2007 AMC 8 Problems/Problem 19

Revision as of 15:29, 2 January 2022 by Flyingkinder123 (talk | contribs) (Solution)

Problem

Pick two consecutive positive integers whose sum is less than $100$. Square both of those integers and then find the difference of the squares. Which of the following could be the difference?

$\mathrm{(A)}\ 2 \qquad \mathrm{(B)}\ 64 \qquad \mathrm{(C)}\ 79 \qquad \mathrm{(D)}\ 96 \qquad \mathrm{(E)}\ 131$

Solution

Let the smaller of the two numbers be $x$. Then, the problem states that $(x+1)+x<100$. $(x+1)^2-x^2=x^2+2x+1-x^2=2x+1$. $2x+1$ is obviously odd, so only answer choices C and E need to be considered.

$2x+1=131$ contradicts the fact that $2x+1<100$, so the answer is $\boxed{\mathrm{(C)} 79}$

Solution 2

Since for two consecutive numbers $a$ and $b$, the difference between their squares are $a^2-b^2=(a+b)(a-b)$, which equals to $a+b$, because $a$ and $b$ are consecutive. And because they are consecutive, one number must be even, and the other odd. Since the sum of an even and an odd number is always odd, and that the sum of $a$ and $b$ is less than 100, you can eliminate all answers expect for $\boxed{\mathrm{(C)} 79}$.

Video Solution by WhyMath

https://youtu.be/BrEqmDq82rw

~savannahsolver

See Also

2007 AMC 8 (ProblemsAnswer KeyResources)
Preceded by
Problem 18
Followed by
Problem 20
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All AJHSME/AMC 8 Problems and Solutions

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