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O-Level E-Math · 2024 · P1 Q19 Numbers & the four operations · Prime factorisation 2 marks · number & algebra (hcf, lcm, prime factorisation) difficulty 4 of 5

O-Level E-Math 2024 Paper 1, Question 19: Prime factorisation

The answer

\(N = 8000\)

O-Level E-Math 2024 Paper 1 Question 19 · Verified worked solution by the Genius Plus Academy teaching team

What this question tests

This is Question 19 of the O-Level E-Math 2024 Paper 1. It tests prime factorisation, in the Numbers & the four operations area. It is worth 2 marks. It is a worded / diagram-based question, so open your Ten-Year Series (TYS) or the official paper at this question, then follow our full worked solution below.

Step-by-step solution

Compare each prime, using HCF = lowest power and LCM = highest power between \(720\) and \(N\). - Prime \(2\): \(720\) has \(2^4\). HCF has \(2^4 \Rightarrow N\) has at least \(2^4\); LCM has \(2^6 \Rightarrow N\) supplies \(2^6\). So \(N\) has \(2^6\). - Prime \(3\): \(720\) has \(3^2\). HCF has \(3^0 \Rightarrow N\) has \(3^0\) (no factor of 3); LCM has \(3^2\), supplied by \(720\). So \(N\) has no factor of \(3\). - Prime \(5\): \(720\) has \(5^1\). HCF has \(5^1 \Rightarrow N\) has at least \(5^1\); LCM has \(5^3 \Rightarrow N\) supplies \(5^3\). So \(N\) has \(5^3\).

Hence \(N = 2^6 \times 5^3 = 64 \times 125 = 8000\).

Answer: \(N = 8000\)

Same structure, different numbers

A question is hard because of its structure, not its surface.

Swap the constants, dress a quadratic as a length, hide a derivative inside an integral, and a student sees a brand new problem. The structure underneath is the same, and so is the method. Once a student can name the structure, a whole row of questions that look different start to open the same way.

That is where marks really leak: in choosing the method, not in the algebra that follows. We call it Lock and Key, name the lock, then the key follows.

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All O-Level E-Math 2024 worked solutions →

Genius Plus Academy · O-Level & IP Mathematics

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Our O-Level E-Math tuition trains the same recognise-the-structure method these worked solutions show, taught by a team that has marked these papers for years. It runs within our weekly Secondary Math programme, Sec 1 to 4 and IP.

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What does O-Level E-Math 2024 Paper 1 Question 19 test?

It is a prime factorisation question from Numbers & the four operations, worth 2 marks.

Is this the same as IP Math?

Yes. IP (Integrated Programme) schools teach the same O-Level Mathematics content; they just sequence it differently and set their own internal exams, so these worked solutions apply to IP students too.

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