Maths Olympiad Prep

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Geometry Difficulty 2.8 Junior Find the answer

A square of perimeter 20 is inscribed in a square of perimeter 28. What is the greatest distance between a vertex of the inner square and a vertex of the outer square?

Pick one

Solution

Assume one of the segments bisected by the inscribed square has length xx. Thus, the alternate segment has length 7x7-x. Applying Pythagorean's Theorem, x2+(x7)2=52x^2+(x-7)^2=5^2. Simplifying, (x3)(x4)=0(x-3)(x-4)=0, so x=3x=3 or x=4x=4 (it does not matter, as rotations produce the same figure). The longest line that can be made forms a right triangle with legs
of 44 and 77. 42+72=65D\sqrt{4^2+7^2}=\sqrt{65} \rightarrow \boxed{D}

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Source: NuminaMath-1.5, licensed Apache-2.0. Statement and solution reproduced as published; topic and difficulty added by this site.