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jmc

prealgebra intermediate

Problem

How many divisors of 63 are also divisors of 72? (Recall that divisors may be positive or negative.)
Solution
First, we list the factors of 63. They are -63, -21, -9, -7, -3, -1, 1, 3, 7, 9, 21, and 63. Then, we list the factors of 72. They are -72, -36, -24, -18, -12, -9, -8, -6, -4, -3, -2, -1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12, 18, 24, 36, and 72. By comparing the two lists, we can see that the divisors that 63 and 72 share are -9, -3, -1, 1, 3, and 9. (Notice that these six numbers are the divisors of 9; is this a coincidence?) Therefore, 63 and 72 share divisors.
Final answer
6