BrainTeaser USAMTS Basic
2019


Problem - 4644

A group of $100$ friends stands in a circle. Initially, one person has $2019$ mangos, and no one else has mangos. The friends split the mangos according to the following rules:

  • sharing: to share, a friend passes two mangos to the left and one mango to the right.
  • eating: the mangos must also be eaten and enjoyed. However, no friend wants to be selfish and eat too many mangos. Every time a person eats a mango, they must also pass another mango to the right.

A person may only share if they have at least three mangos, and they may only eat if they have at least two mangos. The friends continue sharing and eating, until so many mangos have been eaten that no one is able to share or eat anymore. Show that there are exactly eight people stuck with mangos, which can no longer be shared or eaten.


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