PK 2018 Q5
5. Marta has collected 42 apples, 60 apricots and 90 cherries. She wants to divide them into identical piles using all of the fruit and then give a pile to some of her friends. What is the largest number of piles she can make?
- A 3
- B 6
- C 10
- D 14
- E 42
Pink Kangaroo 2018, Question 5. © UK Mathematics Trust. Original paper on ukmt.org.uk
Answer: B 6
If the fruit in each pile is to be identical, then the number of piles must be a factor of 42, 60 and 90. The highest common factor of these numbers is 6, so this is the largest number of piles possible.
Solution © UK Mathematics Trust, from the PK 2018 solutions.