2000 AMC 10 Problems/Problem 17

Problem

Boris has an incredible coin-changing machine. When he puts in a quarter, it returns five nickels; when he puts in a nickel, it returns five pennies; and when he puts in a penny, it returns five quarters. Boris starts with just one penny. Which of the following amounts could Boris have after using the machine repeatedly?

$\textbf{(A)} $3.63 \qquad \textbf{(B)} $5.13 \qquad \textbf{(C)}$6.30 \qquad \textbf{(D)} $7.45 \qquad \textbf{(E)}  $9.07$

Solution

Consider what happens each time he puts a coin in. If he puts in a quarter, he gets five nickels back, so the amount of money he has doesn't change. Similarly, if he puts a nickel in the machine, he gets five pennies back and the money value doesn't change. However, if he puts a penny in, he gets five quarters back, increasing the amount of money he has by $124$ cents.

This implies that the only possible values, in cents, he can have are the ones one more than a multiple of $124$. Of the choices given, the only one is $\boxed{\text{D}}$

Video Solution

https://youtu.be/ZmOrAsgvS4s

~savannahsolver

https://youtu.be/oWxqYyW926I

-gnv12

See Also

2000 AMC 10 (ProblemsAnswer KeyResources)
Preceded by
Problem 16
Followed by
Problem 18
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All AMC 10 Problems and Solutions

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