Max and Minnie each add up sets of three-digit positive integers. Each of them adds three different three-digit integers whose nine digits are all different. Max creates the largest possible sum. Minnie creates the smallest possible sum. What is the difference between Max's sum and Minnie's sum?
Solution
Consider three three-digit numbers with digits and . The integer with digits equals , the integer with digits equals , and the integer with digits equals . Therefore, . We note that each of can be any digit from 0 to 9, except that and cannot be 0. Max wants to make as large as possible. He does this by placing the largest digits and 7) as hundreds digits, the next largest digits (6, 5 and 4) as tens digits, and the next largest digits and 1) as units digits. We note that no digits can be repeated, and that the placement of the digits assigned to any of the place values among the three different three-digit numbers is irrelevant as it does not affect the actual sum. Max's sum is thus . Minnie wants to make as small as possible. She does this by placing the smallest allowable digits (1,2 and 3) as hundreds digits, the next smallest remaining digits and 5) as tens digits, and the next smallest digits and 8) as units digits. Minnie's sum is thus . The difference between their sums is .