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Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Italian Mathematical Olympiad 1990 - Problem 5

Problem: 
Prove that, for every integer x, the number x^2+5x+16 is not divisible by 169.

Solution:
If x^2+5x+16 would be divisible by 169, then would be divisible by 13. Then,
x^2+5x+16 \equiv x^2-8x+16 = (x-4)^2 \equiv 0 \pmod{13}. So, if x \neq 4 + 13k, k \in \mathbb{Z}, then x^2+5x+16 is not divisible by 13 and, a fortiori, by 169. Now, let x=4+13k with k \in \mathbb{Z}. Hence,
(4+13k)^2+5(4+13k)+16=169(k^2+k)+52 \equiv 52 \pmod{169}
then x^2+5x+16 is not divisible by 169 for x=4+13k and the desired conclusion follows.

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