# Problem #1778

 1778 Jo and Blair take turns counting from $1$ to one more than the last number said by the other person. Jo starts by saying $1"$, so Blair follows by saying $1, 2"$. Jo then says $1, 2, 3"$, and so on. What is the $53^{\text{rd}}$ number said? $\textbf{(A)}\ 2 \qquad \textbf{(B)}\ 3 \qquad \textbf{(C)}\ 5 \qquad \textbf{(D)}\ 6 \qquad \textbf{(E)}\ 8$ This problem is copyrighted by the American Mathematics Competitions.
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• Numbers involving pi should be written as 7pi or 7pi/3 as appropriate.
• Square roots should be written as sqrt(3), 5sqrt(5), sqrt(3)/2, or 7sqrt(2)/3 as appropriate.
• Exponents should be entered in the form 10^10.
• If the problem is multiple choice, enter the appropriate (capital) letter.
• Enter points with parentheses, like so: (4,5)
• Complex numbers should be entered in rectangular form unless otherwise specified, like so: 3+4i. If there is no real component, enter only the imaginary component (i.e. 2i, NOT 0+2i).