Problem of the Week 844

The Integers of 1996

Find all numbers a such that the solutions to x2 + ax + 1996 = 0 and y2 + 1996y + a = 0 are all integers.

Source: V. Protasov, Quantum, July/August 1997

© Copyright 1997 Stan Wagon. Reproduced with permission.

The Math Forum

2 October 1998