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jmc

algebra senior

Problem

The harmonic mean of two positive integers is the reciprocal of the arithmetic mean of their reciprocals. For how many ordered pairs of positive integers is the harmonic mean of and equal to ?
Solution
The harmonic mean of and is equal to , so we have . By Simon's Favorite Factoring Trick, Now, has factors, or we could simply list all of the possible factors: . It follows that there are possible ordered pairs .
Final answer
9