Maths Olympiad Prep

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Number theory Difficulty 5.2 AIME, harder Find the answer

What is the smallest positive integer that cannot be written as the sum of two nonnegative palindromic integers?

A number or a short expression. Spacing and $ signs are ignored.

Solution

We need to first prove that every positive integer NN less than 21 can be written as sum of two nonnegative palindromic integers. If NN is in the interval [1,9][1,9], then it can be written as 0+N0+N. If NN is in the interval [10,18][10,18], it can be written as 9+(N9)9+(N-9). In addition, 19 and 20 can be written as 11+811+8 and 11+911+9, respectively. Second, we need to show that 21 cannot be expressed in such a way. Lets suppose 21=a+b21=a+b with aba \leq b. It follows that bb has to be at least 11. Since b21b \leq 21, the only way for bb to be palindromic is that b=11b=11. However, this leads to a=21b=10a=21-b=10, which is not a palindrome. Therefore, 21 is the smallest number that satisfy the problem condition.

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