Prove Square of Integer Ends in 0, 1, 4, 5, 6, 9

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In summary, to prove that the square of an integer ends with 0, 1, 4, 5, 6, or 9, you can show that for any number in base 10, it can be written as 10i + j, where i and j are integers and j is the last digit. By examining the possible endings for each value of j, it can be seen that the square of any number in base 10 will end with one of these digits. This is because the maximum number of possible endings in any base is equal to half of the base, and since n squared is equal to -n squared in any base, there are only a limited number of endings to consider.
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Martin Bashir
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How can i prove that square of an integer ends with 0,1,4,5,6,9 ?
 
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Martin Bashir said:
How can i prove that square of an integer ends with 0,1,4,5,6,9 ?

What base is your number system in ? If it is ten then you have to show that with all ten possible endings, n squared will not give a number with a different ending.
As another thought since n squared = -n squared in any base the maximum number of possible endings is [(B + 1)/2] where [] is the next higher integer and B is the base. In base 10 you will only need to look at numbers from 0 to 10/2 to find the possible endings since 5 to10 are the same as - (-5 to 0) mod 10.
 
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You can write any number, in base 10, as n= 10i+ j for integers i and j with j the "last digit", from 0 to 9.
[itex]10i+ 0= 100i^2[/itex] which ends with 0.
[itex]10i+ 1= 100i^2 + 20i+ 1= 10(10i^2+ i)+ 1[/itex] which ends with 1.
[itex]10i+ 2= 100i^2+ 40i+ 4= 10(10i^2+ 4i)+ 4[/itex] which ends with 4.
[itex]10i+ 3= 100i^2+ 60i+ 9= 10(10i^2+ 6i)+ 9[/itex] which ends with 9.
[itex]10i+ 4= 100i^2+ 80i+ 16= 10(10i^2+ 8i+ 1)+ 6[/itex] which ends with 6.
[itex]10i+ 5= 100i^2+ 100i+ 25= 10(10i^2+ 10i+ 2)+ 5[/itex] which ends with 5.
[itex]10i+ 6= 100i^2+ 120i+ 36= 10(10i^2+ 12i+ 3)+ 6[/itex] which ends with 6.
[itex]10i+ 7= 100i^2+ 140i+ 49= 10(10i^2+ 14i+ 4)+ 9[/itex] which ends with 9.
[itex]10i+ 8= 100i^2+ 160i+ 64= 10(10i^2+ 16i+ 6)+ 4[/itex] which ends with 4.
[itex]10i+ 9= 100i^2+ 180i+ 81= 10(10i^2+ 18i+ 8)+ 1[/itex] which ends with 1.
 

1. How do you prove that the square of an integer always ends in 0, 1, 4, 5, 6, or 9?

To prove this, we can use the concept of modular arithmetic. We know that the square of any number can be written as (n^2) = (10k + r)^2, where k is an integer and r is the remainder when n is divided by 10. By expanding the expression, we get (n^2) = 100k^2 + 20kr + r^2. Since the first two terms are divisible by 10, the remainder will only depend on r^2. We can observe that the only possible remainders when r^2 is divided by 10 are 0, 1, 4, 5, 6, and 9. Therefore, the square of any integer will always end in one of these digits.

2. Is there a specific pattern to the last digit of squares of integers?

Yes, there is a repetitive pattern to the last digit of squares of integers. The last digit will always be 0, 1, 4, 5, 6, or 9, in that order. For example, the squares of 1, 11, 21, and so on, will always end in 1. Similarly, the squares of 2, 12, 22, and so on, will always end in 4.

3. Can you provide an example to illustrate the proof?

Sure, let's take the number 7. When we square 7, we get 49, which ends in 9. Using the formula (n^2) = (10k + r)^2, we can write 7^2 = (10*4 + 9)^2. Here, k = 4 and r = 9. The remainder when 7 is divided by 10 is 7, which is represented by r. And we know that the square of 7 will always end in the same remainder, which is 9 in this case.

4. Can this concept be extended to numbers other than integers?

No, this concept only applies to integers. When we square a decimal number, the resulting number will not follow the same pattern and can end in any digit. For example, the square of 1.5 is 2.25, which does not end in 0, 1, 4, 5, 6, or 9.

5. Does this proof hold true for negative integers as well?

Yes, this proof is valid for negative integers as well. When we square a negative integer, the result will always be a positive number, and the last digit will follow the same pattern as positive integers. For example, the square of -3 is 9, which ends in 9. The square of -13 is 169, which ends in 9 as well.

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