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2007 AMC 10B Problem 18

Problem 18 of 25IntermediateAlgebraGeometry

A circle of radius 11 is surrounded by 44 circles of radius rr as shown. What is r?r?

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Solution

Connect the centers of the four outer circles to form a square. Adjacent outer circles are tangent, so each side has length 2r.2r. The diagonal of the square passes through the center of the central circle, giving length 1+r+r+1=2+2r.1+r+r+1=2+2r. Since a square with side 2r2r has diagonal 2r2,2r\sqrt2, we get 2(2r)2=(2+2r)2.2(2r)^2=(2+2r)^2. Expanding gives 1+2r+r2=2r2,1+2r+r^2=2r^2, so r22r1=0.r^2-2r-1=0. The positive root is r=1+2.r=1+\sqrt2. Thus, the correct answer is B.

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Concepts: tangent circles · square (geometry) · quadratic

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