Difference between revisions of "2019 AMC 10A Problems/Problem 3"

(Solution)
(Solution 1)
Line 5: Line 5:
 
<math>\textbf{(A) } 3 \qquad\textbf{(B) } 5 \qquad\textbf{(C) } 9 \qquad\textbf{(D) } 12 \qquad\textbf{(E) } 15</math>
 
<math>\textbf{(A) } 3 \qquad\textbf{(B) } 5 \qquad\textbf{(C) } 9 \qquad\textbf{(D) } 12 \qquad\textbf{(E) } 15</math>
  
==Solution 1==
+
==Solution==
 +
 
 +
===Solution 1===
 
Let <math>A</math> be the age of Ana and <math>B</math> be the age of Bonita. Then,
 
Let <math>A</math> be the age of Ana and <math>B</math> be the age of Bonita. Then,
  

Revision as of 13:16, 28 July 2019

Problem

Ana and Bonita were born on the same date in different years, $n$ years apart. Last year Ana was $5$ times as old as Bonita. This year Ana's age is the square of Bonita's age. What is $n?$

$\textbf{(A) } 3 \qquad\textbf{(B) } 5 \qquad\textbf{(C) } 9 \qquad\textbf{(D) } 12 \qquad\textbf{(E) } 15$

Solution

Solution 1

Let $A$ be the age of Ana and $B$ be the age of Bonita. Then,

\[A-1 = 5(B-1)\] and \[A = B^2.\]

Substituting the second equation into the first gives us

\[B^2-1 = 5(B-1).\]

By using difference of squares and dividing, $B=4.$ Moreover, $A=B^2=16.$

The answer is $16-4 = 12 \implies \boxed{\textbf{(D)}}.$

Solution 2 (Guess and Check)

Simple guess and check works. Start with all the square numbers - $1$, $4$, $9$, $16$, $25$, $36$, etc. (probably stop at around $100$ since at that point it wouldn't make sense). If Ana is $9$, then Bonita is $3$, so in the previous year, Ana's age was $4$ times greater than Bonita's. If Ana is $16$, then Bonita is $4$, and Ana's age was $5$ times greater than Bonita's in the previous year, as required. The difference in the ages is $16 - 4 = 12$.

See Also

2019 AMC 10A (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 AMC 10 Problems and Solutions

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