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add digits of a naturals, in every move, sometimes on pair only

Source: IFYM - XI International Festival of Young Mathematicians Sozopol 2022, Theme for 11-12 grade,finals p4

November 13, 2022
number theoryDigitssum of digits

Problem Statement

A natural number xx is written on the board. In one move, we can take the number on the board and between any two of its digits in its decimal notation we can we put a sign ++, or we may not put it, then we calculate the obtained result and we write it on the board in place of xx. For example, from the number 819819. we can get 1818 by 8+1+98 + 1 + 9, 9090 by 81+981 + 9, and 2727 by 8+198 + 19. Prove that no matter what xx is, we can reach a single digit number with at most 44 moves.