Problem

Source:

Tags: combinatorics, game



There are two numbers on a board, $1/2009$ and $1/2008$. Alex and Ben play the following game. At each move, Alex names a number $x$ (of his choice), while Ben responds by increasing one of the numbers on the board (of his choice) by $x$. Alex wins if at some moment one of the numbers on the board becomes $1$. Can Alex win (no matter how Ben plays)?