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2002 AMC 10A Problem 18

Problem 18 of 25IntermediateAlgebraGeometry

A 3×3×33\times 3\times 3 cube is formed by gluing together 2727 standard cubical dice. (On a standard die, the sum of the numbers on any pair of opposite faces is 7.7.) The smallest possible sum of all the numbers showing on the surface of the 3×3×33\times 3\times 3 cube is

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Solution

The 88 corner dice show 33 faces each, minimized at 1+2+3=6,1+2+3=6, contributing 86=48.8\cdot 6=48. The 1212 edge dice show 22 faces, minimized at 1+2=3,1+2=3, contributing 123=36.12\cdot 3=36. The 66 face-center dice show 11 face, minimized at 1,1, contributing 6,6, and the hidden interior die contributes 0.0. The total is 48+36+6=90.48+36+6=90. Thus, the correct answer is D.

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Concepts: cube geometry · optimization · casework

Problem text and solution from the LIVE past-contest archive. See also the AoPS wiki page for community solutions.