SMT China 2014 Algebra Tiebreaker Solutions August 23, 2014

1. Kevin is running 1000 meters. He wants to have an average speed of 10 meters a second. He
runs the first 100 meters at a speed of 4 meters a second. Compute how quickly, in meters
per second, he must run the last 900 meters to attain his desired average speed of 10 meters a
second.
Answer: 12
Solution: He has 100 seconds to run 1000 meters. He spends 25 seconds running the first 100
meters, so he needs to run 900 meters in 75 seconds, for a speed of 12 meters per second.
2. Let a and b be the roots of the quadratic x2 − 7x + c. Given that a2 + b2 = 17, compute c.
Answer: 16
Solution: Note that a + b = 7 and ab = c, so that a2 + b2 = (a + b)2 − 2ab = 49 − 2c = 17.
Therefore, c = 16 .
3. Compute    
π  2π 4π
sin sin sin .
9 9 9
√
3
Answer: 8
Solution 1: Ideally, we would compute sin π9 immediately and then proceed with
trigonomet-

ric formulas. Unfortuately 9 is not a product of distinct Fermat primes so sin π9 cannot be
expressed in terms of sums, products, and finite root extractions on rational numbers. However
we can use the triple angle identity (motivated because we know how to compute sin(π/3))

sin(3α) = 3 sin(α) − 4 sin3 (α)

√ √
Thus u = sin π9 satisfies the cubic equation: 4u3 − 3u + 3/2 = 0 = u3 − 34 u + 83 . By Vieta’s


√
identity the product of the roots of this polynomial is − 83 , the sum of pairs of roots equals
−3/4, and the sum of the roots vanishes. If r1 , r2 are the other roots then,
√
3 π 
− = sin r1 r2
8 9
3  π 
− = sin (r1 + r2 ) + r1 r2
4 π9
0 = sin + r1 + r2
9

Now consider the other two factors in the expression, or goal is to write them in terms of sin2 π9

or the roots to its polynomial. Trigonometric identities can be used here but it is faster to write
them with Euler’s identiy and expand,
   
2π 4π 1  2 πi πi
  πi πi
 1 πi πi

sin sin = e 9 − e−2 9 e4 9 − e−4 9 = 1 + e2 9 − e7 9
9 9 4 4
  
1 2π 1   π 
= 1 + 2 cos = 3 − 4 sin2
4 9 4 9
3 π 2π 4π
= sin2




But from the formulas above, 4 9 −r1 r2 . Thus sin 9 sin 9 = −r1 r2 . And therefore,
π      √
2π 4π 3
sin sin sin = .
9 9 9 8
SMT China 2014 Algebra Tiebreaker Solutions August 23, 2014

π 2π



Solution 2: We square the equation, and multiply by sin 3 sin 3 to obtain
π          2
2π π 2π 4π
sin sin · sin sin sin
3 3 9 9 9
                
3π 6π π 2π 4π 8π 7π 5π
= sin sin sin sin sin sin sin sin
9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9
 
Y kπ
= 8 sin .
9
k=1

For z = exp(2πi/9) note that

 

kπ
  z k/2 − z −k/2  |z k − 1|
sin = = .
 
9  2i  2

We use the factorization

8
X9 − 1 8 7
Y
= X + X + ··· + X + 1 = (X − z k )
X −1
k=1

to obtain  
Y kπ 1 Y 9
8 sin = 8|1 − z k | = 8 .
9 28 2
k=1 k=1

Therefore our original equation has value

s
9
r √
8 3 3
π

2 2π

= = .
sin 3 sin 3
26 8