Carcass wrote:
If stu is an integer, which of the following must also be an integer?
A. stu
B. 3s2t2u2
C. sut
D. tus
E. stu
Very tricky question. The key is noticing that
s,
t, and
u don't have to be integers. Also, this is a
must question, meaning that if even one selection for
s,
t, and
u provides a non-integer, the answer choice is incorrect. The goal would be to find that incorrect combination of
s,
t, and
u.
A.
stus=t=u=12stu=12∗12∗12stu=18In this case,
stu is not an integer.
Therefore A is not the answer.B.
3s2t2u2We know that
stu is an integer, so
s2t2u2 must be an integer as well. Multiplying this by 3 will also keep it as an integer.
B looks like the answer, but let's check the rest.C.
sutLet
s=2,
u=12, and
t=3stu=2∗30.5=2∗3∗2=12So we know that our selection of values for
s,
t,
u produce an integer. But what happens when we rearrange the variables?
sut=2∗0.53=13In this case,
sut is not an integer.
Therefore, C is not the answer.Using the same logic from C, we can eliminate D and E.Therefore, our answer is B