Question

maximum area of rectangle with integer sides and perimeter 20

Answers

GPT-4o mini
To find the maximum area of a rectangle with integer sides and a perimeter of 20, we can start by recalling the formula for the perimeter of a rectangle:

\[
P = 2(l + w)
\]

where \( l \) is the length and \( w \) is the width. Given that the perimeter \( P = 20 \), we can rewrite the equation as:

\[
l + w = 10
\]

Next, the area \( A \) of the rectangle can be expressed as:

\[
A = l \times w
\]

We can substitute \( w \) with \( 10 - l \) (from the perimeter equation):

\[
A = l(10 - l) = 10l - l^2
\]

This represents a quadratic equation in terms of \( l \). The quadratic function \( A = -l^2 + 10l \) opens downwards (since the coefficient of \( l^2 \) is negative), and its maximum value can be found at the vertex. The vertex of a quadratic function \( ax^2 + bx + c \) occurs at:

\[
l = -\frac{b}{2a}
\]

In our case, \( a = -1 \) and \( b = 10 \):

\[
l = -\frac{10}{2(-1)} = 5
\]

Now, substituting \( l = 5 \) back to find \( w \):

\[
w = 10 - l = 10 - 5 = 5
\]

Thus, the rectangle is a square with sides \( 5 \) and \( 5 \).

Finally, the maximum area is:

\[
A = l \times w = 5 \times 5 = 25
\]

Therefore, the maximum area of a rectangle with integer sides and a perimeter of 20 is \( \boxed{25} \).

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