Is it a square

Is 1 ! × 2 ! × × 99 ! × 100 ! 1!\times 2!\times \cdots \times 99!\times 100! a perfect square ?


Notation: ! ! is the factorial notation. For example, 8 ! = 1 × 2 × 3 × × 8 8! = 1\times2\times3\times\cdots\times8 .

No Can't tell Yes

This section requires Javascript.
You are seeing this because something didn't load right. We suggest you, (a) try refreshing the page, (b) enabling javascript if it is disabled on your browser and, finally, (c) loading the non-javascript version of this page . We're sorry about the hassle.

3 solutions

Freddie Hand
Mar 19, 2017

1 ! × 2 ! × . . . × 99 ! × 100 ! = 1 100 × 2 99 × . . . × 9 9 2 × 10 0 1 = x 2 × 2 × 4 × . . . × 100 = x 2 × 2 × 50 ! 1!\times 2!\times ...\times 99!\times 100! \\=1^{100}\times 2^{99}\times ...\times 99^{2} \times 100^{1} \\=x^{2}\times 2\times 4\times ...\times 100 \\=x^{2}\times 2\times 50!

where x is a certain positive integer.

2 × 50 ! 2\times 50! is obviously not a square, so 1 ! × 2 ! × . . . × 99 ! × 100 ! 1!\times 2!\times ...\times 99!\times 100! is not a square.

Dhruv Somani
Mar 20, 2017

Hint: What is the power of 47 that appears in the number?

Power of 47 is 2

A Former Brilliant Member - 4 years, 2 months ago

Log in to reply

Nope. It is 54+7=61.

Dhruv Somani - 4 years, 2 months ago
H K
Mar 20, 2017

For any natural number n > 1, n! cannot be a square. It is evident that 2! and 3! aren't squares. Bertrand's postulate says that there always is a prime p such that k < p < 2k. Thus, for every number n > 3, there is a prime p that appears exactly once in n! (which can easily be seen when one takes 2k to be the smallest even number greater than or equal to n).

But if you multiply many numbers that are not squares, you could get a square number!

Freddie Hand - 4 years, 2 months ago

Log in to reply

Oh, right. I misread the question. But at least, the problem I solved was quite interesting as well.

H K - 4 years, 2 months ago

Its 1 ! × 2 ! × . . . × 99 ! × 100 ! 1!\times 2!\times ...\times 99!\times 100! , not just 100 ! 100!

Freddie Hand - 4 years, 2 months ago

0 pending reports

×

Problem Loading...

Note Loading...

Set Loading...