Maths Olympiad Prep

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Problem 947

AMC 12 late, AIME early
Algebra Difficulty 4.3 Find the answer Harvard-MIT Math Tournament · United States

Find all possible values of da\frac{d}{a} where a2−6ad+8d2=0a^{2}-6 a d+8 d^{2}=0, a≠0a \neq 0.

A number or a short expression. Fractions can be typed as 3/2, and spacing doesn't matter.

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Official solution

Solution:

Dividing a2−6ad+8d2=0a^{2}-6 a d+8 d^{2}=0 by a2a^{2}, we get 1−6da+8(da)2=01-6 \frac{d}{a}+8\left(\frac{d}{a}\right)^{2}=0.

The roots of this quadratic are 12,14\frac{1}{2}, \frac{1}{4}.

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