1988 AJHSME Problems/Problem 8

Problem

Betty used a calculator to find the product $0.075 \times 2.56$. She forgot to enter the decimal points. The calculator showed $19200$. If Betty had entered the decimal points correctly, the answer would have been

$\text{(A)}\ .0192 \qquad \text{(B)}\ .192 \qquad \text{(C)}\ 1.92 \qquad \text{(D)}\ 19.2 \qquad \text{(E)}\ 192$

Solution

The decimal point of 0.075 is three away from what Betty punched in, and that of 2.56 is two away. The decimal point is therefore $3+2=5$ units to the left of where it should be, so we would want $.19200\Rightarrow \mathrm{(B)}$.

See Also

1988 AJHSME (ProblemsAnswer KeyResources)
Preceded by
Problem 7
Followed by
Problem 9
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
All AJHSME/AMC 8 Problems and Solutions

The problems on this page are copyrighted by the Mathematical Association of America's American Mathematics Competitions. AMC logo.png