Maths Olympiad Prep

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Algebra Difficulty 1.6 Junior Find the answer Canada

For each non-zero real number aa, we define a=5aa^* = \dfrac{5}{a}.

The expression (100)(100^*)^* is equal
to

Pick one

Solution

Since a=5aa^*=\dfrac{5}{a}, then
100=5100100^*=\dfrac{5}{100}, and so (100)=(5100)(100^*)^*=\left(\dfrac{5}{100}\right)^*.

Evaluating, (5100)=5(5100)=5×1005=100\left(\dfrac{5}{100}\right)^*=\dfrac{5}{\left(\frac{5}{100}\right)}=5\times\dfrac{100}{5}=100,
and so (100)=100(100^*)^*=100.

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Source: CEMC, University of Waterloo, licensed CC-BY-NC-4.0. Statement reproduced verbatim; metadata (topic, difficulty) added by this project.