The product of two consecutive integers is 482 more than the next integer. What is the largest of the three integers?

Question

1554 views around the world

You can reuse this answer
Creative Commons License

Answer 1 · 2017-02-15T12:53:56

The largest is 24 or -20.
Both solutions are valid.

Let the three numbers be $x, x+1 and x+2$

The product of the first two differs from the third by 482.

$x xx (x+1) - (x+2) = 482$

$x^2+x -x -2 = 482$

$x^2 = 484$

$x = +-sqrt484$

$x = +-22$

Check: $22 xx 23 - 24 = 482$

$-22 xx -21 - (-20) = 482$

Both solutions are valid.