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Q1. A student claims that since every composite number can be expressed as a product of primes, and this expression is unique, then the number 60 can be written as 2² × 3 × 5 in only one way. Using the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic, this claim is —
Answer: A — The FTA guarantees uniqueness apart from the order of factors; uniqueness means 2² × 3 × 5 and 5 × 3 × 2² represent the same factorization, not different ones.
Q2. Consider the numbers 6n where n is a natural number. Based on the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic, which statement correctly explains why 6n can never end with the digit zero?
Answer: B — Ending in zero requires both prime factors 2 and 5 in the factorization; 6n = (2 × 3)ⁿ guarantees 2 is present but 5 never appears, so by FTA's uniqueness, no such number exists.
Q3. A mathematician states: 'If two different composite numbers have identical sets of prime factors (ignoring powers), they must be equal.' Based on the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic, this statement is —
Answer: B — Uniqueness of FTA refers to the exponents AND primes combined; identical sets of primes with different exponents yield different numbers (12 ≠ 18), so the statement is false.
Q4. Why does Euclid's division algorithm guarantee that we can always find the HCF of two positive integers a and b (where a > b) by repeatedly applying division?
Answer: A — The algorithm works by replacing the pair (a,b) with (b, remainder) repeatedly; since remainders strictly decrease and are bounded below by zero, the process terminates with HCF as the last non-zero remainder.
Q5. Assertion (A): For any natural number n, if 2ⁿ × 5ⁿ is the complete prime factorization of a number, then that number must end with the digit zero. Reason (R): A number ends in zero if and only if it is divisible by 10, which requires exactly one factor of 2 and one factor of 5. Choose the correct option:
Answer: A — A is true: 2ⁿ × 5ⁿ = (2×5)ⁿ × 2^(n-1) × 5^(n-1) or simplified, 10ⁿ × (other factors), always divisible by 10; R is true and correctly explains why A is true.
Q6. Assertion (A): The prime factorization of 32760 is unique. Reason (R): The Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic states that every composite number can be expressed as a product of primes in exactly one way, except for the order of factors. Choose the correct option:
Answer: A — A is true (32760 = 2³ × 3² × 5 × 7 × 13 uniquely); R is true and directly explains why A must be true—FTA guarantees uniqueness for every composite number.
Q7. Assertion (A): It is impossible to find a natural number n such that 4ⁿ ends with the digit 5. Reason (R): Numbers ending in 5 must have 5 as a prime factor, but 4ⁿ = 2^(2n) contains only 2 as its prime factor. Choose the correct option:
Answer: A — A is true by the contrapositive logic; R is true and correctly explains A: FTA's uniqueness means no prime factor 5 can appear in 4ⁿ, so it cannot end in 5.
Q8. A student tries to verify whether 3³ × 5² × 7 and 3² × 5³ × 7 represent the same prime factorization by checking if they have the same set of prime divisors {3, 5, 7}. The student's approach is —
Answer: B — The student confuses 'same prime factors' with 'same prime factorization'; FTA demands unique exponent combinations (3³ × 5² × 7 ≠ 3² × 5³ × 7), so checking only the set of primes is insufficient.
Q9. Why does the statement 'if a number is divisible by both 6 and 9, it must be divisible by 54' fail to be always true?
Answer: A — Using FTA: LCM(6, 9) = 2 × 3² = 18 (taking the highest power of each prime); the statement claims LCM = 54 = 2 × 3³, which wrongly adds exponents instead of taking maximum exponents.
Q10. A number N has the property that 'whenever it divides the product of two numbers, it must divide at least one of them.' Which of the following must be true about N's prime factorization?
Answer: A — This is the definition of a prime in terms of divisibility (Euclid's lemma); if N were composite (e.g., 6 = 2 × 3), then 6 | (2 × 3) but 6 ∤ 2 and 6 ∤ 3, violating the property—only primes satisfy it.
What is the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic?
Every composite number can be expressed uniquely as a product of primes, regardless of the order in which the primes are written.
How do you find HCF using prime factorization?
HCF is the product of the smallest powers of all common prime factors in the given numbers.
How do you find LCM using prime factorization?
LCM is the product of the greatest powers of all prime factors involved in the given numbers.
What is the relationship between HCF and LCM?
For any two positive integers a and b: HCF(a,b) × LCM(a,b) = a × b.
Prime factorize 32760.
32760 = 2³ × 3² × 5 × 7 × 13.
Can 4^n ever end with digit zero for any natural number n?
No, because 4^n = 2^(2n) contains only prime factor 2, but a number ending in zero must be divisible by both 2 and 5.
Find HCF and LCM of 6 and 20.
6 = 2 × 3, 20 = 2² × 5; HCF = 2, LCM = 60.
Is the prime factorization of a composite number unique?
Yes, the prime factorization is unique apart from the order in which the prime factors occur.
What does 'ascending order' mean in prime factorization?
Writing prime factors from smallest to largest: p₁ ≤ p₂ ≤ ... ≤ pₙ.
Why is 2 × 3 × 5 considered the same as 5 × 3 × 2?
Because the Fundamental Theorem states uniqueness is independent of order; both represent the same unique prime factorization.
State the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic and verify it for the number 84. [2 marks]
State that every composite number has unique prime factorization; then find prime factors of 84 by division: 84 = 2² × 3 × 7.
Find the HCF and LCM of 12 and 18 using the prime factorization method. Verify that HCF × LCM = product of the numbers. [3 marks]
Factor both: 12 = 2² × 3, 18 = 2 × 3²; HCF = 2 × 3 = 6, LCM = 2² × 3² = 36; verify: 6 × 36 = 216 = 12 × 18.
Prove that 4ⁿ can never end with the digit 0 for any natural number n. Explain using the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic. [5 marks]
Show 4ⁿ = (2²)ⁿ = 2²ⁿ contains only prime factor 2; for a number to end in 0, it must be divisible by both 2 and 5; since 5 never appears in 2²ⁿ by Fundamental Theorem's uniqueness, 4ⁿ cannot end in 0.
Q1. Assertion (A):
Every composite number can be expressed as a product of prime numbers.
Reason (R):
This is the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic, which guarantees that every composite number has a unique prime factorisation.
Answer: A — Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A — Both the assertion and reason are true. The reason correctly explains why the assertion is true — the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic is precisely the principle that guarantees every composite number can be uniquely factorised into primes.
Q2. Assertion (A):
The number 4ⁿ can end with the digit 0 for some natural number n.
Reason (R):
Since 4ⁿ = 2²ⁿ contains only the prime factor 2, it cannot be divisible by 5.
Answer: D — A is false but R is true — The assertion is false (4ⁿ can never end with 0), but the reason is true and correctly explains why the assertion is false. A number ending in 0 must be divisible by both 2 and 5, but 4ⁿ = 2²ⁿ has no factor of 5.
Q3. Assertion (A):
If p/q has a terminating decimal expansion, then q must have only 2 and 5 as prime factors.
Reason (R):
A rational number has a terminating decimal expansion if and only if the denominator contains only prime factors 2 and 5.
Answer: A — Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A — Both the assertion and reason are true, and the reason correctly explains the assertion. This is a direct application of the Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic to determine terminating decimals.
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Case Study:
A school wants to distribute 120 pens and 90 pencils equally among students such that each student gets the same number of pens and the same number of pencils, with no items left over. The school is trying to determine the maximum number of students who can receive these items equally. Using prime factorisation, we find that 120 = 2³ × 3 × 5 and 90 = 2 × 3² × 5. The school needs to find the greatest common divisor of these two numbers to determine how to distribute the items fairly.
Q1. What is the HCF of 120 and 90?
Answer: C
Q2. How many pens will each student receive?
Answer: C
Q3. How many pencils will each student receive?
Answer: B
Q4. What is the LCM of 120 and 90?
Answer: A
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Real CBSE board exam questions from past papers — free to attempt.
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/4/1 · 1 mark
If HCF (850, 325) is 25, then LCM (850, 325) is:
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/4/1 · 1 mark
7 × 29 × 23 + 1 is:
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/4/1 · 1 mark
Assertion (A): 4ⁿ can not end with the digit zero. Reason (R): Prime factorisation of 4ⁿ is unique.
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/4/2 · 1 mark
Probability of getting an irrational number at random from the numbers 3, 4, ∛9, ∛8, √5, 0, ∛(42/3) is:
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/4/2 · 1 mark
HCF of two consecutive natural numbers is:
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/4/2 · 1 mark
Assertion (A): 4ⁿ cannot end with the digit zero. Reason (R): Prime factorisation of 4ⁿ is unique.
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/4/3 · 1 mark
Assertion (A): 4^n can not end with the digit zero. Reason (R): Prime factorisation of 4^n is unique.
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/5/1 · 1 mark
7 × 11 × 13 + 5 is
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/5/1 · 2 marks
Find the H.C.F. and L.C.M. of 1530 and 2040.
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/5/2 · 2 marks
If H.C.F. of 135x² and 189x³ is 108, then find the value of x.
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/5/3 · 1 mark
√17 × √11 × √13 + √11 is
CBSE 2026 · Set 31/5/3 · 2 marks
Find the H.C.F. and L.C.M. of 408 and 312.
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