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jmc

number theory senior

Problem

Suppose that is a positive integer such that in base , then can be expressed as , and in base , then can be expressed as . Find the largest possible value of in base .
Solution
We convert to base . The base expression implies that , and the base expression implies that . Setting the two expressions equal to each other yields that Isolating , we get It follows that is divisible by , and since is a base digit, then is either or . If is equal to , then , so must be divisible by and hence must be either or . Since is a three-digit number in base , then , so and . Thus, .

If is equal to , then , so and must be divisible by 5. Since is a base digit, it follows that and . This yields the value . The largest possible value of in base is .
Final answer
247