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jmc

number theory senior

Problem

Suppose that , where , , and are valid digits in base 4 and 9. What is the sum when you add all possible values of , all possible values of , and all possible values of ?
Solution
First we change everything to base 10: Notice that the cancels out on both sides, so could be any valid digit that works in both base 4 and 9 (0, 1, 2, 3). Now we maximize with and solve to get . If we take any smaller value for , then will be too large to be a digit. So there is only one value of , one value of , and four possible values for . The sum is .
Final answer
10