2012 AMC 8 Problems/Problem 20

Problem

What is the correct ordering of the three numbers $\frac{5}{19}$ , $\frac{7}{21}$ , and $\frac{9}{23}$ , in increasing order?

$\textbf{(A)}\hspace{.05in}\frac{9}{23}<\frac{7}{21}<\frac{5}{19}\quad\textbf{(B)}\hspace{.05in}\frac{5}{19}<\frac{7}{21}<\frac{9}{23}\quad\textbf{(C)}\hspace{.05in}\frac{9}{23}<\frac{5}{19}<\frac{7}{21}$

$\textbf{(D)}\hspace{.05in}\frac{5}{19}<\frac{9}{23}<\frac{7}{21}\quad\textbf{(E)}\hspace{.05in}\frac{7}{21}<\frac{5}{19}<\frac{9}{23}$

Solution 1

The value of $\frac{7}{21}$ is $\frac{1}{3}$ . Now we give all the fractions a common denominator.

$\frac{5}{19} \implies \frac{345}{1311}$

$\frac{1}{3} \implies \frac{437}{1311}$

$\frac{9}{23} \implies \frac{513}{1311}$

Ordering the fractions from least to greatest, we find that they are in the order listed. Therefore, our final answer is $\boxed{\textbf{(B)}\ \frac{5}{19}<\frac{7}{21}<\frac{9}{23}}$ .

Solution 2

Instead of finding the LCD, we can subtract each fraction from $1$ to get a common numerator. Thus,

$1-\dfrac{5}{19}=\dfrac{14}{19}$

$1-\dfrac{7}{21}=\dfrac{14}{21}$

$1-\dfrac{9}{23}=\dfrac{14}{23}$

All three fractions have common numerator $14$ . Now it is obvious the order of the fractions. $\dfrac{14}{19}>\dfrac{14}{21}>\dfrac{14}{23}\implies\dfrac{5}{19}<\dfrac{7}{21}<\dfrac{9}{23}$ . Therefore, our answer is $\boxed{\textbf{(B)}\ \frac{5}{19}<\frac{7}{21}<\frac{9}{23}}$ .

Solution 3

Change $7/21$ into $1/3$ ; $\frac{1}{3}\cdot\frac{5}{5}=\frac{5}{15}$ $\frac{5}{15}>\frac{5}{19}$ $\frac{7}{21}>\frac{5}{19}$ And $\frac{1}{3}\cdot\frac{9}{9}=\frac{9}{27}$ $\frac{9}{27}<\frac{9}{23}$ $\frac{7}{21}<\frac{9}{23}$ Therefore, our answer is $\boxed{\textbf{(B)}\ \frac{5}{19}<\frac{7}{21}<\frac{9}{23}}$ .

Solution 4

When $\frac{x}{y}<1$ and $z>0$ , $\frac{x+z}{y+z}>\frac{x}{y}$ . Hence, the answer is ${\textbf{(B)}\ \frac{5}{19}<\frac{7}{21}<\frac{9}{23}}$ . ~ ryjs

This is also similar to Problem 3 on the AMC 8 2019, but with the rule switched.

Solution 5

By dividing, we see that 5/19 ≈ 0.26, 7/21 ≈ 0.33, and 9/23 ≈ 0.39. When we put this in order, $0.26$ < $0.33$ < $0.39$ . So our answer is $\boxed{\textbf{(B)}\ \frac{5}{19}<\frac{7}{21}<\frac{9}{23}}$ ~ math_genius_11

Solution 6

$\frac{5}{19}$ is very close to $\frac{1}{4}$ , so you can round it to that. Similarly, $\frac{7}{21} = \frac{1}{3}$ and $\frac{9}{23}$ can be rounded to $\frac{1}{2}$ , so our ordering is 1/4, 1/3, and 1/2, or $\boxed{\textbf{(B)}\ \frac{5}{19}<\frac{7}{21}<\frac{9}{23}}$ .

Solution 7

The numbers are in form $\frac{x}{x+14}$ . Using quotient rule on $\frac{d}{dx}(\frac{x}{x+14})$ gives $\frac{14}{(x+14)^2}$ and this is always positive. Because the derivative is always positive, a greater $x$ implies a greater $\frac{x}{x+14}$ , thus giving us the answer of $\boxed{\textbf{(B)}\ \frac{5}{19}<\frac{7}{21}<\frac{9}{23}}$ . ~lopkiloinm

2012 AMC 8 (Problems • Answer Key • Resources)
Preceded by Problem 19	Followed by Problem 21
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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