AMC 12 Mock Exam 4 Problem 16
Problem 16 of 25
An orchard has a tree at every point with integer coordinates satisfying and . Lena stands at the origin . A tree is visible to Lena if the line segment from to that tree contains no point with integer coordinates other than its two endpoints. (Treat each tree as a single point.) How many trees are visible to Lena?
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Solution
(Every lattice point strictly between the origin and a tree has both coordinates between and , so it is itself a tree; “blocked by a tree” and “contains another lattice point” mean the same thing.) The segment from to passes through the lattice points for , where , and through no others. So is visible exactly when .
Count pairs with : for each , there are values coprime to (for ), and none for . So these number . By symmetry, pairs have , and the only coprime pair with is . Total: .
Tagged: lattice points visible from the origin, gcd and Euler's phi