airan wrote:x,a and b are positive integers. When x is divided by a, the remainder is b. When x is divided by b, the remainder is a-2. Which of the following must be true.
A. A is even.
B. x+b is divisible by a.
C. x-1 is divisible by a.
D. b=a-1
E. a+2=b+1
From the statements, what jumps out at me first is that a and b need to be very close in value. Recall that when you divide by, say, 7, the only possible remainders are 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. That is, the remainder must be less than 7 when you divide by 7, and similarly, the remainder must be less than z when you divide by z. Onto the question:
When x is divided by a, the remainder is b.
So b < a
When x is divided by b, the remainder is a-2.
So a-2 < b.
Thus a-2 < b < a, and since b is an integer, b = a-1.
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