olymmath

NO-ABEL 2002

Abel Competition 2002.

Other problems

Problem 4

An integer is given N>1N> 1 . Arne and Britt play the following game: (1) Arne says a positive integer AA . (2) Britt says an integer B>1B> 1 that is either a divisor of AA or a multiple of AA . ( AA itself is a possibility.) (3) Arne says a new number AA that is either B−1,BB - 1, B or B+1B + 1 . The game continues by repeating steps 2 and 3. Britt wins if she is okay with being told the number NN before the 5050 th has been said. Otherwise, Arne wins. a) Show that Arne has a winning strategy if N=10N = 10 . b) Show that Britt has a winning strategy if N=24N = 24 . c) For which NN does Britt have a winning strategy?