Ask Question
2 May, 11:16

Prove that if a is a natural number, then there exist two unequal natural numbers k and l for which ak-al is divisible by 10.

+5
Answers (2)
  1. 2 May, 12:36
    0
    Assume a is not divisible by 10. (otherwise the problem is trivial).

    Define R (m) to be the remainder of a^m when divided by 10.

    R can take on one of 9 possible values, namely, 1,2, ...,9.

    Now, consider R (1), R (2), ... R (10). At least 2 of them must have the sames value (by the Pigeonhole Principle), say R (i) = R (j) (j>i)

    Then, a^j - a^i is divisible by 10.
  2. 2 May, 13:48
    0
    Divisible by 10 ...
Know the Answer?
Not Sure About the Answer?
Find an answer to your question ✅ “Prove that if a is a natural number, then there exist two unequal natural numbers k and l for which ak-al is divisible by 10. ...” in 📘 Mathematics if you're in doubt about the correctness of the answers or there's no answer, then try to use the smart search and find answers to the similar questions.
Search for Other Answers