1997 AJHSME Problems/Problem 3

Problem

Which of the following numbers is the largest?

$\text{(A)}\ 0.97 \qquad \text{(B)}\ 0.979 \qquad \text{(C)}\ 0.9709 \qquad \text{(D)}\ 0.907 \qquad \text{(E)}\ 0.9089$


Solution

Using the process of elimination:

Tenths digit: All tenths digits are equal, at $9$.

Hundreths digit: $A$, $B$, and $C$ all have the same hundreths digit of $7$, and it is greater than the hundredths of $D$ or $E$ (which is $0$). Eliminate both $D$ and $E$.

Thousandths digit: $B$ has the largest thousandths digit of the remaining answers, and is the correct answer. $A$ has an "invisible" thousandths digit of $0$, while $C$ also has a thousdandths digit of $0$.

$\boxed{\textbf{(B)}}$

See also

1997 AJHSME (ProblemsAnswer KeyResources)
Preceded by
Problem 2
Followed by
Problem 4
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

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