Summer is a great time to explore cool problems to keep your skills sharp!  Schedule a class today!

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k a May Highlights and 2025 AoPS Online Class Information
jlacosta   0
May 1, 2025
May is an exciting month! National MATHCOUNTS is the second week of May in Washington D.C. and our Founder, Richard Rusczyk will be presenting a seminar, Preparing Strong Math Students for College and Careers, on May 11th.

Are you interested in working towards MATHCOUNTS and don’t know where to start? We have you covered! If you have taken Prealgebra, then you are ready for MATHCOUNTS/AMC 8 Basics. Already aiming for State or National MATHCOUNTS and harder AMC 8 problems? Then our MATHCOUNTS/AMC 8 Advanced course is for you.

Summer camps are starting next month at the Virtual Campus in math and language arts that are 2 - to 4 - weeks in duration. Spaces are still available - don’t miss your chance to have an enriching summer experience. There are middle and high school competition math camps as well as Math Beasts camps that review key topics coupled with fun explorations covering areas such as graph theory (Math Beasts Camp 6), cryptography (Math Beasts Camp 7-8), and topology (Math Beasts Camp 8-9)!

Be sure to mark your calendars for the following upcoming events:
[list][*]May 9th, 4:30pm PT/7:30pm ET, Casework 2: Overwhelming Evidence — A Text Adventure, a game where participants will work together to navigate the map, solve puzzles, and win! All are welcome.
[*]May 19th, 4:30pm PT/7:30pm ET, What's Next After Beast Academy?, designed for students finishing Beast Academy and ready for Prealgebra 1.
[*]May 20th, 4:00pm PT/7:00pm ET, Mathcamp 2025 Qualifying Quiz Part 1 Math Jam, Problems 1 to 4, join the Canada/USA Mathcamp staff for this exciting Math Jam, where they discuss solutions to Problems 1 to 4 of the 2025 Mathcamp Qualifying Quiz!
[*]May 21st, 4:00pm PT/7:00pm ET, Mathcamp 2025 Qualifying Quiz Part 2 Math Jam, Problems 5 and 6, Canada/USA Mathcamp staff will discuss solutions to Problems 5 and 6 of the 2025 Mathcamp Qualifying Quiz![/list]
Our full course list for upcoming classes is below:
All classes run 7:30pm-8:45pm ET/4:30pm - 5:45pm PT unless otherwise noted.

Introductory: Grades 5-10

Prealgebra 1 Self-Paced

Prealgebra 1
Tuesday, May 13 - Aug 26
Thursday, May 29 - Sep 11
Sunday, Jun 15 - Oct 12
Monday, Jun 30 - Oct 20
Wednesday, Jul 16 - Oct 29

Prealgebra 2 Self-Paced

Prealgebra 2
Wednesday, May 7 - Aug 20
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Introduction to Algebra A Self-Paced

Introduction to Algebra A
Sunday, May 11 - Sep 14 (1:00 - 2:30 pm ET/10:00 - 11:30 am PT)
Wednesday, May 14 - Aug 27
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Thursday, Jun 26 - Oct 9
Tuesday, Jul 15 - Oct 28

Introduction to Counting & Probability Self-Paced

Introduction to Counting & Probability
Thursday, May 15 - Jul 31
Sunday, Jun 1 - Aug 24
Thursday, Jun 12 - Aug 28
Wednesday, Jul 9 - Sep 24
Sunday, Jul 27 - Oct 19

Introduction to Number Theory
Friday, May 9 - Aug 1
Wednesday, May 21 - Aug 6
Monday, Jun 9 - Aug 25
Sunday, Jun 15 - Sep 14
Tuesday, Jul 15 - Sep 30

Introduction to Algebra B Self-Paced

Introduction to Algebra B
Tuesday, May 6 - Aug 19
Wednesday, Jun 4 - Sep 17
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Friday, Jul 18 - Nov 14

Introduction to Geometry
Sunday, May 11 - Nov 9
Tuesday, May 20 - Oct 28
Monday, Jun 16 - Dec 8
Friday, Jun 20 - Jan 9
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Monday, Jul 14 - Jan 19

Paradoxes and Infinity
Mon, Tue, Wed, & Thurs, Jul 14 - Jul 16 (meets every day of the week!)

Intermediate: Grades 8-12

Intermediate Algebra
Sunday, Jun 1 - Nov 23
Tuesday, Jun 10 - Nov 18
Wednesday, Jun 25 - Dec 10
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Thursday, Jul 24 - Jan 22

Intermediate Counting & Probability
Wednesday, May 21 - Sep 17
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Intermediate Number Theory
Sunday, Jun 1 - Aug 24
Wednesday, Jun 18 - Sep 3

Precalculus
Friday, May 16 - Oct 24
Sunday, Jun 1 - Nov 9
Monday, Jun 30 - Dec 8

Advanced: Grades 9-12

Olympiad Geometry
Tuesday, Jun 10 - Aug 26

Calculus
Tuesday, May 27 - Nov 11
Wednesday, Jun 25 - Dec 17

Group Theory
Thursday, Jun 12 - Sep 11

Contest Preparation: Grades 6-12

MATHCOUNTS/AMC 8 Basics
Friday, May 23 - Aug 15
Monday, Jun 2 - Aug 18
Thursday, Jun 12 - Aug 28
Sunday, Jun 22 - Sep 21
Tues & Thurs, Jul 8 - Aug 14 (meets twice a week!)

MATHCOUNTS/AMC 8 Advanced
Sunday, May 11 - Aug 10
Tuesday, May 27 - Aug 12
Wednesday, Jun 11 - Aug 27
Sunday, Jun 22 - Sep 21
Tues & Thurs, Jul 8 - Aug 14 (meets twice a week!)

AMC 10 Problem Series
Friday, May 9 - Aug 1
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Thursday, Jun 12 - Aug 28
Tuesday, Jun 17 - Sep 2
Sunday, Jun 22 - Sep 21 (1:00 - 2:30 pm ET/10:00 - 11:30 am PT)
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AMC 10 Final Fives
Sunday, May 11 - Jun 8
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Tuesday, May 27 - Aug 12
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Sunday, May 18 - Jun 15

AIME Problem Series A
Thursday, May 22 - Jul 31

AIME Problem Series B
Sunday, Jun 22 - Sep 21

F=ma Problem Series
Wednesday, Jun 11 - Aug 27

WOOT Programs
Visit the pages linked for full schedule details for each of these programs!


MathWOOT Level 1
MathWOOT Level 2
ChemWOOT
CodeWOOT
PhysicsWOOT

Programming

Introduction to Programming with Python
Thursday, May 22 - Aug 7
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Intermediate Programming with Python
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USACO Bronze Problem Series
Tuesday, May 13 - Jul 29
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Physics

Introduction to Physics
Wednesday, May 21 - Aug 6
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Monday, Jun 23 - Sep 15

Physics 1: Mechanics
Thursday, May 22 - Oct 30
Monday, Jun 23 - Dec 15

Relativity
Mon, Tue, Wed & Thurs, Jun 23 - Jun 26 (meets every day of the week!)
0 replies
jlacosta
May 1, 2025
0 replies
k i Peer-to-Peer Programs Forum
jwelsh   157
N Dec 11, 2023 by cw357
Many of our AoPS Community members share their knowledge with their peers in a variety of ways, ranging from creating mock contests to creating real contests to writing handouts to hosting sessions as part of our partnership with schoolhouse.world.

To facilitate students in these efforts, we have created a new Peer-to-Peer Programs forum. With the creation of this forum, we are starting a new process for those of you who want to advertise your efforts. These advertisements and ensuing discussions have been cluttering up some of the forums that were meant for other purposes, so we’re gathering these topics in one place. This also allows students to find new peer-to-peer learning opportunities without having to poke around all the other forums.

To announce your program, or to invite others to work with you on it, here’s what to do:

1) Post a new topic in the Peer-to-Peer Programs forum. This will be the discussion thread for your program.

2) Post a single brief post in this thread that links the discussion thread of your program in the Peer-to-Peer Programs forum.

Please note that we’ll move or delete any future advertisement posts that are outside the Peer-to-Peer Programs forum, as well as any posts in this topic that are not brief announcements of new opportunities. In particular, this topic should not be used to discuss specific programs; those discussions should occur in topics in the Peer-to-Peer Programs forum.

Your post in this thread should have what you're sharing (class, session, tutoring, handout, math or coding game/other program) and a link to the thread in the Peer-to-Peer Programs forum, which should have more information (like where to find what you're sharing).
157 replies
jwelsh
Mar 15, 2021
cw357
Dec 11, 2023
k i C&P posting recs by mods
v_Enhance   0
Jun 12, 2020
The purpose of this post is to lay out a few suggestions about what kind of posts work well for the C&P forum. Except in a few cases these are mostly meant to be "suggestions based on historical trends" rather than firm hard rules; we may eventually replace this with an actual list of firm rules but that requires admin approval :) That said, if you post something in the "discouraged" category, you should not be totally surprised if it gets locked; they are discouraged exactly because past experience shows they tend to go badly.
-----------------------------
1. Program discussion: Allowed
If you have questions about specific camps or programs (e.g. which classes are good at X camp?), these questions fit well here. Many camps/programs have specific sub-forums too but we understand a lot of them are not active.
-----------------------------
2. Results discussion: Allowed
You can make threads about e.g. how you did on contests (including AMC), though on AMC day when there is a lot of discussion. Moderators and administrators may do a lot of thread-merging / forum-wrangling to keep things in one place.
-----------------------------
3. Reposting solutions or questions to past AMC/AIME/USAMO problems: Allowed
This forum contains a post for nearly every problem from AMC8, AMC10, AMC12, AIME, USAJMO, USAMO (and these links give you an index of all these posts). It is always permitted to post a full solution to any problem in its own thread (linked above), regardless of how old the problem is, and even if this solution is similar to one that has already been posted. We encourage this type of posting because it is helpful for the user to explain their solution in full to an audience, and for future users who want to see multiple approaches to a problem or even just the frequency distribution of common approaches. We do ask for some explanation; if you just post "the answer is (B); ez" then you are not adding anything useful.

You are also encouraged to post questions about a specific problem in the specific thread for that problem, or about previous user's solutions. It's almost always better to use the existing thread than to start a new one, to keep all the discussion in one place easily searchable for future visitors.
-----------------------------
4. Advice posts: Allowed, but read below first
You can use this forum to ask for advice about how to prepare for math competitions in general. But you should be aware that this question has been asked many many times. Before making a post, you are encouraged to look at the following:
[list]
[*] Stop looking for the right training: A generic post about advice that keeps getting stickied :)
[*] There is an enormous list of links on the Wiki of books / problems / etc for all levels.
[/list]
When you do post, we really encourage you to be as specific as possible in your question. Tell us about your background, what you've tried already, etc.

Actually, the absolute best way to get a helpful response is to take a few examples of problems that you tried to solve but couldn't, and explain what you tried on them / why you couldn't solve them. Here is a great example of a specific question.
-----------------------------
5. Publicity: use P2P forum instead
See https://artofproblemsolving.com/community/c5h2489297_peertopeer_programs_forum.
Some exceptions have been allowed in the past, but these require approval from administrators. (I am not totally sure what the criteria is. I am not an administrator.)
-----------------------------
6. Mock contests: use Mock Contests forum instead
Mock contests should be posted in the dedicated forum instead:
https://artofproblemsolving.com/community/c594864_aops_mock_contests
-----------------------------
7. AMC procedural questions: suggest to contact the AMC HQ instead
If you have a question like "how do I submit a change of venue form for the AIME" or "why is my name not on the qualifiers list even though I have a 300 index", you would be better off calling or emailing the AMC program to ask, they are the ones who can help you :)
-----------------------------
8. Discussion of random math problems: suggest to use MSM/HSM/HSO instead
If you are discussing a specific math problem that isn't from the AMC/AIME/USAMO, it's better to post these in Middle School Math, High School Math, High School Olympiads instead.
-----------------------------
9. Politics: suggest to use Round Table instead
There are important conversations to be had about things like gender diversity in math contests, etc., for sure. However, from experience we think that C&P is historically not a good place to have these conversations, as they go off the rails very quickly. We encourage you to use the Round Table instead, where it is much more clear that all posts need to be serious.
-----------------------------
10. MAA complaints: discouraged
We don't want to pretend that the MAA is perfect or that we agree with everything they do. However, we chose to discourage this sort of behavior because in practice most of the comments we see are not useful and some are frankly offensive.
[list] [*] If you just want to blow off steam, do it on your blog instead.
[*] When you have criticism, it should be reasoned, well-thought and constructive. What we mean by this is, for example, when the AOIME was announced, there was great outrage about potential cheating. Well, do you really think that this is something the organizers didn't think about too? Simply posting that "people will cheat and steal my USAMOO qualification, the MAA are idiots!" is not helpful as it is not bringing any new information to the table.
[*] Even if you do have reasoned, well-thought, constructive criticism, we think it is actually better to email it the MAA instead, rather than post it here. Experience shows that even polite, well-meaning suggestions posted in C&P are often derailed by less mature users who insist on complaining about everything.
[/list]
-----------------------------
11. Memes and joke posts: discouraged
It's fine to make jokes or lighthearted posts every so often. But it should be done with discretion. Ideally, jokes should be done within a longer post that has other content. For example, in my response to one user's question about olympiad combinatorics, I used a silly picture of Sogiita Gunha, but it was done within a context of a much longer post where it was meant to actually make a point.

On the other hand, there are many threads which consist largely of posts whose only content is an attached meme with the word "MAA" in it. When done in excess like this, the jokes reflect poorly on the community, so we explicitly discourage them.
-----------------------------
12. Questions that no one can answer: discouraged
Examples of this: "will MIT ask for AOIME scores?", "what will the AIME 2021 cutoffs be (asked in 2020)", etc. Basically, if you ask a question on this forum, it's better if the question is something that a user can plausibly answer :)
-----------------------------
13. Blind speculation: discouraged
Along these lines, if you do see a question that you don't have an answer to, we discourage "blindly guessing" as it leads to spreading of baseless rumors. For example, if you see some user posting "why are there fewer qualifiers than usual this year?", you should not reply "the MAA must have been worried about online cheating so they took fewer people!!". Was sich überhaupt sagen lässt, lässt sich klar sagen; und wovon man nicht reden kann, darüber muss man schweigen.
-----------------------------
14. Discussion of cheating: strongly discouraged
If you have evidence or reasonable suspicion of cheating, please report this to your Competition Manager or to the AMC HQ; these forums cannot help you.
Otherwise, please avoid public discussion of cheating. That is: no discussion of methods of cheating, no speculation about how cheating affects cutoffs, and so on --- it is not helpful to anyone, and it creates a sour atmosphere. A longer explanation is given in Seriously, please stop discussing how to cheat.
-----------------------------
15. Cutoff jokes: never allowed
Whenever the cutoffs for any major contest are released, it is very obvious when they are official. In the past, this has been achieved by the numbers being posted on the official AMC website (here) or through a post from the AMCDirector account.

You must never post fake cutoffs, even as a joke. You should also refrain from posting cutoffs that you've heard of via email, etc., because it is better to wait for the obvious official announcement. A longer explanation is given in A Treatise on Cutoff Trolling.
-----------------------------
16. Meanness: never allowed
Being mean is worse than being immature and unproductive. If another user does something which you think is inappropriate, use the Report button to bring the post to moderator attention, or if you really must reply, do so in a way that is tactful and constructive rather than inflammatory.
-----------------------------

Finally, we remind you all to sit back and enjoy the problems. :D

-----------------------------
(EDIT 2024-09-13: AoPS has asked to me to add the following item.)

Advertising paid program or service: never allowed

Per the AoPS Terms of Service (rule 5h), general advertisements are not allowed.

While we do allow advertisements of official contests (at the MAA and MATHCOUNTS level) and those run by college students with at least one successful year, any and all advertisements of a paid service or program is not allowed and will be deleted.
0 replies
v_Enhance
Jun 12, 2020
0 replies
k i Stop looking for the "right" training
v_Enhance   50
N Oct 16, 2017 by blawho12
Source: Contest advice
EDIT 2019-02-01: https://blog.evanchen.cc/2019/01/31/math-contest-platitudes-v3/ is the updated version of this.

EDIT 2021-06-09: see also https://web.evanchen.cc/faq-contest.html.

Original 2013 post
50 replies
v_Enhance
Feb 15, 2013
blawho12
Oct 16, 2017
Challenge: Make every number to 100 using 4 fours
CJB19   263
N 2 minutes ago by Leeoz
I've seen this attempted a lot but I want to see if the AoPS community can actually do it. Using ONLY 4 fours and math operations, make as many numbers as you can. Try to go in order. I'll start:
$$(4-4)*4*4=0$$$$4-4+4/4=1$$$$4/4+4/4=2$$$$(4+4+4)/4=3$$$$4+(4-4)*4=4$$$$4+4^{4-4}=5$$$$4!/4+4-4=6$$$$4+4-4/4=7$$$$4+4+4-4=8$$
263 replies
1 viewing
CJB19
May 15, 2025
Leeoz
2 minutes ago
what number have you memorized perfect squares
ellenssim   2
N an hour ago by elizhang101412
Up to what number have you memorized perfect squares, and how often does it help you in solving problems?
2 replies
ellenssim
3 hours ago
elizhang101412
an hour ago
Last challenge problems in the books
ysn613   10
N an hour ago by mdk2013
Algebra
It is known that $\frac{1}{1^2}+\frac{1}{2^2}+\frac{1}{3^2}\dots=\frac{\pi^2}{6}$ Given this fact, determine the exact value of $$\frac{1}{1^2}+\frac{1}{3^2}+\frac{1}{5^2}\dots.$$(Source: Mandelbrot)
Counting and Probability
A $3\times3\times3$ wooden cube is painted on all six faces, then cut into 27 unit cubes. One unit cube is randomly selected and rolled. After it is rolled, $5$ out of the $6$ faces are visible. What is the probability that exactly one of the five visible faces is painted? (Source: MATHCOUNTS)
Number Theory(This technically isn't the last problem but the last chapter doesn't have challenge problems)
The integer p is a 50-digit prime number. When its square is divided by 120, the remainder is not 1. What is the remainder?
I didn't include geometry because I haven't taken it yet, feel free to post it
Answer these problems and post what you think is the order of difficulty
10 replies
ysn613
Monday at 7:04 PM
mdk2013
an hour ago
What's $(-1)^0?$
Vulch   12
N 2 hours ago by Li0nking
What's $(-1)^0?$

(It may be a silly question,but still I want to know it's value)
12 replies
Vulch
Oct 26, 2024
Li0nking
2 hours ago
Do you need to attend mop
averageguy   5
N Yesterday at 5:55 PM by babyzombievillager
So I got accepted into a summer program and already paid the fee of around $5000 dollars. It's for 8 weeks (my entire summer) and it's in person. I have a few questions
1. If I was to make MOP this year am I forced to attend?
2.If I don't attend the program but still qualify can I still put on my college application that I qualified for MOP or can you only put MOP qualifier if you actually attend the program.
5 replies
averageguy
Mar 5, 2025
babyzombievillager
Yesterday at 5:55 PM
2014 amc 10 a problem 23
Rook567   3
N Yesterday at 4:13 PM by Rook567
Why do solutions assume 30 60 90 triangles?
If you assume 45 45 90 you get 5/6 as answer, don’t you?
3 replies
Rook567
Monday at 7:31 PM
Rook567
Yesterday at 4:13 PM
Inequality with a^2+b^2+c^2+abc=4
cn2_71828182846   72
N Yesterday at 4:12 PM by endless_abyss
Source: USAMO 2001 #3
Let $a, b, c \geq 0$ and satisfy \[ a^2+b^2+c^2 +abc = 4 . \] Show that \[ 0 \le ab + bc + ca - abc \leq 2. \]
72 replies
cn2_71828182846
Jun 27, 2004
endless_abyss
Yesterday at 4:12 PM
Special Points on $BC$
tenniskidperson3   40
N Yesterday at 3:43 PM by dipinsubedi
Source: 2013 USAMO Problem 6
Let $ABC$ be a triangle. Find all points $P$ on segment $BC$ satisfying the following property: If $X$ and $Y$ are the intersections of line $PA$ with the common external tangent lines of the circumcircles of triangles $PAB$ and $PAC$, then \[\left(\frac{PA}{XY}\right)^2+\frac{PB\cdot PC}{AB\cdot AC}=1.\]
40 replies
tenniskidperson3
May 1, 2013
dipinsubedi
Yesterday at 3:43 PM
Alcumus vs books
UnbeatableJJ   12
N Yesterday at 2:59 PM by pingpongmerrily
If I am aiming for AIME, then JMO afterwards, is Alcumus adequate, or I still need to do the problems on AoPS books?

I got AMC 23 this year, and never took amc 10 before. If I master the alcumus of intermediate algebra (making all of the bars blue). How likely I can qualify for AIME 2026?
12 replies
UnbeatableJJ
Apr 23, 2025
pingpongmerrily
Yesterday at 2:59 PM
Zsigmondy's theorem
V0305   17
N Yesterday at 7:22 AM by whwlqkd
Is Zsigmondy's theorem allowed on the IMO, and is it allowed on the AMC series of proof competitions (e.g. USAJMO, USA TSTST)?
17 replies
V0305
May 24, 2025
whwlqkd
Yesterday at 7:22 AM
USAJMO problem 3: Inequality
BOGTRO   106
N Monday at 11:12 PM by Learning11
Let $a,b,c$ be positive real numbers. Prove that $\frac{a^3+3b^3}{5a+b}+\frac{b^3+3c^3}{5b+c}+\frac{c^3+3a^3}{5c+a} \geq \frac{2}{3}(a^2+b^2+c^2)$.
106 replies
BOGTRO
Apr 24, 2012
Learning11
Monday at 11:12 PM
what the yap
KevinYang2.71   31
N Monday at 3:26 PM by Blast_S1
Source: USAMO 2025/3
Alice the architect and Bob the builder play a game. First, Alice chooses two points $P$ and $Q$ in the plane and a subset $\mathcal{S}$ of the plane, which are announced to Bob. Next, Bob marks infinitely many points in the plane, designating each a city. He may not place two cities within distance at most one unit of each other, and no three cities he places may be collinear. Finally, roads are constructed between the cities as follows: for each pair $A,\,B$ of cities, they are connected with a road along the line segment $AB$ if and only if the following condition holds:
[center]For every city $C$ distinct from $A$ and $B$, there exists $R\in\mathcal{S}$ such[/center]
[center]that $\triangle PQR$ is directly similar to either $\triangle ABC$ or $\triangle BAC$.[/center]
Alice wins the game if (i) the resulting roads allow for travel between any pair of cities via a finite sequence of roads and (ii) no two roads cross. Otherwise, Bob wins. Determine, with proof, which player has a winning strategy.

Note: $\triangle UVW$ is directly similar to $\triangle XYZ$ if there exists a sequence of rotations, translations, and dilations sending $U$ to $X$, $V$ to $Y$, and $W$ to $Z$.
31 replies
KevinYang2.71
Mar 20, 2025
Blast_S1
Monday at 3:26 PM
Mustang Math Recruitment is Open!
MustangMathTournament   3
N Monday at 3:21 PM by Puzzlebooks206
The Interest Form for joining Mustang Math is open!

Hello all!

We're Mustang Math, and we are currently recruiting for the 2025-2026 year! If you are a high school or college student and are passionate about promoting an interest in competition math to younger students, you should strongly consider filling out the following form: https://link.mustangmath.com/join. Every member in MM truly has the potential to make a huge impact, no matter your experience!

About Mustang Math

Mustang Math is a nonprofit organization of high school and college volunteers that is dedicated to providing middle schoolers access to challenging, interesting, fun, and collaborative math competitions and resources. Having reached over 4000 U.S. competitors and 1150 international competitors in our first six years, we are excited to expand our team to offer our events to even more mathematically inclined students.

PROJECTS
We have worked on various math-related projects. Our annual team math competition, Mustang Math Tournament (MMT) recently ran. We hosted 8 in-person competitions based in Washington, NorCal, SoCal, Illinois, Georgia, Massachusetts, Nevada and New Jersey, as well as an online competition run nationally. In total, we had almost 900 competitors, and the students had glowing reviews of the event. MMT International will once again be running later in August, and with it, we anticipate our contest to reach over a thousand students.

In our classes, we teach students math in fun and engaging math lessons and help them discover the beauty of mathematics. Our aspiring tech team is working on a variety of unique projects like our website and custom test platform. We also have a newsletter, which, combined with our social media presence, helps to keep the mathematics community engaged with cool puzzles, tidbits, and information about the math world! Our design team ensures all our merch and material is aesthetically pleasing.

Some highlights of this past year include 1000+ students in our classes, AMC10 mock with 150+ participants, our monthly newsletter to a subscriber base of 6000+, creating 8 designs for 800 pieces of physical merchandise, as well as improving our custom website (mustangmath.com, 20k visits) and test-taking platform (comp.mt, 6500+ users).

Why Join Mustang Math?

As a non-profit organization on the rise, there are numerous opportunities for volunteers to share ideas and suggest projects that they are interested in. Through our organizational structure, members who are committed have the opportunity to become a part of the leadership team. Overall, working in the Mustang Math team is both a fun and fulfilling experience where volunteers are able to pursue their passion all while learning how to take initiative and work with peers. We welcome everyone interested in joining!

More Information

To learn more, visit https://link.mustangmath.com/RecruitmentInfo. If you have any questions or concerns, please email us at contact@mustangmath.com.

https://link.mustangmath.com/join
3 replies
MustangMathTournament
May 24, 2025
Puzzlebooks206
Monday at 3:21 PM
[TEST RELEASED] OMMC Year 5
DottedCaculator   173
N Monday at 3:01 PM by drhong
Test portal: https://ommc-test-portal-2025.vercel.app/

Hello to all creative problem solvers,

Do you want to work on a fun, untimed team math competition with amazing questions by MOPpers and IMO & EGMO medalists? $\phantom{You lost the game.}$
Do you want to have a chance to win thousands in cash and raffle prizes (no matter your skill level)?

Check out the fifth annual iteration of the

Online Monmouth Math Competition!

Online Monmouth Math Competition, or OMMC, is a 501c3 accredited nonprofit organization managed by adults, college students, and high schoolers which aims to give talented high school and middle school students an exciting way to develop their skills in mathematics.

Our website: https://www.ommcofficial.org/

This is not a local competition; any student 18 or younger anywhere in the world can attend. We have changed some elements of our contest format, so read carefully and thoroughly. Join our Discord or monitor this thread for updates and test releases.

How hard is it?

We plan to raffle out a TON of prizes over all competitors regardless of performance. So just submit: a few minutes of your time will give you a great chance to win amazing prizes!

How are the problems?

You can check out our past problems and sample problems here:
https://www.ommcofficial.org/sample
https://www.ommcofficial.org/2022-documents
https://www.ommcofficial.org/2023-documents
https://www.ommcofficial.org/ommc-amc

How will the test be held?/How do I sign up?

Solo teams?

Test Policy

Timeline:
Main Round: May 17th - May 24th
Test Portal Released. The Main Round of the contest is held. The Main Round consists of 25 questions that each have a numerical answer. Teams will have the entire time interval to work on the questions. They can submit any time during the interval. Teams are free to edit their submissions before the period ends, even after they submit.

Final Round: May 26th - May 28th
The top placing teams will qualify for this invitational round (5-10 questions). The final round consists of 5-10 proof questions. Teams again will have the entire time interval to work on these questions and can submit their proofs any time during this interval. Teams are free to edit their submissions before the period ends, even after they submit.

Conclusion of Competition: Early June
Solutions will be released, winners announced, and prizes sent out to winners.

Scoring:

Prizes:

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173 replies
DottedCaculator
Apr 26, 2025
drhong
Monday at 3:01 PM
random problem i just thought about one day
ceilingfan404   27
N Apr 29, 2025 by PikaPika999
i don't even know if this is solvable
Prove that there are finite/infinite powers of 2 where all the digits are also powers of 2. (For example, $4$ and $128$ are numbers that work, but $64$ and $1024$ don't work.)
27 replies
ceilingfan404
Apr 20, 2025
PikaPika999
Apr 29, 2025
random problem i just thought about one day
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ceilingfan404
1143 posts
#1 • 4 Y
Y by aidan0626, e_is_2.71828, Exponent11, PikaPika999
i don't even know if this is solvable
Prove that there are finite/infinite powers of 2 where all the digits are also powers of 2. (For example, $4$ and $128$ are numbers that work, but $64$ and $1024$ don't work.)
This post has been edited 1 time. Last edited by ceilingfan404, Apr 20, 2025, 7:55 PM
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huajun78
75 posts
#2 • 1 Y
Y by PikaPika999
well as the number gets bigger, there are more digits, so it's less likely that ALL the digits will be a power of 2 (1, 2, 4, 8).

for the first 20 powers of 2 after $2^{10}$ ($2^{11}$ to $2^{30}$), none of them satisfy the condition (I tested all of them), so it's very unlikely that numbers with even more digits will.

I don't know how to prove this but that fact suggests that there are only a finite number.
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vincentwant
1445 posts
#3 • 1 Y
Y by PikaPika999
if the number is greater than 512 then the last four digits must be 2112, 4112, 8112, 2224, 4224, 8224, 1424, 1824, 2144, 4144, 8144, 1184, 2128, 4128, 8128, 1248, 2448, 4448, 8448, 2848, 4848, 8848, 2288, 4288, 8288, 1488, 1888

dont think this helps
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Yummo
299 posts
#4 • 1 Y
Y by PikaPika999
@above, what about 1024?
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vincentwant
1445 posts
#5 • 1 Y
Y by PikaPika999
Yummo wrote:
@above, what about 1024?

0 is not a power of 2
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e_is_2.71828
222 posts
#6 • 1 Y
Y by PikaPika999
ceilingfan404 wrote:
i don't even know if this is solvable
Prove that there are finite/infinite powers of 2 where all the digits are also powers of 2. (For example, $4$ and $128$ are numbers that work, but $64$ and $1024$ don't work.)

I won't look into it completely, but we can start somewhere. We'll see if it is possible to "generate" a formula for these numbers. So let $n$ be a $k$-digit number such that $n=a_ka_{k-1}...a_2a_1a_0$. Then $n=10^ka_k+10^{k-1}a_k-1...+10a_1+a_0$, and note for all $i$ $a_i=2^b$, for some $b$. So, $n=10^k \cdot 2^{b_k}+10^{k-1}\cdot 2^{b_{k-1}}+...+10\cdot 2^{b_1}+2^{b_0}$. From there we need also $n=2^c$ for some $c$, and presumably we can take the largest $b_i$, factor it out, and we need the remaining sum to also be a power of $2$. Someone can try working it out from here, I think I started it off well enough.
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wangzrpi
159 posts
#7
Y by
See
https://math.stackexchange.com/questions/2238383/how-many-powers-of-2-have-only-0-or-powers-of-2-as-digits
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e_is_2.71828
222 posts
#8
Y by
Definitely not middle school math
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e_is_2.71828
222 posts
#10 • 1 Y
Y by PikaPika999
K1mchi_ wrote:
e_is_2.71828 wrote:
Definitely not middle school math

its fine

doesn’t need to be msm curriculum
just for msm

if u can’t do it skill issue


"This problem is unlikely to have a simple proof, because the following holds:

Theorem. For any k, there exists a power of 2 whose first k digits and last k digits are all either 1 or 2.
Proof. We begin with looking at the last digits, taking 2nmod10k. For sufficiently large n, 2n≡0(mod2k). Since 2 is a primitive root modulo 5 and modulo 52, it is a primitive root modulo 5k for any k (Wikipedia), so we can have 2n≡b(mod10k) for any b such that b≡0(mod2k).

This is possible to accomplish with only 1 and 2 as digits. We start with b1=2 for k=1, and extend bk−1≡0(mod2k−1) to bk≡0(mod2k) by the rule:

If bk−1≡0(mod2k), take bk=2⋅10k−1+bk−1.
If bk−1≡2k−1(mod2k), take bk=10k−1+bk−1.
(This works because 10k−1≡2k−1(mod2)k.)

There is a unique sequence of digits ending …211111212122112 that we obtain in this way; reversed, it is A023396 in the OEIS.

To make sure that 2n ends in bk, there will be some condition along the lines of
n≡c(modϕ(5k))
or n=c+n′ϕ(5k) for some n′. From there, getting the first k digits to be 1 or 2 is easy along the lines of a recently popular question. We might as well aim for the sequence 111…111k, because we can. To do this, we want
log101.11…1<{(c+n′⋅ϕ(5k))log102}<log101.11…2
where {x} denotes the fractional part of x. This translates into a condition of the form
{n⋅log102ϕ(5k)}∈Ik
for some interval Ik, which we know is possible because α=log102ϕ(5k) is irrational, and therefore the sequence {α},{2α},{3α},… is dense in [0,1].

This concludes the proof.

Instead of the digits {1,2} we could have used the digits {1,4} or {1,8} and given a similar proof; if we multiply the solution to one of these by 2 or 4, we get a power of 2 whose first and last digits come from the set {2,4} or {2,8} or {4,8}. (We can't do this with just the set {0,1} or {0,2} or {0,4} or {0,8}, because eventually we can rule these out by a modular condition.)

It's of course still almost certain that there's no large power of 2 entirely made from the digits {0,1,2,4,8}, but you'd have to say something about the "middle digits" of such a power, which is much harder."

From the stack exchange.
This post has been edited 1 time. Last edited by e_is_2.71828, Apr 24, 2025, 6:01 PM
Reason: Added
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Andrew2019
2324 posts
#12 • 2 Y
Y by e_is_2.71828, Demetri
K1mchi_ wrote:
e_is_2.71828 wrote:
Definitely not middle school math

its fine

doesn’t need to be msm curriculum
just for msm

if u can’t do it skill issue

it would be crazy if someone who has only done the amc 8 and sold on it says others have a skill issue
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maromex
219 posts
#13
Y by
There is a related question: Does the base-$3$ expression of $2^n$ always have a digit equal to $2$ for sufficiently large $n$? If I recall correctly, this problem is unsolved.

The problem discussed in this topic seems similar to this question, and I don't see why it would be solvable with currently known techniques.
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e_is_2.71828
222 posts
#14 • 1 Y
Y by mithu542
I wouldn't listen to someone who can't even spell figure ...
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maxamc
585 posts
#15
Y by
e_is_2.71828 wrote:
I wouldn't listen to someone who can't even spell figure ...

K1mchi_ is always right 100000 aura.
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K1mchi_
155 posts
#16
Y by
Andrew2019 wrote:
K1mchi_ wrote:
e_is_2.71828 wrote:
Definitely not middle school math

its fine

doesn’t need to be msm curriculum
just for msm

if u can’t do it skill issue

it would be crazy if someone who has only done the amc 8 and sold on it says others have a skill issue

slander

i just dont do competitive math

hate me if u like
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MathPerson12321
3795 posts
#17 • 2 Y
Y by e_is_2.71828, mithu542
#11
why dont u?
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K1mchi_
155 posts
#18
Y by
MathPerson12321 wrote:
#11
why dont u?

just quote me


i have better things to do with my time than math rn

i’ll do u the service of enlightenment if i ever find time
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Aaronjudgeisgoat
910 posts
#19
Y by
K1mchi_ wrote:
MathPerson12321 wrote:
#11
why dont u?

just quote me


i have better things to do with my time than math rn

i’ll do u the service of enlightenment if i ever find time

you only have 105 posts, but i feel like ive seen you everywhere
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MathPerson12321
3795 posts
#22
Y by
@bove stop trying to say ur better
do i see mop quals trying to bring me down? no
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RollingPanda4616
266 posts
#24 • 1 Y
Y by PikaPika999
K3mchi_ wrote:
MathPerson12321 wrote:
@bove stop trying to say ur better
do i see mop quals trying to bring me down? no

so? im not trying to bring u down u still bring urself down bc ur very sensitive

dont we celebrate intelligence in our society?

alt alert
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RollingPanda4616
266 posts
#26 • 2 Y
Y by PikaPika999, e_is_2.71828
hey

yes
$~~~~~~$
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valisaxieamc
506 posts
#27 • 3 Y
Y by RollingPanda4616, PikaPika999, e_is_2.71828
Bro imagine making alts cause you fear that aops is going to ban you
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RollingPanda4616
266 posts
#28 • 1 Y
Y by PikaPika999
valisaxieamc wrote:
Bro imagine making alts cause you fear that aops is going to ban you

:rotfl:

anyway let's get this thread back on track

I think you might need to break up the digits and use the prime factorization. (like a 3 digit number $abc$ would be broken down into $a \cdot 2^2 5^2 + b \cdot 2^1 5^1 + c$ and since a, b,c are powers of 2, you could just look at the 5s?) idk how to continue though.
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maromex
219 posts
#29
Y by
I'll say this again:
maromex wrote:
There is a related question: Does the base-$3$ expression of $2^n$ always have a digit equal to $2$ for sufficiently large $n$? If I recall correctly, this problem is unsolved.

The problem discussed in this topic seems similar to this question, and I don't see why it would be solvable with currently known techniques.

Unless a problem about digits has good reason to be solvable with currently known techniques, it's probably not solvable, even if the answer seems obviously true/false at first.

Here's another unsolved problem related to the topic of this thread: For $n > 86$, does $2^n$ always have a $0$ in base $10$?
This post has been edited 1 time. Last edited by maromex, Apr 26, 2025, 7:16 PM
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PikaPika999
2407 posts
#30
Y by
K1mchi_ wrote:
e_is_2.71828 wrote:
Definitely not middle school math

its fine

doesn’t need to be msm curriculum
just for msm

if u can’t do it skill issue

but if the forum is literally called msm, then shouldn't it be msm? plus, if it is harder than msm, there are high school math and college math and high school olympiads, and it could've been placed there?

k1mchi_

not nice
valisaxieamc wrote:
Bro imagine making alts cause you fear that aops is going to ban you

lol imo aops should use ip bans
This post has been edited 1 time. Last edited by PikaPika999, Apr 27, 2025, 11:09 PM
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PikaPika999
2407 posts
#31 • 2 Y
Y by RollingPanda4616, Pengu14
K3mchi_ wrote:
MathPerson12321 wrote:
@bove stop trying to say ur better
do i see mop quals trying to bring me down? no

so? im not trying to bring u down u still bring urself down bc ur very sensitive

dont we celebrate intelligence in our society?

1. True intelligence shines through clarity and simplicity, not overcomplication.
2. Intelligence isn’t just about flaunting knowledge—it’s also about understanding, humility, and connection.
3. True intelligence lies not in power over others, but in empowering those around us.
4. Creativity/intelligence isn’t just about thinking outside the box—it’s about reshaping the box entirely.
5. Leadership isn’t a title—it’s the trust you earn and the influence you wield wisely.
6. Intelligence is not in the answers we give, but in the questions we dare to ask.
7. Intelligence grows when we challenge our own assumptions, not just those of others.
8. The hallmark of intelligence is recognizing that there’s always more to learn.
9. Intelligence flourishes in collaboration, not isolation.
This post has been edited 2 times. Last edited by PikaPika999, Apr 27, 2025, 11:15 PM
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valisaxieamc
506 posts
#33 • 1 Y
Y by PikaPika999
I completely agree with PikaPika but like RollingPanda said, we probably should get back on topic. I mean the kimchi dude is finally leaving us alone and hopefully getting a life so I'll take it as a win
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fake123
93 posts
#34
Y by
bro why are you guys raging over some random kid why can't you just ignore him
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PikaPika999
2407 posts
#35
Y by
fake123 wrote:
bro why are you guys raging over some random kid why can't you just ignore him

we're not raging over "some random kid" who can be ignored (sorry if this sounds harsher than it is)

they start flamewars on multiple different threads. This is how my 1000th post thread got locked :furious

also, they created multiple different alts, which is explicitly said to be against the rules (probably because of getting postbanned from this sheriff

sry if this sounds harsher than i meant to be
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