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2019 AMC 10B Problem 12

Problem 12 of 25IntermediateAlgebraNumber Theory

What is the greatest possible sum of the digits in the base-seven representation of a positive integer less than 2019?2019?

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Solution

First, 2019=561372019=5613_7. Any number with leading digit at most 44 has digit sum at most 4+6+6+6=224+6+6+6=22, and 46667<561374666_7<5613_7 attains that sum. If the leading digit is 55, then a second digit at most 55 gives digit sum at most 5+5+6+6=225+5+6+6=22. If the first two digits are 5656, comparison with 561375613_7 forces the last two digits to contribute at most 1+21+2, giving an even smaller sum. Therefore, the largest digit sum is 2222. Thus, the answer is C .

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Concepts: number base · digits · optimization

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