Found problems: 5802
The [i]liar's guessing game[/i] is a game played between two players $A$ and $B$. The rules of the game depend on two positive integers $k$ and $n$ which are known to both players.
At the start of the game $A$ chooses integers $x$ and $N$ with $1 \le x \le N.$ Player $A$ keeps $x$ secret, and truthfully tells $N$ to player $B$. Player $B$ now tries to obtain information about $x$ by asking player $A$ questions as follows: each question consists of $B$ specifying an arbitrary set $S$ of positive integers (possibly one specified in some previous question), and asking $A$ whether $x$ belongs to $S$. Player $B$ may ask as many questions as he wishes. After each question, player $A$ must immediately answer it with [i]yes[/i] or [i]no[/i], but is allowed to lie as many times as she wants; the only restriction is that, among any $k+1$ consecutive answers, at least one answer must be truthful.
After $B$ has asked as many questions as he wants, he must specify a set $X$ of at most $n$ positive integers. If $x$ belongs to $X$, then $B$ wins; otherwise, he loses. Prove that:
1. If $n \ge 2^k,$ then $B$ can guarantee a win.
2. For all sufficiently large $k$, there exists an integer $n \ge (1.99)^k$ such that $B$ cannot guarantee a win.
[i]Proposed by David Arthur, Canada[/i]
Determine all ordered pairs $(a,p)$ of positive integers, with $p$ prime, such that $p^a+a^4$ is a perfect square.
[i]Proposed by Tahjib Hossain Khan, Bangladesh[/i]
On each side of an equilateral triangle with side length $n$ units, where $n$ is an integer, $1 \leq n \leq 100$, consider $n-1$ points that divide the side into $n$ equal segments. Through these points, draw lines parallel to the sides of the triangle, obtaining a net of equilateral triangles of side length one unit. On each of the vertices of these small triangles, place a coin head up. Two coins are said to be adjacent if the distance between them is 1 unit. A move consists of flipping over any three mutually adjacent coins. Find the number of values of $n$ for which it is possible to turn all coins tail up after a finite number of moves.
$n$ is a positive integer. An equilateral triangle of side length $3n$ is split into $9n^2$ unit equilateral triangles, each colored one of red, yellow, blue, such that each color appears $3n^2$ times. We call a trapezoid formed by three unit equilateral triangles as a "standard trapezoid". If a "standard trapezoid" contains all three colors, we call it a "colorful trapezoid". Find the maximum possible number of "colorful trapezoids".
Prove that for all positive integers $n$ we can find a permutation of {$1,2,...,n$} such that the average of two numbers doesn't appear in-between them.For example {$1,3,2,4$}works,but {$1,4,2,3$} doesn't because $2$ is between $1$ and $3$.
Find all integers $n$ such that $2^n + n^2$ is a square of an integer.
[i](Tomas Jurik )[/i]
A sequence $ \left( a_n \right)_{n\ge 1} $ has the property that it´s nondecreasing, nonconstant and, for every natural $ n, a_n\big| n^2. $ Show that at least one of the following affirmations are true.
$ \text{(i)} $ There exists an index $ n_1 $ such that $ a_n=n, $ for all $ n\ge n_1. $
$ \text{(ii)} $ There exists an index $ n_2 $ such that $ a_n=n^2, $ for all $ n\ge n_2. $
Two players play a game involving an $n \times n$ grid of chocolate. Each turn, a player may either eat a piece of chocolate (of any size), or split an existing piece of chocolate into two rectangles along a grid-line. The player who moves last loses. For how many positive integers $n$ less than $1000$ does the second player win?
(Splitting a piece of chocolate refers to taking an $a \times b$ piece, and breaking it into an $(a-c) \times b$ and a $c \times b$ piece, or an $a \times (b-d)$ and an $a \times d$ piece.)
[i]Proposed by Lewis Chen[/i]
Consider a sequence of polynomials $P_0(x), P_1(x), P_2(x), \ldots, P_n(x), \ldots$, where $P_0(x) = 2, P_1(x) = x$ and for every $n \geq 1$ the following equality holds:
\[P_{n+1}(x) + P_{n-1}(x) = xP_n(x).\]
Prove that there exist three real numbers $a, b, c$ such that for all $n \geq 1,$
\[(x^2 - 4)[P_n^2(x) - 4] = [aP_{n+1}(x) + bP_n(x) + cP_{n-1}(x)]^2.\]
Let $m,n$ be positive integers with $m \geq n$, and let $S$ be the set of all $n$-term sequences of positive integers $(a_1, a_2, \ldots a_n)$ such that $a_1 + a_2 + \cdots + a_n = m$. Show that
\[\sum_S 1^{a_1} 2^{a_2} \cdots n^{a_n} =
{n \choose n} n^m - {n \choose n-1} (n-1)^m + \cdots +
(-1)^{n-2} {n \choose 2} 2^m + (-1)^{n-1} {n \choose 1}.\]
Suppose $\{ x_n \}_{n\geq 1}$ is a sequence of positive real numbers such that $x_1 \geq x_2 \geq x_3 \ldots \geq x_n \ldots$, and for all $n$ \[ \frac{x_1}{1} + \frac{x_4}{2} + \frac{x_9}{3} + \ldots + \frac{x_{n^2}}{n} \leq 1 . \] Show that for all $k$ \[ \frac{x_1}{1} + \frac{x_2}{2} +\ldots + \frac{x_k}{k} \leq 3. \]
Let $p>2$ be a prime. Define a sequence $(Q_{n}(x))$ of polynomials such that $Q_{0}(x)=1, Q_{1}(x)=x$ and $Q_{n+1}(x) =xQ_{n}(x) + nQ_{n-1}(x)$ for $n\geq 1.$ Prove that $Q_{p}(x)-x^p $ is divisible by $p$ for all integers $x.$
Let $n = 2188 = 3^7+1$ and let $A_0^{(0)}, A_1^{(0)}, ..., A_{n-1}^{(0)}$ be the vertices of a regular $n$-gon (in that order) with center $O$ . For $i = 1, 2, \dots, 7$ and $j=0,1,\dots,n-1$, let $A_j^{(i)}$ denote the centroid of the triangle \[ \triangle A_j^{(i-1)} A_{j+3^{7-i}}^{(i-1)} A_{j+2 \cdot 3^{7-i}}^{(i-1)}. \] Here the subscripts are taken modulo $n$. If \[ \frac{|OA_{2014}^{(7)}|}{|OA_{2014}^{(0)}|} = \frac{p}{q} \] for relatively prime positive integers $p$ and $q$, find $p+q$.
[i]Proposed by Yang Liu[/i]
Let $ S$ be the smallest subset of the integers with the property that $ 0\in S$ and for any $ x\in S$, we have $ 3x\in S$ and $ 3x \plus{} 1\in S$. Determine the number of non-negative integers in $ S$ less than $ 2008$.
Denote by $ S$ the set of all positive integers. Find all functions $ f: S \rightarrow S$ such that
\[ f (f^2(m) \plus{} 2f^2(n)) \equal{} m^2 \plus{} 2 n^2\]
for all $ m,n \in S$.
[i]Bulgaria[/i]
A rectangular array of numbers is given. In each row and each column, the sum of all numbers is an integer. Prove that each nonintegral number $x$ in the array can be changed into either $\lceil x\rceil $ or $\lfloor x\rfloor $ so that the row-sums and column-sums remain unchanged. (Note that $\lceil x\rceil $ is the least integer greater than or equal to $x$, while $\lfloor x\rfloor $ is the greatest integer less than or equal to $x$.)
Let $n \ge 2$ be an integer, and let $x_1, x_2, \ldots, x_n$ be reals for which:
(a) $x_j > -1$ for $j = 1, 2, \ldots, n$ and
(b) $x_1 + x_2 + \ldots + x_n = n.$
Prove that $$ \sum_{j = 1}^{n} \frac{1}{1 + x_j} \ge \sum_{j = 1}^{n} \frac{x_j}{1 + x_j^2} $$
and determine when does the equality occur.
In every cell of a square table is a number. The sum of the largest two numbers in each row
is $a$ and the sum of the largest two numbers in each column is b. Prove that $a = b$.
Let $a_0,a_1,\ldots$ be a sequence of positive integers such that $a_0=1$, and for all positive integers $n$, $a_n$ is the smallest composite number relatively prime to all of $a_0,a_1,\ldots,a_{n-1}$. Compute $a_{10}$.
[i]2020 CCA Math Bonanza Lightning Round #4.2[/i]
Prove that for any polynomial $P$ with real coefficients, and for any positive integer $n$, there exists a polynomial $Q$ with real coefficients such that $P(x)^2 +Q(x)^2$ is divisible by $(1+x^2)^n$.
Let $a_{1}=1$, $a_{n}=\frac{1}{n} \sum_{k=1}^{n-1}a_{k}a_{n-k}$ for $n\geq 2$. Show that
i) $\limsup_{n\to \infty} |a_{n}|^{\frac{1}{n}}<2^{-\frac{1}{2}}$;
ii) $\limsup_{n\to \infty} |a_{n}|^{\frac{1}{n}}\geq \frac{2}{3}$
Find all functions $f:\mathbb Z_{>0}\to \mathbb Z_{>0}$ such that $a+f(b)$ divides $a^2+bf(a)$ for all positive integers $a$ and $b$ with $a+b>2019$.
Let $N$ be a positive integer. Kingdom Wierdo has $N$ castles, with at most one road between each pair of cities. There are at most four guards on each road. To cost down, the King of Wierdos makes the following policy:
(1) For any three castles, if there are roads between any two of them, then any of these roads cannot have four guards.
(2) For any four castles, if there are roads between any two of them, then for any one castle among them, the roads from it toward the other three castles cannot all have three guards.
Prove that, under this policy, the total number of guards on roads in Kingdom Wierdo is smaller than or equal to $N^2$.
[i]Remark[/i]: Proving that the number of guards does not exceed $cN^2$ for some $c > 1$ independent of $N$ will be scored based on the value of $c$.
[i]Proposed by usjl[/i]
Denote by $l(n)$ the largest prime divisor of $n$. Let $a_{n+1} = a_n + l(a_n)$ be a recursively
defined sequence of integers with $a_1 = 2$. Determine all natural numbers $m$ such that there
exists some $i \in \mathbb{N}$ with $a_i = m^2$.
[i]Proposed by Nikola Velov, North Macedonia[/i]
Find all two-variable polynomials $p(x,y)$ such that for each $a,b,c\in\mathbb R$:
\[p(ab,c^2+1)+p(bc,a^2+1)+p(ca,b^2+1)=0\]