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Difficulty: 2/102023 NMTC 2023 (QII-39)

If the integers satisfy and , which of the following must be true?

Options:

  • B.

  • C.

  • D.

    none of these

Guide / Hint

Hint 1: Express and as integer multiples of , say and .

Hint 2: Add the two representations together: .

Hint 3: Observe that factors out completely, meaning . This is at option index 0.

Solution

Step 1 (Divisibility Definition): Since and , there exist integers and such that:

Step 2 (Sum the equations): We compute :

Since are integers, their sum is also an integer. Therefore, by definition of divisibility, must divide :

Step 3 (Conclusion): The statement is always true. This is at option index 0.

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