document.write( "Question 1157079: Find the ordered pair (m,n), where m,n are positive integers satisfying the following equation:
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Algebra.Com's Answer #779897 by greenestamps(13203) You can put this solution on YOUR website! \n" ); document.write( "Here is a solution using the method of Diophantine equations. \n" ); document.write( "A basic Diophantine equation is a single equation with two unknowns, in which the solutions are restricted to integers. The requirement that the solutions be integers limits the solutions to only a few, or, as in this case, to a single solution. \n" ); document.write( "This example is a very common type, containing terms in m, n, and mn. The basic techniques for solving that kind of equation are standard. \n" ); document.write( "(1) Solve the equation for one of the variables in terms of the other. \n" ); document.write( " \n" ); document.write( " \n" ); document.write( " \n" ); document.write( " \n" ); document.write( "(2) Find the value(s) of n that make the fraction an integer. \n" ); document.write( "m has to be a positive integer, so 7m is an integer. That means \n" ); document.write( "It is generally, as in this case, difficult to find values of n that make that expression an integer. So this is what we usually do at this point: write the numerator of the fraction as a multiple of the denominator plus a constant. It's as if we are doing the division and expressing the fraction as an integer plus a remainder. \n" ); document.write( " \n" ); document.write( " \n" ); document.write( " \n" ); document.write( "Now 7m and 1 are integers, so \n" ); document.write( "In general, we would look at all the factors of 56 and see what values of n would make \n" ); document.write( "But in this example we can go directly to the solution with a bit of logical reasoning. \n" ); document.write( "For all n, 2n+1 is odd; so 2n+1 must be an odd divisor of 56. \n" ); document.write( "But there is only one odd divisor of 56: 7. (Okay, 1 is an odd divisor of 56; but that would make n=0, and the problem requires m and n to be positive integers.) \n" ); document.write( "So 2n+1 = 7, which makes n=3. \n" ); document.write( "Then \n" ); document.write( "ANSWER: (m,n) = (1,3) \n" ); document.write( "CHECK: \n" ); document.write( "14mn = 14*1*3 = 42 \n" ); document.write( "55-7m-2n = 55-7-6 = 42 \r \n" ); document.write( "\n" ); document.write( " \n" ); document.write( " |