Problem #PRU-5070

Problems Number Theory Divisibility

Problem

Prove the magic trick for the number 1089=332: if you take any 3-digit number abc with digits coming in strictly descending order and subtract from it the number obtained by reversing the digits of the original number abccba you get another 3-digit number, call it xyz. Then, no matter which number you started with, the sum xyz+zyx=1089.
Recall that a number abc is divisible by 11 if and only if ab+c also is.