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In Variants

The document discusses several "invariant problems" and provides strategies for solving them. It notes that finding the right invariant is challenging but key to solving invariant problems. Some common invariant strategies mentioned include using colorings, algebraic expressions, corners/edges, inversions, integers/rationals, and symmetries. The rest of the document focuses on specific coloring problems involving dominoes on a chessboard, filling shapes with tiles, and knight tours on a board.

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Jiacheng Feng
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166 views3 pages

In Variants

The document discusses several "invariant problems" and provides strategies for solving them. It notes that finding the right invariant is challenging but key to solving invariant problems. Some common invariant strategies mentioned include using colorings, algebraic expressions, corners/edges, inversions, integers/rationals, and symmetries. The rest of the document focuses on specific coloring problems involving dominoes on a chessboard, filling shapes with tiles, and knight tours on a board.

Uploaded by

Jiacheng Feng
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Invariants - Coloring

Jack

S 1. Several stones are placed on a row of squares.


As long as there are at least two stones on a single square, you may pick up two such stones, then
move one to the preceding square and one to the following square. Is it possible to return to the
starting configuration after a finite sequence of such moves?

S 2. Al writes the numbers 1, 2, 3, …, 4n+1,4n+2 on the board. Each turn, he picks two
numbers, a and b, erases them, and write |a-b|. Show that an odd number will remain in
the end.

If there is a repetition, look for what does not change


(Or at least changes with a pattern)

P1
This is the famous Seven Bridges of Königsberg:
Find a path through the city that would cross each
bridge once and only once. The islands could not be
reached by any route other than the bridges, and every
bridge must have been crossed completely every time.

P2
The first six terms of a sequence are . Each subsequent term is the last digit
of the sum of the six previous terms. In other words, the seventh term is , the eighth
term is , etc. Can the subsequence occur anywhere?

P3
An integer is assigned to each vertex of a regular pentagon so that the sum of the five
integers is 2011. A turn consists of subtracting an integer from each of the integers at
two neighboring vertices and adding to the opposite vertex, which is not adjacent to
either of the first two vertices. (The amount and the vertices chosen can vary from turn
to turn.) The game is won at a certain vertex if, after some number of turns, that vertex
has the number 2011 and the other four vertices have the number 0. Prove if the game can
be won, there is exactly one vertex at which the game can be won.

P4
A child wrote three numbers 5,6,7. Every minute, he deleted two numbers, say and .
Then he wrote two numbers again, they were and . Is it possible
that he got three numbers 2,6,10 at some point?

P5
The number 1,2,3...,n are written in a row. It is permitted to swap any two numbers. If
2007 such operations are performed, is it possible that the final arrangement of numbers
coincide with the original?

P6
Solve (x2-3x+3) 2-3(x2-3x+3)+3=x
(Shamelessly copied off http://web.mit.edu/yufeiz/www/wc08/invariants.pdf)

“Usually an invariant problem is pretty easy once you find the right invariant.

But finding it can be pretty tough! In truth, finding the right invariant is an art, and that is
what makes these problems hard. Nonetheless, there are a few things that you should
always be thinking about:

1 Colorings: Color all the squares in a grid with two or more colors. Usually the
chessboard pattern is a good choice, but other patterns are also sometimes useful.
Consider squares of each color separately.

2 Algebraic expressions: Given a set of values, look at their differences, their sum, the
sum of their squares, or occasionally their product. If you are working with integers, try
looking at these values modulo n. (Usually n should be a small prime power.)

3 Corners and edges: For grid-based problems, consider any shapes formed. How many
boundary edges do they have? How many corners?

4 Inversions: If you are permuting a sequence of numbers, consider the number of


inversions that is, the number of pairs (i; j) such that i and j are listed in the wrong order.
Both the absolute number of inversions and its parity are useful.

5 Integers and rationals: Can you find a positive integer that keeps decreasing? Or does
the denominator of a rational number keep decreasing?

6 Symmetries: Can you ensure that after each step, a figure is symmetrical in some
way?
Perhaps you can logically pair up objects, and two paired objects are always in the same
state? This is especially useful for game-theory type problems.”

But today, we will focus on the coloring problems, such as the classic:

S1
How many ways can we use 1x2 dominos to tile a 8x8 board with the opposite corners removed?

P1
Can a 4x11 rectangle be filled with L shaped pieces, its rotation and reflection?

P2
Can a 10x10 rectangle be filled with straight pieces and its rotation?
(Try to find 2 coloring proofs)
P3
On a 4 x n board, is it possible to find a closed knight tour? That is the knight will start on
a square, travel through all the other squares exactly once, and return back to the original
square.

P4
A token is placed in one square of a board, and is moved according to the
following rules:

• In each turn, the token can be moved to a square sharing a side with the one
currently occupied.
• The token cannot be placed in a square that has already been occupied.
• Any two consecutive moves cannot have the same direction.

The game ends when the token cannot be moved. Determine the values of and for
which, by placing the token in some square, all the squares of the board will have been
occupied in the end of the game.

P5
There are 2012 cards laid in a row on the floor, each with an integer written on the face-
up side. Albert and Betty can take turns picking up one card from either the leftmost side
or the rightmost side of the row. The person who accumulates the cards with the largest
sum wins. Show that if Albert goes first, he has a non-losing strategy.

P6
What is the minimum number of colored squares on a (2n) x (2n) board that we can color
such that every individual square has an adjacent (not including diagonally connected)
square that is colored?

Fun Fact:

An 8 x 8 chessboard can actually be tiled by 1 x 2 dominos in 24•9012=12 988 816 ways.

Thanks 

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