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2015 AMC 10A Problem 15

Problem 15 of 25IntermediateAlgebraNumber Theory

Consider the set of all fractions xy,\dfrac{x}{y}, where xx and yy are relatively prime positive integers. How many of these fractions have the property that if both numerator and denominator are increased by 1,1, the value of the fraction is increased by 10%?10\%?

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Solution

The condition is x+1y+1=1110xy.\frac{x+1}{y+1}=\frac{11}{10}\cdot\frac{x}{y}. Cross-multiplying gives 10y(x+1)=11x(y+1)10y(x+1)=11x(y+1), or xy+11x10y=0xy+11x-10y=0. Factoring by grouping after subtracting 110110 gives (x10)(y+11)=110.(x-10)(y+11)=-110. Since x,yx,y are positive, the useful negative factor pairs are (1,110)(-1,110), (2,55)(-2,55), and (5,22)(-5,22), producing (x,y)=(9,99),(8,44),(5,11)(x,y)=(9,99),(8,44),(5,11). Only 511\frac{5}{11} has relatively prime numerator and denominator, so exactly one fraction works. Thus, B is the correct answer.

More practice

Concepts: Diophantine Equation · Simon’s Favorite Factoring Trick · fraction

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