Think of a three-digit number, then form a six-digit number by repeating its three digits (469 becomes 469,469).
arithmetic/digits/abcabc New
New entry, edited from material collected for the archive and not yet in a released version.
Problem
Think of a three-digit number, then form a six-digit number by repeating its three digits (469 becomes 469,469). What is the probability that the new number is divisible by 13?
Show solution
Certainty. It's also divisible by 7 and 11. Repeating the three digits is equivalent to multiplying the number by 1,001, which is 7 * 11 * 13. -- Jonathan Haas <positron@primenet.com> Any number xyz (where x, y, and z are digits) is then converted to xyzxyz. Ok, any number xyzxyz = xyz * 1001, which = xyz * 13 * 77, so it would HAVE to be divisible by 13. -- Fletch <bjames@skygames.com>