are about to be sophomores on the math team. Elected as a math team officer, one of Wendy's jobs is to schedule groups of the sophomores to tutor geometry students after school on Tuesdays. The way things have been done in the past, the same number of sophomores tutor every week, but the same group of students never works together. Wendy notices that there are even numbers of groups she could select whether she chooses $4$ or $5$ students at a time to tutor geometry each week: \begin{align*}\dbinom{16}4&=1820,\\\dbinom{16}5&=4368.\end{align*} Playing around a bit more, Wendy realizes that unless she chooses all or none of the students on the math team to tutor each week that the number of possible combinations of the sophomore math teamers is always even. This gives her an idea for a problem for the $2008$ Jupiter Falls High School Math Meet team test: \[\text{How many of the 2009 numbers on Row 2008 of Pascal's Triangle are even?}\] Wendy works the solution out correctly. What is her answer?

Sequence of real numbers $a_0,a_1,\dots,a_{1389}$ are called concave if for each $0<i<1389$, $a_i\geq\frac{a_{i-1}+a_{i+1}}2$. Find the largest $c$ such that for every concave sequence of non-negative real numbers: \[\sum_{i=0}^{1389}ia_i^2\geq c\sum_{i=0}^{1389}a_i^2\]

Prove that $$1\cdot 4 + 2\cdot 5 + 3\cdot 6 + \cdots + n(n+3) = \frac{n(n+1)(n+5)}{3}$$ for all positive integer $n$.

Let $S = \{1,2,\dots,2014\}$. For each non-empty subset $T \subseteq S$, one of its members is chosen as its representative. Find the number of ways to assign representatives to all non-empty subsets of $S$ so that if a subset $D \subseteq S$ is a disjoint union of non-empty subsets $A, B, C \subseteq S$, then the representative of $D$ is also the representative of one of $A$, $B$, $C$. [i]Warut Suksompong, Thailand[/i]

Let $\{a_k\}^{2011}_{k=1}$ be the sequence of real numbers defined by $$a_1=0.201, \quad a_2=(0.2011)^{a_1},\quad a_3=(0.20101)^{a_2},\quad a_4=(0.201011)^{a_3},$$ and more generally \[ a_k = \begin{cases}(0.\underbrace{20101\cdots0101}_{k+2 \ \text{digits}})^{a_{k-1}}, &\text {if } k \text { is odd,} \\ (0.\underbrace{20101\cdots01011}_{k+2 \ \text{digits}})^{a_{k-1}}, &\text {if } k \text { is even.}\end{cases} \] Rearranging the numbers in the sequence $\{a_k\}^{2011}_{k=1}$ in decreasing order produces a new sequence $\{b_k\}^{2011}_{k=1}$. What is the sum of all the integers $k$, $1\le k \le 2011$, such that $a_k = b_k$? $ \textbf{(A)}\ 671\qquad\textbf{(B)}\ 1006\qquad\textbf{(C)}\ 1341\qquad\textbf{(D)}\ 2011\qquad\textbf{(E)}\ 2012 $

Consider a function $f$ on nonnegative integers such that $f(0)=1, f(1)=0$ and $f(n)+f(n-1)=nf(n-1)+(n-1)f(n-2)$ for $n \ge 2$. Show that \[\frac{f(n)}{n!}=\sum_{k=0}^n \frac{(-1)^k}{k!}\]

Prove that for each $n\geq 2$, there is a set $S$ of $n$ integers such that $(a-b)^2$ divides $ab$ for every distinct $a,b\in S$.

Every non-negative integer is coloured white or red, so that: • there are at least a white number and a red number; • the sum of a white number and a red number is white; • the product of a white number and a red number is red. Prove that the product of two red numbers is always a red number, and the sum of two red numbers is always a red number.

Define the sequence $(x_n)$ by $x_0 = 0$ and for all $n \in \mathbb N,$ \[x_n=\begin{cases} x_{n-1} + (3^r - 1)/2,&\mbox{ if } n = 3^{r-1}(3k + 1);\\ x_{n-1} - (3^r + 1)/2, & \mbox{ if } n = 3^{r-1}(3k + 2).\end{cases}\] where $k \in \mathbb N_0, r \in \mathbb N$. Prove that every integer occurs in this sequence exactly once.

For all positive integer $ n\geq 2$, prove that product of all prime numbers less or equal than $ n$ is smaller than $ 4^{n}$.

Let $\langle a_n\rangle_{n\ge 0}$ be a sequence of integers satisfying $a_0=1, a_1=3$ and $a_{n+2}=1+\left\lfloor \frac{a_{n+1}^2}{a_n}\right\rfloor \ \ \forall n\ge0.$ Prove that $a_n\cdot a_{n+2}-a_{n+1}^2=2^n$ for every natural number $n.$

The sequence $a_1, a_2, a_3, ...$ is defined by $a_1 = a_2 = a_3 = 1$, $a_{n+3} = a_{n+2}a_{n+1} + a_n$. Show that for any positive integer $r$ we can find $s$ such that $a_s$ is a multiple of $r$.

Let a sequence $\left\{ {{x_n}} \right\}$ defined by: \[\left\{ \begin{array}{l} {x_0} = - 2 \\ {x_n} = \frac{{1 - \sqrt {1 - 4{x_{n - 1}}} }}{2},\forall n \ge 1 \\ \end{array} \right.\] Denote $u_n=n.x_n$ and ${v_n} = \prod\limits_{i = 0}^n {\left( {1 + x_i^2} \right)} $. Prove that $\left\{ {{u_n}} \right\}$, $\left\{ {{v_n}} \right\}$ have finite limit.

Find all positive real numbers $r<1$ such that there exists a set $\mathcal{S}$ with the given properties: i) For any real number $t$, exactly one of $t, t+r$ and $t+1$ belongs to $\mathcal{S}$; ii) For any real number $t$, exactly one of $t, t-r$ and $t-1$ belongs to $\mathcal{S}$.

Let $a_0=5/2$ and $a_k=a_{k-1}^2-2$ for $k\ge 1.$ Compute \[\prod_{k=0}^{\infty}\left(1-\frac1{a_k}\right)\] in closed form.

Let $ f(x)\equal{}a_{2n}x^{2n}\plus{}a_{2n\minus{}1}x^{2n\minus{}1}\plus{}\cdots\plus{}a_1x\plus{}a_0$, with $ a_i\equal{}a_{2n\minus{}1}$ for all $ i\equal{}1,2,\ldots,n$ and $ a_{2n}\ne0$. Prove that there exists a polynomial $ g(x)$ of degree $ n$ such that $ g\left(x\plus{}\frac1x\right)x^n\equal{}f(x)$.

Let $ \{ a_1 , a_2 , \cdots, a_{10} \} = \{ 1, 2, \cdots , 10 \} $ . Find the maximum value of \[ \sum_{n=1}^{10}(na_n ^2 - n^2 a_n ) \]

It is known that a certain mechanical balance can measure any object of integer mass anywhere between 1 and 2009 (both included). This balance has $k$ weights of integral values. What is the minimum $k$ for which there exist weights that satisfy this condition?

Let $n$ be a fixed positive integer. Determine the smallest possible rank of an $n\times n$ matrix that has zeros along the main diagonal and strictly positive real numbers off the main diagonal. [i]Proposed by Ilya Bogdanov and Grigoriy Chelnokov, MIPT, Moscow.[/i]

In the class, there are $ 15$ boys and $ 15$ girls. On March $ 8$, some boys made phone calls to some girls to congratulate them on the holiday ( each boy made no more than one call to each girl). It appears that there is a unique way to split the class in $ 15$ pairs (each consisting of a boy and a girl) such that in every pair the boy has phoned the girl. Find the maximal possible number of calls.

Prove that for any positive integer $ n$, there exists only $ n$ degree polynomial $ f(x),$ satisfying $ f(0) \equal{} 1$ and $ (x \plus{} 1)[f(x)]^2 \minus{} 1$ is an odd function.

If $a,b,c$ are nonnegative real numbers, then \[{ 3(a^2+b^2+c^2) \geq (a+b+c)(\sqrt{ab}+\sqrt{bc}+\sqrt{ca})+(a-b)^2+(b-c)^2+(c-a)^2 \geq (a+b+c)^2.}\]

On a circular table are sitting $ 2n$ people, equally spaced in between. $ m$ cookies are given to these people, and they give cookies to their neighbors according to the following rule. (i) One may give cookies only to people adjacent to himself. (ii) In order to give a cookie to one's neighbor, one must eat a cookie. Select arbitrarily a person $ A$ sitting on the table. Find the minimum value $ m$ such that there is a strategy in which $ A$ can eventually receive a cookie, independent of the distribution of cookies at the beginning.

we are given $n$ rectangles in the plane. Prove that between $4n$ right angles formed by these rectangles there are at least $[4\sqrt n]$ distinct right angles.