Problems

Age
Difficulty
Found: 1975

We are given 101 rectangles with integer-length sides that do not exceed 100.

Prove that amongst them there will be three rectangles \(A, B, C\), which will fit completely inside one another so that \(A \subset B \subset C\).

A staircase has 100 steps. Vivian wants to go down the stairs, starting from the top, and she can only do so by jumping down and then up, down and then up, and so on. The jumps can be of three types – six steps (jumping over five to land on the sixth), seven steps or eight steps. Note that Vivian does not jump onto the same step twice. Will she be able to go down the stairs?

10 friends sent one another greetings cards; each sent 5 cards. Prove that there will be two friends who sent cards to one another.

In a certain kingdom there were 32 knights. Some of them were vassals of others (a vassal can have only one suzerain, and the suzerain is always richer than his vassal). A knight with at least four vassals is given the title of Baron. What is the largest number of barons that can exist under these conditions?

(In the kingdom the following law is enacted: “the vassal of my vassal is not my vassal”).

A gang contains 101 gangsters. The whole gang has never taken part in a raid together, but every possible pair of gangsters have taken part in a raid together exactly once. Prove that one of the gangsters has taken part in no less than 11 different raids.

Sage thought of the sum of some three natural numbers, and the Patricia thought about their product.

“If I knew,” said Sage, “that your number is greater than mine, then I would immediately name the three numbers that are needed.”

“My number is smaller than yours,” Patricia answered, “and the numbers you want are ..., ... and ....”

What numbers did Patricia name?

Initially, a natural number \(A\) is written on a board. You are allowed to add to it one of its divisors, distinct from itself and one. With the resulting number you are permitted to perform a similar operation, and so on.

Prove that from the number \(A = 4\) one can, with the help of such operations, come to any given in advance composite number.

A student did not notice the multiplication sign between two three-digit numbers and wrote one six-digit number. The result was three times greater.

Find these numbers.