AMC Competition Intermediate Group 1981

• 1.1 – 0.64 equals

• 1.74
• 1.54
• 1.46
• 0.46
• 0.56

• The value of x in the figure is

• 20
• 70
• 110
• 140
• 220
• If a = 10 and t = 3 then the value of at2 is
• 45
• 90
• 30
• 22
• 450

• 2x + 1 – 3(2 – x) simplifies to
• 5x – 5
• –x–5
• x–5
• 5–x
• 8x – 5
• In how many ways can the number 24 be expressed as the sum of two prime numbers? (Note
that the number one is not a prime number.)
• None
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4

• The rectangle PQRS is divided into a square and three rectangles as shown. The area of
the square is x2cm2, and of the rectangles 5xcm2 and 3xcm2 as shown. The area, in square
centimetres, of the shaded rectangle is

• 15
• 15x2
• 8x2
• 15x
• 8x

• A block of chocolate is divided among three children, such that the first is given of the
block, and the second is given of the block. The amount remaining for the third child is
•
•
•
•
• None

• A square 4cm × 4cm is divided into 16 squares of side lcm as shown. The total number of
squares (of any size) in the diagram is
 • 20
• 17
• 25
• 29
• 30

• A car sales man eager to sell his old stock decides to decrease the price of each car by 10%.
He then realizes that he will make a loss at these new prices and increases them by 5%. His
net discount is
• 4.5%
• 5.5%
• 5.0%
• 6.0%
• 4.0%

• PQ is the diameter of a circle with centre O. R is a point on the circumference so

that PO = OQ = QR = 1. The length of PR is

•
• 1

•
•
•

• If a = 2 and b = 3 then (2−a + 2−b)−1 equals

•
•
•
 •
• 12

• If ab = 12, bc = 20, ac = 15 and a is positive, then abc equals

• 360
• 3600
• 60
• 36
• 600

• A shopkeeper sells house numbers, and has left a large supply of the numerals 4, 7 and 8, but
has sold out of all other numerals. How many three-digit house numbers could be made up
from these?
• 6
• 18
• 24
• 26
• 27

• PQRS is a trapezium with PQ∥SR. If PQ = 20cm, SR = 12cm, and the area of

△RST is 60cm 2 , then the area of trapezium PQRS, in square centimetres, is

• 180
• 320
• 300
• 160
• 150

• A meter records voltages between 0 volts and 20 volts. If the average value for three
readings on the meter was 16 volts, then the smallest possible reading, in volts, was
• 8
• 9
 • 6
• 11
• 10

• The smaller angle between the hands of a clock at 12:35 is

• 167˚
• 150˚
• 165˚
• 180˚
• 162˚

• A cube of side 4cm is made up of individual 1cm cubes. The number of these 1cm cubes
which are face-to-face with exactly four other 1cm cubes is
• 0
• 8
• 24
• 28
• 16

• A square box of side 5cm is leaning against a vertical wall as shown with R 4cm from the
wall. The height of P, in centimetres, above the floor is

•
• 7
• 8
• 3+
• 6

• At a party 28 handshakes were exchanged. Each person shook hands exactly once with one
of the others. The number of people present was
• 7
• 8
 • 27
• 14
• 28

• If x + = 3, then x2 + Equals
• 9
• 10
• 27
• 11
• 7

• Two vertical poles, 20m and 80m high, stand apart on a horizontal plan. The height, in
metres, of the point of intersection of the lines joining the top of each pole to the foot of the
other is
• 18
• 50
• 16
• 15
• 11

• A ball 13cm in diameter is floating so that the top of the ball is 4cm above the smooth
surface of a pond. What is the circumference, in centimetres, of the circle formed by the
contact of the water surface with the ball?

• 12π
• 18 π
• 6π
• (4)π
• 24π

• When 31981 + 2 is divided by 11, the remainder is

 • 5
• 0
• 7
• 6
• 3

• The 1st January 1981 fell on a Thursday. The first day of the twentieth century (1st January
1901) fell on
• Tuesday
• Wednesday
• Thursday
• Friday
• Saturday

• The circular base of a cylindrical water tank has area 1m2. A solid cube with edges of length
20cm is dropped beneath the surface of the water. The resulting increase in the height of the
water level, in centimeters, is
•
•
• 0.8
• 8
• 80

• In a hockey tournament, each team played each other once. The final league table was

If Hawks' only win was against Condors, then

• Eagles defeated Condors, but lost to Hawks
• Falcons won against either Condors or Eagles
• In matches against Hawks, Condors were more successful than Eagles
• In matches against Eagles, Falcons were more successful than Condors
• Eagles were undefeated, except against Condors

• A circle of radius 2cm with centre 0, contains three smaller circles as shown in the diagram; two
of them touch the outer circle, and touch each other at 0, and the third touches each of the other
 circles. The radius of this last circle, in centimetres, is
•
•
•
• 1
•

• In how many different ways can a careless office boy place four letters in four envelopes so
that no none gets the right letter?
• 4
• 9
• 12
• 6
• 24

• Three judges for a talent quest have to vote publicly on three performers A, B and C, listing
their order of preference. In how many ways can the judges vote so that any two of them
agree in their order of preference, while the third differs?
• 45
• 90
• 30
• 120
• 24

• 27 dots are arranged in a cube so that there is a dot at each corner, a dot at the mid-point of
each edge, a dot at the centre of each face and a dot in the centre of the cube. How many
different sets of three dots lying in a straight line can be found?
• 84
• 72
• 49
• 42
• 27
Answer:
• D [B1-13]
• C [B1-59]
• A [Algebra-Substituion]
• A [Algebra – Collection of Like Terms]
• D [Properties of Prime Numbers]
• A [B1-64] [Geometry – Area]
• C [B1-10]
• E [B1-90] [Counting Techniques]
• B [B1-17] [Percentage]
• D [B1-69] [Geometry – Circle]
• A [B1-39] [Algebra – Exponents]
• C [B1-37] [Algebra – Simultaneous]
• E [B1-90] [Counting Techniques]
• D [B1-66] [Geometry – Area]
• A [B1-7] [Mean]
• A [B1-61] [Geometry – Angle]
• C [B1-76] [Geometry - Cubes]
• B [B1-79] [Geometry – Pythagoras’ Theorem]
• B [B1-91] [Counting Techniques]
• E [B1-34]
• C [B1-86] [Geometry – Triangle]
• A [B1-72] [Geometry – Circle]
• A [B1-22] [Property of Numbers]
• A [B1-99] [Miscellaneous]
• C [B1-88] [Geometry – Volume]
• E [B1-98] [Miscellaneous]
• A [B1-74] [Geometry – Circle]
• B [B1-92] [Counting Techniques: Dearrangement]
• B [B1-92] [Counting Techniques]
• C [B1-92] [Counting Techniques]