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2007 AMC 12A Problems/Problem 11

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The following problem is from both the 2007 AMC 12A #11 and 2007 AMC 10A #22, so both problems redirect to this page.

Problem

A finite sequence of three-digit integers has the property that the tens and units digits of each term are, respectively, the hundreds and tens digits of the next term, and the tens and units digits of the last term are, respectively, the hundreds and tens digits of the first term. For example, such a sequence might begin with the terms 247, 475, and 756 and end with the term 824. Let be the sum of all the terms in the sequence. What is the largest prime factor that always divides ?

\mathrm{(A)}\ 3\qquad \mathrm{(B)}\ 7\qquad \mathrm{(C)}\ 13\qquad \mathrm{(D)}\ 37\qquad \mathrm{(E)}\ 43

Solution

A given digit appears as the hundreds digit, the tens digit, and the units digit of a term the same number of times. Let be the sum of the units digits in all the terms. Then , so must be divisible by . To see that it need not be divisible by any larger prime, the sequence gives .

See also

2007 AMC 12A (Problems)
Preceded by
Problem 10
Followed by
Problem 12
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
2007 AMC 10A (Problems)
Preceded by
Problem 21
Followed by
Problem 23
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Preparing for MATHCOUNTS or the AMC contests, and having a tough time with number theory problems? Read Art of Problem Solving's Introduction to Number Theory by Mathew Crawford.
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