2014 AMC 8

Complete problem set with solutions and individual problem pages

Problem 1 Easy

Harry and Terry are each told to calculate 8-(2+5). Harry gets the correct answer. Terry ignores the parentheses and calculates 8-2+5. If Harry's answer is H and Terry's answer is T, what is H-T?

  • A.

    -10

  • B.

    -6

  • C.

    0

  • D.

    6

  • E.

    10

Answer:A

We have H=8-7=1 and T=8-2+5=11. Clearly 1-11=-10 , so our answer is \boxed{\textbf{(A)}-10}.

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Problem 2 Easy

Paul owes Paula 35 cents and has a pocket full of 5-cent coins, 10-cent coins, and 25-cent coins that he can use to pay her. What is the difference between the largest and the smallest number of coins he can use to pay her?

  • A.

    1

  • B.

    2

  • C.

    3

  • D.

    4

  • E.

    5

Answer:E

The fewest amount of coins that can be used is 2 (a quarter and a dime). The greatest amount is 7, if he only uses nickels. Therefore we have 7-2=\boxed{\textbf{(E)}~5}.

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Problem 3 Easy

Isabella had a week to read a book for a school assignment. She read an average of 36 pages per day for the first three days and an average of 44 pages per day for the next three days. She then finished the book by reading 10 pages on the last day. How many pages were in the book?

  • A.

    240

  • B.

    250

  • C.

    260

  • D.

    270

  • E.

    280

Answer:B

Isabella read 3\cdot 36+3\cdot 44 pages in the first 6 days. Although this can be calculated directly, it is simpler to calculate it as 3\cdot (36+44)=3\cdot 80, which gives that she read 240 pages. On her last day, she read 10 more pages for a total of 240+10=\boxed{\textbf{(B)}~250} pages.

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Problem 4 Easy

The sum of two prime numbers is 85. What is the product of these two prime numbers?

  • A.

    85

  • B.

    91

  • C.

    115

  • D.

    133

  • E.

    166

Answer:E

Since the two prime numbers sum to an odd number, one of them must be even. The only even prime number is 2. The other prime number is 85-2=83, and the product of these two numbers is 83\cdot2=\boxed{\textbf{(E)}~166}.

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Problem 5 Easy

Margie's car can go 32 miles on a gallon of gas, and gas currently costs $4 per gallon. How many miles can Margie drive on $20 worth of gas?

  • A.

    64

  • B.

    128

  • C.

    160

  • D.

    320

  • E.

    640

Answer:C

Margie can afford 20/4=5 gallons of gas. She can go 32\cdot5=\boxed{\textbf{(C)}~160} miles on this amount of gas.

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Problem 6 Easy

Six rectangles each with a common base width of 2 have lengths of 1, 4, 9, 16, 25, and 36. What is the sum of the areas of the six rectangles?

  • A.

    91

  • B.

    93

  • C.

    162

  • D.

    182

  • E.

    202

Answer:D

Solution 1

The sum of the areas is equal to 2\cdot1+2\cdot4+2\cdot9+2\cdot16+2\cdot25+2\cdot36. This is equal to 2(1+4+9+16+25+36), which is equal to 2\cdot91. This is equal to our final answer of \boxed{\textbf{(D)}~182}.

 

Solution 2

we can just multiply the common width 2 by each of the lengths 1 by 1, the sum would be 182. This is slow and grouping the lengths is easier to. The answer is still \boxed{\textbf{(D)}~182}.

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Problem 7 Easy

There are four more girls than boys in Ms. Raub's class of 28 students. What is the ratio of number of girls to the number of boys in her class?

  • A.

    3:4

  • B.

    4:3

  • C.

    3:2

  • D.

    7:4

  • E.

    2:1

Answer:B

Solution 1

Let g being the number of girls in the class. The number of boys in the class is equal to g-4. Since the total number of students is equal to 28, we get g+g-4=28. Solving this equation, we get g=16. There are 16-4=12 boys in our class, and our answer is 16:12=\boxed{\textbf{(B)}~4:3}.

 

Solution 2

To make the amount of boys and girls equal, 28 - 4 = 24. 24/2 = 12. The girls would need to be 12 + the 4 that we subtracted = 16. The boys would be 12. The ratio of girls to boys would be 16 : 12, but simplified would be 4 : 3. Thus, the answer is 4 : 3.

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Problem 8 Easy

Eleven members of the Middle School Math Club each paid the same amount for a guest speaker to talk about problem solving at their math club meeting. They paid their guest speaker $\underline{1} \underline{A} \underline{2}. What is the missing digit A of this 3-digit number?

  • A.

    0

  • B.

    1

  • C.

    2

  • D.

    3

  • E.

    4

Answer:D

Solution 1

Since all the eleven members paid the same amount, that means that the total must be divisible by 11. We can do some trial-and-error to get A=3, so our answer is \boxed{\textbf{(D)}~3}

 

Solution 2

We know that a number is divisible by 11 if the odd digits added together minus the even digits added together (or vice versa) is a multiple of 11. Thus, we have 1+2-A = a multiple of 11. The only multiple that works here is 0, as 11 \cdot 0 = 0. Thus, A = \boxed{\textbf{(D)}~3}

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Problem 9 Easy

In \bigtriangleup ABC, D is a point on side \overline{AC} such that BD=DC and \angle BCD measures 70^\circ. What is the degree measure of \angle ADB?

  • A.

    100

  • B.

    120

  • C.

    135

  • D.

    140

  • E.

    150

Answer:D

Using angle chasing is a good way to solve this problem. BD = DC, so \angle DBC = \angle DCB = 70, because it is an isosceles triangle. Then \angle CDB = 180-(70+70) = 40. Since \angle ADB and \angle BDC are supplementary, \angle ADB = 180 - 40 = \boxed{\textbf{(D)}~140}.

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Problem 10 Easy

The first AMC 8 was given in 1985 and it has been given annually since that time. Samantha turned 12 years old the year that she took the seventh AMC 8. In what year was Samantha born?

  • A.

    1979

  • B.

    1980

  • C.

    1981

  • D.

    1982

  • E.

    1983

Answer:A

Since she was 12 when she took the seventh AMC 8, she should be 12-6=6 years old when the first AMC 8 occurred. Therefore, she was born or was 'age 0' in 1985-6=\boxed{\left(\text{A}\right)1979}

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Problem 11 Medium

Jack wants to bike from his house to Jill's house, which is located three blocks east and two blocks north of Jack's house. After biking each block, Jack can continue either east or north, but he needs to avoid a dangerous intersection one block east and one block north of his house. In how many ways can he reach Jill's house by biking a total of five blocks?

  • A.

    4

  • B.

    5

  • C.

    6

  • D.

    8

  • E.

    10

Answer:A

We can apply complementary counting and count the paths that DO go through the blocked intersection, which is \dbinom{2}{1}\dbinom{3}{1}=6. There are a total of \dbinom{5}{2}=10 paths, so there are 10-6=4 paths possible. \boxed{(\text{A})4} is the correct answer.

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Problem 12 Medium

A magazine printed photos of three celebrities along with three photos of the celebrities as babies. The baby pictures did not identify the celebrities. Readers were asked to match each celebrity with the correct baby pictures. What is the probability that a reader guessing at random will match all three correctly?

  • A.

    \frac 19

  • B.

    \frac 16

  • C.

    \frac 14

  • D.

    \frac 13

  • E.

    \frac 12

Answer:B

Solution 1

Let's call the celebrities A, B, and C. There is a \frac{1}{3} chance that celebrity A's picture will be selected, and a \frac{1}{3} chance that his baby picture will be selected. That means there are two celebrities left. There is now a \frac{1}{2} chance that celebrity B's picture will be selected, and another \frac{1}{2} chance that his baby picture will be selected. This leaves a \frac{1}{1} chance for the last celebrity, so the total probability is \frac{1}{3}\cdot \frac{1}{3}\cdot \frac{1}{2}\cdot \frac{1}{2}=\frac{1}{36}. However, the order of the celebrities doesn't matter, so the final probability will be 3!\cdot \frac{1}{36}=\boxed{\text{(B) }\dfrac{1}{6}}.

 

Solution 2

There is a \frac{1}{3} chance that the reader will choose the correct baby picture for the first person. Next, the second person gives a \frac{1}{2} chance, and the last person leaves only 1 choice. Thus, the probability is \dfrac{1}{3\cdot 2}=\boxed{\text{(B) }\dfrac{1}{6}}.

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Problem 13 Medium

If n and m are integers and n^2+m^2 is even, which of the following is impossible?

  • A.

    n and m are even

  • B.

    n and m are odd

  • C.

    n+m is even

  • D.

    n+m is odd

  • E.

    none of these are impossible

Answer:D

Since n^2+m^2 is even, either both n^2 and m^2 are even, or they are both odd. Therefore, n and m are either both even or both odd, since the square of an even number is even and the square of an odd number is odd. As a result, n+m must be even. The answer, then, is n^2+m^2 \boxed{(\text{D})} is odd.

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Problem 14 Medium

Rectangle ABCD and right triangle DCE have the same area. They are joined to form a trapezoid, as shown. What is DE?

  • A.

    12

  • B.

    13

  • C.

    14

  • D.

    15

  • E.

    16

Answer:B

Solution 1

The area of \bigtriangleup CDE is \frac{DC\cdot CE}{2}. The area of ABCD is AB\cdot AD=5\cdot 6=30, which also must be equal to the area of \bigtriangleup CDE, which, since DC=5, must in turn equal \frac{5\cdot CE}{2}. Through transitivity, then, \frac{5\cdot CE}{2}=30, and CE=12. Then, using the Pythagorean Theorem, you should be able to figure out that \bigtriangleup CDE is a 5-12-13 triangle, so DE=\boxed{13} , or \boxed{(B)}.

 

Solution 2

The area of the rectangle is 5\times6=30. Since the parallel line pairs are identical, DC=5. Let CE be x. \dfrac{5x}{2}=30 is the area of the right triangle. Solving for x, we get x=12. According to the Pythagorean Theorem, we have a 5-12-13 triangle. So, the hypotenuse DE has to be \boxed{(B)}.

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Problem 15 Medium

The circumference of the circle with center O is divided into 12 equal arcs, marked the letters A through L as seen below. What is the number of degrees in the sum of the angles x and y?

  • A.

    75

  • B.

    80

  • C.

    90

  • D.

    120

  • E.

    150

Answer:C

Solution 1

The measure of an inscribed angle is half the measure of its corresponding central angle. Since each unit arc is \frac{1}{12} of the circle's circumference, each unit central angle measures \frac{360}{12}^{\circ}=30^{\circ}. From this, \angle EOG = 60^{\circ}, so x = 30^{\circ}. Also, \angle AOI = 120^{\circ}, so y = 60^{\circ}. The number of degrees in the sum of both angles is 30 + 60 = \boxed{(C)\ 90}.

 

Solution 2

Since \triangle AOE is isosceles and \angle AOE = \frac{4}{12} \cdot 360^{\circ} = 120^{\circ}, x = 30^{\circ}. Since \triangle GOI is isosceles and \angle GOI = \frac{2}{12} \cdot 360^{\circ} = 60^{\circ}, x = 60^{\circ}. The number of degrees in the sum of both angles is 30+60 = \boxed{(C)\ 90}.

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Problem 16 Hard

The "Middle School Eight" basketball conference has 8 teams. Every season, each team plays every other conference team twice (home and away), and each team also plays 4 games against non-conference opponents. What is the total number of games in a season involving the "Middle School Eight" teams?

  • A.

    60

  • B.

    88

  • C.

    96

  • D.

    144

  • E.

    160

Answer:B

Within the conference, there are 8 teams, so there are \dbinom{8}{2}=28 pairings of teams, and each pair must play two games, for a total of 28\cdot 2=56 games within the conference.

Each team also plays 4 games outside the conference, and there are 8 teams, so there are a total of 4\cdot 8 =32 games outside the conference.

Therefore, the total number of games is 56 + 32 = \boxed{\text{(B) }88}.

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Problem 17 Hard

George walks 1 mile to school. He leaves home at the same time each day, walks at a steady speed of 3 miles per hour, and arrives just as school begins. Today he was distracted by the pleasant weather and walked the first \frac{1}{2} mile at a speed of only 2 miles per hour. At how many miles per hour must George run the last \frac{1}{2} mile in order to arrive just as school begins today?

  • A.

    4

  • B.

    6

  • C.

    8

  • D.

    10

  • E.

    12

Answer:B

Note that on a normal day, it takes him 1/3 hour to get to school. However, today it took \frac{1/2 \text{ mile}}{2 \text{ mph}}=1/4 hour to walk the first 1/2 mile. That means that he has 1/3 -1/4 = 1/12 hours left to get to school, and 1/2 mile left to go. Therefore, his speed must be \frac{1/2 \text{ mile}}{1/12 \text { hour}}=\boxed{6 \text{ mph}}, so \boxed{\text{(B) }6} is the answer.

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Problem 18 Hard

Four children were born at City Hospital yesterday. Assume each child is equally likely to be a boy or a girl. Which of the following outcomes is most likely?

  • A.

    All are boys

  • B.

    All are girls

  • C.

    2 are boys and 2 are girls

  • D.

    3 are the same gender and 1 is not

  • E.

    They all have the same probability of happening

Answer:D

We'll just start by breaking cases down. The probability of A occurring is \left(\frac{1}{2}\right)^4 = \frac{1}{16}. The probability of B occurring is \left(\frac{1}{2}\right)^4 = \frac{1}{16}.

The probability of C occurring is \dbinom{4}{2}\cdot \left(\frac{1}{2}\right)^4 = \frac{3}{8}, because we need to choose 2 of the 4 slots to be girls.

For D, there are two possible cases, 3 girls and 1 boy or 3 boys and 1 girl. The probability of the first case is \dbinom{4}{1}\cdot\left(\frac{1}{2}\right)^4 = \frac{1}{4} because we need to choose 1 of the 4 slots to be a boy. However, the second case has the same probability because we are choosing 1 of the 4 children to be a girl, so the total probability is \frac{1}{4} \cdot 2 = \frac{1}{2}.

So out of the four fractions, D is the largest. So our answer is \boxed{\text{(D) 3 are of one gender and 1 is of the other gender}}.

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Problem 19 Hard

A cube with 3-inch edges is to be constructed from 27 smaller cubes with 1-inch edges. Twenty-one of the cubes are colored red and 6 are colored white. If the 3-inch cube is constructed to have the smallest possible white surface area showing, what fraction of the surface area is white?

  • A.

    \frac{5}{54}

  • B.

    \frac 19

  • C.

    \frac {5}{27}

  • D.

    \frac 29

  • E.

    \frac 13

Answer:A

For the least possible surface area that is white, we should have 1 cube in the center, and the other 5 with only 1 face exposed. This gives 5 square inches of white, surface area. Since the cube has a surface area of 54 square inches, our answer is \boxed{\textbf{(A) }\frac{5}{54}}.

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Problem 20 Hard

Rectangle ABCD has sides CD=3 and DA=5. A circle of radius 1 is centered at A, a circle of radius 2 is centered at B, and a circle of radius 3 is centered at C. Which of the following is closest to the area of the region inside the rectangle but outside all three circles?

  • A.

    3.5

  • B.

    4.0

  • C.

    4.5

  • D.

    5.0

  • E.

    5.5

Answer:B

The area in the rectangle but outside the circles is the area of the rectangle minus the area of all three of the quarter circles in the rectangle.

The area of the rectangle is 3\cdot5 =15. The area of all 3 quarter circles is \frac{\pi}{4}+\frac{\pi(2)^2}{4}+\frac{\pi(3)^2}{4} = \frac{14\pi}{4} = \frac{7\pi}{2}. Therefore the area in the rectangle but outside the circles is 15-\frac{7\pi}{2}. \pi is approximately \dfrac{22}{7}, and substituting that in will give 15-11=\boxed{\text{(B) }4.0}

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Problem 21 Hard

The 7-digit numbers \underline{7} \underline{4} \underline{A} \underline{5} \underline{2} \underline{B} \underline{1} and \underline{3} \underline{2} \underline{6} \underline{A} \underline{B} \underline{4} \underline{C} are each multiples of 3. Which of the following could be the value of C?

  • A.

    1

  • B.

    2

  • C.

    3

  • D.

    5

  • E.

    8

Answer:A

Solution 1

Since both numbers are divisible by 3, the sum of their digits has to be divisible by three. 7 + 4 + 5 + 2 + 1 = 19. To be a multiple of 3, A + B has to be either 2 or 5 or 8 \cdots and so on. We add up the numerical digits in the second number; 3 + 2 + 6 + 4 = 15. We then add two of the selected values, 5 to 15, to get 20. We then see that C = 1, 4 or 7, 10 \cdots and so on, otherwise the number will not be divisible by three. We then add 8 to 15, to get 23, which shows us that C = 1 or 4 or 7 \cdots and so on. To be a multiple of three, we select a few of the common numbers we got from both these equations, which could be 1, 4, and 7. However, in the answer choices, there is no 7 or 4 or anything greater than 7, but there is a 1, so \boxed{\textbf{(A) }1} is our answer.

 

Solution 2

If n is divisible by 3, the sum of it's digits should also be divisible by 3. This means that 19+A+B (\mod 3) \equiv 0 or A+B+1 (\mod 3) \equiv 0. For equation 2, 15+A+B+C (\mod 3) \equiv 0 or A+B+C (\mod 3) \equiv 0. Logically, you can see the correlation between our first and second equations so we can make the assumption, C =\boxed{\textbf{(A) }1}

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Problem 22 Hard

A 2-digit number is such that the product of the digits plus the sum of the digits is equal to the number. What is the units digit of the number?

  • A.

    1

  • B.

    3

  • C.

    5

  • D.

    7

  • E.

    9

Answer:E

We can think of the number as 10a+b, where a is the tens digit and b is the unit digit. Since the number is equal to the product of the digits (ab) plus the sum of the digits (a+b), we can say that 10a+b=ab+a+b. We can simplify this to 10a=ab+a, which factors to (10)a=(b+1)a. Dividing by a, we have that b+1=10. Therefore, the units digit, b, is \boxed{\textbf{(E) }9}

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Problem 23 Hard

Three members of the Euclid Middle School girls' softball team had the following conversation.

Ashley: I just realized that our uniform numbers are all 2-digit primes.

Bethany : And the sum of your two uniform numbers is the date of my birthday earlier this month.

Caitlin: That's funny. The sum of your two uniform numbers is the date of my birthday later this month.

Ashley: And the sum of your two uniform numbers is today's date.

What number does Caitlin wear?

  • A.

    11

  • B.

    13

  • C.

    17

  • D.

    19

  • E.

    23

Answer:A

The maximum amount of days any given month can have is 31, and the smallest two-digit primes are 11, 13, and 17. There are a few different sums that can be deduced from the following numbers, which are 24, 30, and 28, all of which represent the three days. Therefore, since Bethany says that the other two people's uniform numbers are earlier, so that means Caitlin and Ashley's numbers must add up to 24. Similarly, Caitlin says that the other two people's uniform numbers are later, so the sum must add up to 30. This leaves 28 as today's date. From this, Caitlin was referring to the uniform wearers 13 and 17, telling us that her number is 11, giving our solution as \boxed{(A) 11}.

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Problem 24 Hard

One day the Beverage Barn sold 252 cans of soda to 100 customers, and every customer bought at least one can of soda. What is the maximum possible median number of cans of soda bought per customer on that day?

  • A.

    2.5

  • B.

    3.0

  • C.

    3.5

  • D.

    4.0

  • E.

    4.5

Answer:C

In order to maximize the median, we need to make the first half of the numbers as small as possible. Since there are 100 people, the median will be the average of the 50\text{th} and 51\text{st} largest amount of cans per person. To minimize the first 49, they would each have one can. Subtracting these 49 cans from the 252 cans gives us 203 cans left to divide among 51 people. Taking \frac{203}{51} gives us 3 and a remainder of 50. Seeing this, the largest number of cans the 50th person could have is 3, which leaves 4 to the rest of the people. The average of 3 and 4 is 3.5. Thus our answer is \boxed{\text{(C) }3.5}.

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Problem 25 Hard

A straight one-mile stretch of highway, 40 feet wide, is closed. Robert rides his bike on a path composed of semicircles as shown. If he rides at 5 miles per hour, how many hours will it take to cover the one-mile stretch?

Note: 1 mile = 5280 feet

  • A.

    \frac{\pi}{11}

  • B.

    \frac{\pi}{10}

  • C.

    \frac{\pi}{5}

  • D.

    \frac{2\pi}{5}

  • E.

    \frac{2\pi}{3}

Answer:B

There are two possible interpretations of the problem: that the road as a whole is 40 feet wide, or that each lane is 40 feet wide. Both interpretations will arrive at the same result. However, let us stick with the first interpretation for simplicity. Each lane must then be 20 feet wide, so Robert must be riding his bike in semicircles with radius 20 feet and diameter 40 feet. Since the road is 5280 feet long, over the whole mile, Robert rides \frac{5280}{40} =132 semicircles in total. Were the semicircles full circles, their circumference would be 2\pi\cdot 20=40\pi feet; as it is, the circumference of each is half that, or 20\pi feet. Therefore, over the stretch of highway, Robert rides a total of 132\cdot 20\pi =2640\pi feet, equivalent to \frac{\pi}{2} miles. Robert rides at 5 miles per hour, so divide the \frac{\pi}{2} miles by 5 mph (because t = \frac{d}{r} and time = distance/rate) to arrive at \boxed{\textbf{(B) }\frac{\pi}{10}} hours.

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