1974 IMO

Day 1

1

Three players $A,B$ and $C$ play a game with three cards and on each of these $3$ cards it is written a positive integer, all $3$ numbers are different. A game consists of shuffling the cards, giving each player a card and each player is attributed a number of points equal to the number written on the card and then they give the cards back. After a number $(\geq 2)$ of games we find out that A has $20$ points, $B$ has $10$ points and $C$ has $9$ points. We also know that in the last game B had the card with the biggest number. Who had in the first game the card with the second value (this means the middle card concerning its value).

2

Let $ABC$ be a triangle. Prove that there exists a point $D$ on the side $AB$ of the triangle $ABC$, such that $CD$ is the geometric mean of $AD$ and $DB$, iff the triangle $ABC$ satisfies the inequality $\sin A\sin B\le\sin^2\frac{C}{2}$. CommentAlternative formulation, from IMO ShortList 1974, Finland 2: We consider a triangle $ABC$. Prove that: $\sin(A) \sin(B) \leq \sin^2 \left( \frac{C}{2} \right)$ is a necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of a point $D$ on the segment $AB$ so that $CD$ is the geometrical mean of $AD$ and $BD$.

3

Prove that for any n natural, the number \[ \sum \limits_{k=0}^{n} \binom{2n+1}{2k+1} 2^{3k} \] cannot be divided by $5$.

Click for solution i have a simpler (though a little longer) solution: re-write your sum: \[ a_n = \sum_{k = 0}^{n} \binom{2n + 1}{2k + 1} 2^{3k} = \frac {(1 + 2\sqrt2)^{2n + 1} + (1 - 2\sqrt2)^{2n + 1}}{2} \] now, what i've wrote is a sequence, generated by recurrence: $ a_{n + 1} = 18a_n - 49a_{n - 1}$, whose first terms are $ a_0 = 1, a_1 = 11$. it's an easy check to show that no terms can be $ 0 \mod 5$, since sequence has a short period...

Day 2

4

Consider decompositions of an $8\times 8$ chessboard into $p$ non-overlapping rectangles subject to the following conditions: (i) Each rectangle has as many white squares as black squares. (ii) If $a_i$ is the number of white squares in the $i$-th rectangle, then $a_1<a_2<\ldots <a_p$. Find the maximum value of $p$ for which such a decomposition is possible. For this value of $p$, determine all possible sequences $a_1,a_2,\ldots ,a_p$.

5

The variables $a,b,c,d,$ traverse, independently from each other, the set of positive real values. What are the values which the expression \[ S= \frac{a}{a+b+d} + \frac{b}{a+b+c} + \frac{c}{b+c+d} + \frac{d}{a+c+d} \] takes?

6

Let $P(x)$ be a polynomial with integer coefficients. We denote $\deg(P)$ its degree which is $\geq 1.$ Let $n(P)$ be the number of all the integers $k$ for which we have $(P(k))^{2}=1.$ Prove that $n(P)- \deg(P) \leq 2.$