Maths Olympiad Prep

Library / /26 of 69

, 2011

Geometry Difficulty 4.9 AIME Prove it South Africa

B1B_1 and C1C_1 are marked on the bisector of angle AA in triangle ABCABC so that BB1ABBB_1 \perp AB, CC1ACCC_1 \perp AC. Let MM be the midpoint of B1C1B_1C_1. Prove that MB=MCMB = MC.

Solution

Drop a perpendicular from C1C_1 onto ABAB meeting ABAB at C2C_2. Similarly define B2B_2 such that B1B2ACB_1B_2 \perp AC. Let McM_c be on ACAC such that MMcACMM_c \perp AC and MbM_b on ABAB such that MMbABMM_b \perp AB. Without loss of generality, assume that the points on the angle bisector of A\angle A are in the order as shown:
Now AB1B2AMMcAC1C \text{Now } \triangle AB_1B_2 \sim \triangle AMM_c \sim \triangle AC_1C
and AC1C2AMMbAB1B\triangle AC_1C_2 \sim \triangle AMM_b \sim \triangle AB_1B.
Figure 1
So by the Midpoint Theorem, B2Mc=McCB_2M_c = M_cC and C2Mb=MbBC_2M_b = M_bB.
This means that B2M=CMB_2M = CM and C2M=MBC_2M = MB.
Notice that MB1B2=BB1M\angle MB_1B_2 = \angle BB_1M and by symmetry, BB1=B1B2BB_1 = B_1B_2.
This means that MB1B2MB1B\triangle MB_1B_2 \equiv \triangle MB_1B. Hence BM=MB2BM = MB_2.
Thus BM=MB2=CMBM = MB_2 = CM.

Want a route through all this instead of an archive? The track puts 2,000 problems in a working order, from AMC 10 level to the IMO shortlist.

Source: MathNet, licensed CC-BY-4.0. Statement reproduced verbatim; metadata (topic, difficulty) added by this project.