How can I prove that 30∣ab(a2+b2)(a2−b2) without using a,b congruent modulo 5 and then
a,b congruent modulo 6 (for example) to show respectively that 5∣ab(a2+b2)(a2−b2) and
6∣ab(a2+b2)(a2−b2)?
Indeed this method implies studying numerous congruences and is quite long.
Answer
You need to show ab(a2−b2)(a2+b2) is a multiple of 2,3, and 5 for all a and b.
For 2: If neither a nor b are even, they are both odd and a2≡b2≡1(mod2), so that 2 divides a2−b2.
For 3: If neither a nor b are a multiple of 3, then a2≡b2≡1(mod3), so 3 divides a2−b2 similar to above.
For 5: If neither a nor b are a multiple of 5, then either a2≡1(mod5) or a2≡−1(mod5). The same holds for b. If a2≡b2(mod5) then 5 divides a2−b2, while if a2≡−b2(mod5) then 5 divides a2+b2.
This does break into cases, but as you can see it's not too bad to do it systematically like this.
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