1998 AMC 12 Problem 4

Attempt Problem 4 of the 1998 AMC 12 below, then check your answer against the professionally curated solution from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 1998 AMC 12 solutions, or check the answer key.

All problems are used with official legal permission of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA).

4.

Define [a,b,c][a,b,c] to mean a+bc,\frac{a+b}{c}, where c≠0.c\ne0. What is the value of [[60,30,90],[2,1,3],[10,5,15]]? [[60,30,90],[2,1,3],[10,5,15]]?
00
0.50.5
11
1.51.5
22
Answer: E
Concepts:defined operationssubstitution
Small hint:
Evaluate each of the three inner brackets first
Big hint:
All three inner brackets have the same value
Solution:
Each inner value is 1:1: 9090=1,33=1,\frac{90}{90}=1,\frac{3}{3}=1, and 1515=1.\frac{15}{15}=1. Thus the outer expression is [1,1,1]=1+11=2.[1,1,1]=\frac{1+1}{1}=2. The correct answer is E.
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