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Algebra Difficulty 7.6 National olympiad, round 2 Prove it Czech Republic

Given two odd positive integers kk and nn. For each two positive integers i,ji, j satisfying 1ik1 \le i \le k and 1jn1 \le j \le n Martin wrote the fraction i/ji/j on the board. Determine the median of all these fractions, that is a real number qq such that if we order all the fractions on the board by their values from smallest to largest (fractions with the same value in any order), in the middle of this list will be a fraction with value qq. (Martin Melicher)

Solution

We show that the median has the value q=k+1n+1q = \frac{k+1}{n+1}. In the entire solution, qq denotes this number.
Since the given numbers nn and kk are odd, the fraction with value qq is actually written on the board—for example, it is a fraction 12(k+1)12(n+1)\frac{\frac{1}{2}(k+1)}{\frac{1}{2}(n+1)}.

According to the comparison with the number qq, we call a fraction
small if its value is less than qq,
mean if its value is equal to qq,
large if its value is greater than qq.

The number knk \cdot n of all fractions on the board is odd. To show that the middle fraction, when they are ordered by their values, has the value qq, it is sufficient to prove that the number of small fractions is equal to the number of the large ones. (The latter will also mean that the number of mean fractions is odd, which again confirms their existence.)

We match the fractions written on the board—we couple each fraction i/ji/j with the fraction i/ji'/j' (and vice versa) if and only if i=k+1ii' = k + 1 - i and j=n+1jj' = n + 1 - j, which can indeed be rewritten symmetrically as i+i=k+1i + i' = k + 1 and j+j=n+1j + j' = n + 1. Note that the inequalities 1ik1 \le i \le k and 1jn1 \le j \le n apparently hold if and only if 1ik1 \le i' \le k and 1jn1 \le j' \le n.

It is obvious that only the fraction 12(k+1)12(n+1)\frac{\frac{1}{2}(k+1)}{\frac{1}{2}(n+1)} is „coupled“ with itself and that all the other fractions are actually divided into pairs. If we show that every such pair either consists of one small and one large fraction, or of two mean fractions, we are done.

Thanks to the mentioned symmetry, it suffices to verify that a fraction i/ji'/j' is small if and only if the fraction i/ji/j is large. The verification is routine:

ij<k+1n+1k+1in+1j<k+1n+1(k+1i)(n+1)<(k+1)(n+1j)(k+1)(n+1)i(n+1)<(k+1)(n+1)(k+1)ji(n+1)>(k+1)jij>k+1n+1. \begin{align*} \frac{i'}{j'} < \frac{k+1}{n+1} &\Leftrightarrow \frac{k+1-i}{n+1-j} < \frac{k+1}{n+1} \\ &\Leftrightarrow (k+1-i)(n+1) < (k+1)(n+1-j) \\ &\Leftrightarrow (k+1)(n+1) - i(n+1) < (k+1)(n+1) - (k+1)j \\ &\Leftrightarrow i(n+1) > (k+1)j \\ &\Leftrightarrow \frac{i}{j} > \frac{k+1}{n+1}. \end{align*}

This completes the solution.

ANOTHER SOLUTION.

Let us look at the problem geometrically—we consider the plane with the Cartesian coordinate system OxyOxy. Each fraction i/ji/j that Martin wrote on the board is represented as a point BB with coordinates [j,i][j, i].* We thus get exactly those points B[j,i]B[j, i] of our plane, for which j{1,2,,n}j \in \{1, 2, \dots, n\} and i{1,2,,k}i \in \{1, 2, \dots, k\}. The set of these points (that we plotted in the figure for n=11n = 11 a k=5k = 5) we denote by MM and call it „the grid“. It has the shape of a rectangle with vertices [1,1][1, 1], [n,1][n, 1], [n,k][n, k] and [1,k][1, k]. Since numbers n,kn, k are odd, the center SS of this rectangle has integer coordinates j0=12(n+1)j_0 = \frac{1}{2}(n + 1) and i0=12(k+1)i_0 = \frac{1}{2}(k + 1). The center SS is thus itself a point of the grid MM. Let us add that the line OSOS has the slope i0/j0i_0/j_0 and let us denote the value of this fraction by qq as in the first solution.

Note that the grid MM is point symmetric with the center SS (in the picture we marked two points BB and BB' where each of them is reflection of the other one).* Therefore, there is the same number of points from MM above and below the line OSOS. Let us clarify what distinguishes these two equally numerous groups of points „below the line OSandabovethelineOS“ and „above the line OS“.

The point B[j,i]B[j, i] of the grid MM lies below the line OSOS if and only if the line OBOB has a smaller slope than the line OSOS, i.e. if i/j<i0/j0=qi/j < i_0/j_0 = q holds. Therefore, exactly those points B[j,i]B[j, i] lie under the line OSOS that correspond to small fractions i/ji/j, as we called them in the first solution. Similarly, the lattice points of MM above the line OSOS correspond to large fractions. So, there is the same number of small and large fractions.

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Source: MathNet, licensed CC-BY-4.0. Statement and solution reproduced as published; topic and difficulty added by this site.