Suppose and are integers whose sum is and whose lowest common multiple is . If , what is the value of ?
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Let the two integers be A and B , with greatest common factor g . Then for some coprime numbers a and b , A = g a & B = g b Hence, A + B = g ( a + b ) = 2 1 6 ( E q . 1 )
But the product of the greatest common factor and least common multiple is the product of the numbers themselves, i.e., ( G C F ) ( L C M ) = A B . Then,
g ( 4 8 0 ) = ( g a ) ( g b ) or 4 8 0 = g a b . ( E q . 2 )
But from E q 1 and E q 2 , a + b and a b have no common factors . It then follows that
g = G C F of 2 1 6 and 4 8 0
i.e., g = G C F of ( 2 3 ) ( 3 3 ) a n d ( 2 5 ) ( 3 ) ( 5 ) or g = ( 2 3 ) ( 3 ) = 2 4 .
From here we have a + b = 2 4 2 1 6 = 9 \and a b = 2 4 4 8 0 = 20. Solving for a and b gives 4 and 5 , respectively. Hence, A = 2 4 ( 5 ) = 1 2 0 and b = 2 4 ( 4 ) = 9 6