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Number theory Difficulty 5.8 AIME, harder Prove it North Macedonia

Determine all the sets of six consecutive positive integers such that the product of some two of them, added to the product of some other two of them, is equal to the product of the remaining two numbers.

Solution

Exactly two of the six numbers are multiples of 33 and these two need to be multiplied together, otherwise two of the three terms of the equality are multiples of 33 but the third one is not.
Let nn and n+3n+3 denote these multiples of 33. Two of the four remaining numbers give remainder 11 when divided by 33, while the other two give remainder 22, so the two other products are either 1(mod3)\equiv 1 \pmod{3} and 2(mod3)\equiv 2 \pmod{3}, or they are both 1(mod2)\equiv 1 \pmod{2} and 2(mod3)\equiv 2 \pmod{3}. In conclusion, the term n(n+3)n(n+3) needs to be on the right hand side of the equality.
Looking at parity, three of the numbers are odd, and three are even. One of nn and n+3n+3 is odd, the other even, so exactly two of the other numbers are odd. As n(n+3)n(n+3) is even, the two remaining odd numbers need to appear in different terms.
We distinguish the following cases:
I. The numbers are n2,n1,n,n+1,n+2,n+3n-2, n-1, n, n+1, n+2, n+3.

The product of the two numbers on the RHS needs to be larger than n(n+3)n(n+3). The only possibility is (n2)(n1)+n(n+3)=(n+1)(n+2)(n-2)(n-1)+n(n+3)=(n+1)(n+2) which leads to n=3n=3. Indeed,
12+36=45.1 \cdot 2 + 3 \cdot 6 = 4 \cdot 5.

II. The numbers are n1,n,n+1,n+2,n+3,n+4n-1, n, n+1, n+2, n+3, n+4.
As (n+4)(n1)+n(n+3)=(n+1)(n+2)(n+4)(n-1)+n(n+3)=(n+1)(n+2) has no solutions, n+4n+4 needs to be on the RHS, multiplied with a number having a different parity, so n1n-1 or n+1n+1. (n+2)(n1)+n(n+3)=(n+1)(n+4)(n+2)(n-1)+n(n+3)=(n+1)(n+4) leads to n=3n=3. Indeed, 25+36=472 \cdot 5 + 3 \cdot 6 = 4 \cdot 7.
(n+2)(n+1)+n(n+3)=(n1)(n+4) has no solution. (n+2)(n+1)+n(n+3)=(n-1)(n+4) \text{ has no solution.}
III. The numbers are n,n+1,n+2,n+3,n+4,n+5n, n+1, n+2, n+3, n+4, n+5.
We need to consider the following situations: (n+1)(n+2)+n(n+3)=(n+4)(n+5)(n+1)(n+2)+n(n+3)=(n+4)(n+5) which leads to n=6n=6; indeed 78+69=10117 \cdot 8 + 6 \cdot 9 = 10 \cdot 11; (n+2)(n+5)+n(n+3)=(n+1)(n+4)(n+2)(n+5)+n(n+3)=(n+1)(n+4) obviously without solutions, and (n+1)(n+4)+n(n+3)=(n+2)(n+5)(n+1)(n+4)+n(n+3)=(n+2)(n+5) which leads to n=2n=2 (not a multiple of 33).

In conclusion, the problem has three solutions:
12+36=45,25+36=47and78+69=1011. 1 \cdot 2 + 3 \cdot 6 = 4 \cdot 5, \quad 2 \cdot 5 + 3 \cdot 6 = 4 \cdot 7 \quad \text{and} \quad 7 \cdot 8 + 6 \cdot 9 = 10 \cdot 11.

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