NJC Sequence and Series Lecture Notes and Tutorial Teachers Edition

National Junior College Mathematics Department 2010
2010 / SH1 / H2 Maths / Sequences and Series (Teachers Edition)

1
National Junior College
2010 H2 Mathematics (Senior High 1)
Sequences and Series (Lecture Notes)

Topic 1: Sequences and Series

Objectives:

At the end of this topic, students should be able to
understand the meaning of finite and infinite sequences and series, and use the
notation
r
u to denote the r
th
term of a sequence or series.
know that a sequence can be generated by a formula for the r
th
term, or by a
recurrence relation.
use
notation to express the sum to n terms (

n
S ) of a series.
use the method of differences to obtain the sum to n terms of a series given the
general term
r
u .
understand that an infinite sequence or series can converge, and find the limit of the
sequence or the sum to infinity of a convergent series.

Introduction

The following diagram is an overview of what well be covering for this topic.

Series
Rules for
Summation
Method of
Difference
Convergence
Sequences
Representation Limit
Formula for the
th
r
term
Recurrence
Relation
2
1 Definition of a sequence

A sequence is a set of terms or numbers in a defined order. It is often written as:

1 2 3 4
, , , , .... u u u u ,
r
u , .. where u
r
is the r
th
term (or general term) .

Example 1.1

Consider the following sets of numbers:

(i) 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14 (iii)
3 4 5 6
, , , ,
4 6 8 10

(ii) 1, 3, 9, 81, 243, (iv) 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13,

(i) to (iv) are examples of number sequences. Each subsequent term in the sequence can be
defined by a formula or rule.

Question: Can you define the above number sequences by a formula or rule?

Solutions:
(i) 2
r
u r = , r = 1, 2, , 7 (ii)
1
3
r
r
u

= (iii)
( )
2
2 1
r
r
u
r
+
=
+

(iv)
1 2 1 2
, 3, where 1
r r r
u u u r u u

= + = =
(Incidentally, this sequence is called the Fibonaccis Sequence.)

where r represents the term number and u
r
represents the r
th
term.

Sequences can be generated by a formula for the r
th
term, or by a recurrence relation.

1.1 Finite and Infinite Sequence

A finite sequence is a sequence where the number of terms is finite, i.e it will always have a
last term.

An infinite sequence is a sequence where the number of terms is infinite, i.e it does not have
an ending term.

Question: Can you identify the finite and infinite sequences in Example 1.1?
Finite sequence: (i)
Infinite sequences: (ii) (iv)

3
1.2 Sequences generated by a formula for the rth term

To define such a sequence with the numbers in a given order and an obvious rule for
obtaining each subsequent term, we usually require 3 types of information:
(i) 1
st
term,
1
u

,
(ii) a rule by which the general term
r
u can be calculated,
(iii) the number of terms, n. (Unless it is an infinite sequence)

Example 1.2

Write down the first four terms of the sequence in which the general term,
r
u , is
2
1 r + .

Solution:
2
1
2
2
2
3
2
4
1 1 2
2 1 5
3 1 10
4 1 17
u
u
u
u
= + =
= + =
= + =
= + =

Example 1.3

Write down the rule for the general term of the following sequence: 2, 5, 8, 11, 14,

Solution:
3 1
r
u r =

1.3 Sequences generated by a recurrence relation

A recurrence sequence is a sequence of numbers where each term in the sequence is obtained
from one or more of the previous terms. To define such a sequence, we usually require 2
types of information:
(i) 1
st
term (or the first few terms),
(ii) a recurrence relation of the form
1 r
u
+
= f(
r
u ).
[can relate to more previous terms. But required by the syllabus to cover up to
order 1 only.]

Example 1.4

A sequence
1 2 3 4
, , , ,.... u u u u , is defined by
1
1 u = and
1
3 1
r r
u u
+
= for r > 0. Write down the
first 4 terms of the sequence.

Solution:

1
1 u =

2 1
3 2
4 3
3 1 3(1) 1 2
3 1 3(2) 1 5
3 1 3(5) 1 14
u u
u u
u u
= = =
= = =
= = =

4
Example 1.5

The sequence of numbers
1 2 3 4
, , , , .... u u u u , is defined by
1
6 u = ,
2
20 u = and
2 1
6 8
n n n
u u u
+ +
= for n > 1. Find
3
u and
5
u .

Solution:

Can you see that the sequence of Fibonacci numbers is an example of a recurrence
sequence?

1.4 Limit of a Sequence

Consider an infinite sequence where the rth term is defined as
1
, 1 r
r
.
What can you say about the rth term of the sequence when r tends to infinity i.e. r takes on
very large values?
1 1 1 1 1 1
, , , , ..., , ..., , ...
1 2 3 4 100 500

Observe that the sequence of numbers get closer to 0 (but never equals 0) as r gets larger.
Thus, we say the sequence converges to 0 as r tends to infinity.
We write: As
1
, 0 r
r
or
1
lim 0
r
r
= .

An infinite sequence
1 2 3 4
, , , , .... u u u u has a limit L if and only if the terms
n
u get closer to L
(but not equal to L) as n gets larger and larger. We say that the sequence is convergent and it
converges to the value of L. Otherwise the sequence is divergent if it does not have a limit.

Example 1.6

Determine if the following sequences (given the general rth term) are convergent or divergent.
Find the limit of the sequence if it converges.
(a) ( ) 1
r
r
u = , (b)
2 1
r
r
u
r
=
+
, (c)
2
4
2 1
r
r
u
r
=
+
.

Solution:

(a) sequence: 1,1, 1,1, 1,...
we see that the sequence alternates between 1 and 1, and hence the sequence is
divergent.
(b)
1
1 1 1
lim lim
2 1 2 2 0 2
r r
r
r
r

= = =
+ + +
(c)
2
4
2
1
4 0
lim lim 0
2 1 2 2 0
r
r r
r
r
r

= = =
+ + +

3 2 1
4 3 2
5 4 3
6 8 6(20) 8(6) 72
6 8 6(72) 8(20) 272
6 8 6(272) 8(72) 1056
u u u
u u u
u u u
= = =
= = =
= = =

5
Example 1.7

A sequence of positive numbers is given recursively by the relation
1
7 9
2
n
n
a
a
+
+
= for 1, 2, 3... n =
It is known that as ,
n
n a l . Find the exact value of l.

Solution:

As ,
n
n a l and
1 n
a l
+
.

2
1
7 9 7 9
2 7 9 0
2 2
n
n
a l
a l l l
+
+ +
= = =

Solving the equation gives 4.5 1 (N.A. as 0) l or l l = = >

Question: Why must 0 l > ?

2 Series and Notation

2.1 Definition of a Series

A series is formed when the terms of a sequence are added and it can either be finite or
infinite.

The series formed from the sequence u
1
, u
2
, u
3
, , u
r
, is u
1
+ u
2
+ u
3
+ + u
r
+

Question : What is the difference between a sequence and a series?

Example 2.1
(i)
1 1
1
2 3
+ + and
( )
2
2 5 10 17 ... 1 n + + + + + + are finite series.
(ii)
1 1
1
2 3
+ + + and
2 2 2 2 2
1 2 3 4 ... .... r + + + + + are infinite series.

Refer to Section 3.2 for
the solution using GC.
6
2.2 The Sigma Notation

1
n
r
r
u
=

Illustration:
10
3
2 r
r
=
represents the series

3 3 3
2 3 ... 10 + + + . It also means the sum of all terms of the form
r
3
where r takes all integral values from 2 to 10 inclusive.

Question : How do we represent the series (i) & (ii) in Example 2.1 in summation notation?

Solutions:
(i)
3
1
1 1 1
1
2 3
r
r
=
+ + =
&
2 2
1
2 5 10 17 ( 1) ( 1)
n
r
n r
=
+ + + + + + = +

(ii)
1 1
1 1 1 1
1 lim
2 3
n
n
r r
r r
= =
+ + + = =

&
2 2 2 2 2 2
1 1
1 2 3 lim
n
n
r r
r r r
= =
+ + + + + = =

Important Notes:
1. S
n
denotes the sum of the first n terms of a series, i.e. S
n
= u
1
+ u
2
+ u
3
+ + u
n
=
1
n
r
r
u
=

2. S
denotes the sum to infinity of a series, i.e. S
= u
1
+ u
2
+ u
3
+ + u
n
+ =
1
r
r
u

3.
n
u = S
n
S
n 1

4.
=
b
a r
r
u = u
a
+ u
a+1
+ u
a+2
+ u
a+3
+ + u
b1
+ u
b
, a < b .
5. Total number of terms in
=
b
a r
r
u = b a +1.

General term of the sequence
Denotes the highest
value that r takes in
the summation
Denotes the lowest value that r takes in the summation.

r is treated as a dummy variable in the summation. It is
commonly replaced by other alphabets such as i , j , k etc.
7
Example 2.2

(a) Write out the following series explicitly.

(i) ) 1 2 (
5
1

= r
r
= (2(1) 1) + (2(2) 1) +(2(3) 1)
+(2(4) 1) +(2(5) 1)

(ii)
=
5
1
2
i
i
= 2
1
+ 2
2
+ 2
3
+ 2
4
+2
5

(iii)
=
4
2
2
) 2 (
r
r = (2
2
2) + (3
2
2) +(4
2
2)
(iv) ( )
5
1
1
j
j
j
= (1)
1
.1 +(1)
2
.2 + (1)
3
.3 + ( 1)
4
.4
+ ( 1)
5
.5

(b) Write down each of the following series in summation notation.

(i) 0! + 1! + 2! + 3! + ... + 6!
=
6
0
!
k
k
=

(ii)
2 3
1 ....
n
x x x x + + + + +
=
0
n
k
k
x
=

(iii) 1 3 5 7 .... +(2 1) to terms n n + + + +
= ( )
1
2 1
n
k
k
=
or ( )
1
0
2 1
n
k
k
=
+

(iv) 1.2.3 2.3.4 3.4.5 4.5.6 .... to terms n + + + +
= ( )
1
1 ( 2)
n
k
k k k
=
+ +

(v)
1 1
3 5 .... to terms
2 4
n + + +
=
( 1)
1
( 1) ( 1)
r
n
r
r
r

=
+

(vi) 2 6 18 54 .... to terms n + + + +
=
1
0
2(3)
n
k
k
or
1
1
2(3)
n
k
k

(vii) ( )
1 1 1 1 1
.... 1
2 4 8 16 2
m
m
+ + + +
=
1
1
( 1)
2
m
r
r
r=

(viii)
2 3
( 1) ( 2) ( 3) .... n n a n a n a + +
=
0
( 1) ( )
r r
r
n r a

Note:

1. The same sum can be expressed in different ways.
Eg.
( ) ( )
1
1 0
2 1 2 1
n n
r r
r r
= =
= +

.
2. The counter r is a dummy variable. Eg.
( ) ( ) ( )
2 2 2
1 1 1
1 1 1
n n n
r i k
r i k
= = =
+ = + = +

.
3. If the series contains infinitely many terms, we replace n by . Eg.
....
4
1
2
1
2
1
+ + =
r
r

4. To express a series in summation notation, it is necessary to find the general term u
r
.

8
2.3 Rules for Summation

1. Sum of a constant: If a is a constant independent of r, then
1
n
r
a
=
=
a + a + a + a ++ a + a + a = na

Note:
1
1
k
r=
= k and
0
1
k
r=
=
(k +1)

2. Difference of Sums
Show that
n
r
r m
u
=
=
1
n
r
r
u
=

1
1
m
r
r
u
.

LHS = u
m
+ u
m+1
+ u
m+2
+ .+ u
n-1
+ u
n

= (u
1
+ u
2
+ + u
m-1
+ u
m
+ u
m+1
+ .+ u
n-1
+ u
n
) (u
1
+ u
2
+ + u
m-1
)
= RHS

3. Distributive Property of Sums: If a, b and c are constants, independent of r, then

( )
n
r
r m
au b
=
+
= 1
n n
r
r m r m
a u b
= =
+

( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) f g( ) h .... .... a r b r c r a f r b g r c h r + + + = + + + (

4. Natural Number Series (Some Special Series)
(a) = = + + + + +
=
n
r
r n
1
... 4 3 2 1 ( )
1
1
2
n n + (Sum of consecutive whole numbers)
(b) ( )( ) 1 2 1
6
1
... 3 2 1
1
2 2 2 2 2
+ + = = + + + +
=
n n n r n
n
r
(Sum of Squares)
(c) ( ) ( )
2
2 2
1
3 3 3 3 3
1
2
1
1
4
1
... 3 2 1
(
+ = + = = + + + +
=
n n n n r n
n
r
(Sum of Cubes)
Note:
1.
2
1 1
3
|
\
|
=

= =
n
r
n
r
r r
2. |
\
|
|
\
|

= = =
n
r
n
r
n
r
r r r
1 1 1
2
i.e. ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
1 1 1
f g f g
n n n
r r r
r r r r
= = =
| || |
| |
\ \

n times
9
Example 2.3

Evaluate
(a) ) 1 3 3 (
2
1
+
=
r r
n
r

=
2
1 1 1
3 3 1
n n n
r r r
r r
= = =
+

= 3 ( ( )( )
1
1 2 1
6
n n n + + )
3( ( )
1
1
2
n n + ) + n
=
1
2
n[(n+1)(2n+1) 3(n+1) +2]
= n
3

(b)

( )( )
( )
( )
20
2
1
20
3 2
1
20 20 20 20
3 2
1 1 1 1
2 2
2 1 1
2 2 1
2 2 1
1 1 1
2 (20) (21) 2 (20)(21)(41) 20 (21) 20
4 6 2
93710
r
r
r r r r
r r
r r r
r r r
=
=
= = = =
+
= +
= +
| | | |
= +
| |
\ \
=

2.4 Summation by the Method of Differences

If the general term,
r
u , of a series can be expressed as a difference of two functions, written
as f(r + 1) f(r), then
[ ]
1 1
f ( 1) f ( )
f (1 1) f (1)
f (2 1) f (2)
f (3 1) f (3)
.............
f (( 1) 1) f ( 1)
f ( 1) f ( )
f ( 1) f (1)
n n
r
r r
u r r
n n
n n
n
= =
= +
= +
+ +
+ +
+
+ +
+ +
= +

Note that similar terms in the summation are cancelled. This is known as the method of
differences.

10
Example 2.4
Use the identity 1 3 3 ) 1 (
2 3 3
+ + + r r r r to show that
2
1
( 1) (2 1)
6
n
r
n
r n n
=
= + +
.
Solution:

Summing both sides of the identity,
3 3 2 2
1 1 1 1 1
[( 1) ] [3 3 1] 3 3 1
n n n n n
r r r r r
r r r r r r
= = = = =
+ + + = + +

Note that the LHS can be simplified as
3 3 3 3
1
3 3
3 3
3 3
3 3
3 3
3 3
[( 1) ] [( 1) ]
[( ) ( 1) ]
[( 1) ( 2) ]
[(4) 3 ]
[(3) 2 ]
[(2) 1 ]
( 1) 1
n
r
r r n n
n n
n n
n
=
+ = +
+
+
+
+
+
= +

Therefore, we have
3 3 2
1 1 1
2 3 3
1 1 1
3 3
( 1) 1 3 3 1
3 ( 1) 1 3 1
( 1)
( 1) 1 3 ( 1) (2 1)
2 2
n n n
r r r
n n n
r r r
n r r
r n r
n n n
n n n n
= = =
= = =
+ = + +
= +
+
= + = + +

Hence,
2
1
( 1) (2 1)
6
n
r
n
r n n
=
= + +
. (Shown)

Example 2.5
Show that
2
( 1)! ( 1) ! !( 1) r r r r r r + = + . Hence find
2
2
( 1) !
n
r
r r
=
+
.
Solution:
2
2
( 1)! ( 1) ! ( 1) ! ( 1) !
!( 1)
!( 1)
r r r r r r r r r
r r r r
r r
+ = +
= + +
= +

[ ]
2
2 2
( 1) ! ( 1)! ( 1) !
2(3!) 1(2!)
3(4!) 2(3!)
4(5!) 3(4!)
......
( 1)! ( 1)( !)
( 1)! 2
n n
r r
r r r r r r
n n n n
n n
= =
+ = +
=
+
+
+
+ +
= +

11
2.5 Convergence of a Series

A finite series has a finite sum. However an infinite series may or may not have a finite sum.
A series having a finite sum is said to be a convergent series.

For example,
(a) The finite series
10
1 r
r
=
has a finite sum of 55, i.e.

10
1
1 2 3 ... 10 55
r
r
=
= + + + + =
.
(b) The infinite series
1
1
2
r
r
=
| |
|
\
has a finite sum, 1,

i.e.
2 3 4
1
1
1 1 1 1 1
2
.... 1
1
2 2 2 2 2
1
2
r
r
=
| | | | | | | |
= + + + + = =
| | | |
\ \ \ \

.
(Will be discussed further in the topic Geometric Progression)
** Teacher can use a square to illustrate that the above-mentioned sum to infinity
tends to 1.
(c) The infinite series
1
2
r
r
does not have a finite sum. Thus the series does not converge
(and is known as a divergent series).

Example 2.6
Express
) 2 (
1
+ x x
in partial fractions. Hence find
1
1
( 2)
x
x x
=
+
.
Solution:
Let
2 ) 2 (
1
+
+ =
+ x
B
x
A
x x
. By cover - up rule,
2
1
,
2
1
= = B A .
Consider,
1 1 1
1 1 1 1 1 1
( 2) 2 2( 2) 2 2
1 1 1
2 1 3
1 1
2 4
1 1
3 5

1 1
1 1
1 1
2
1 1 1 1
1
2 2 1 2
(3 5)
4( 1) ( 2)
n n n
x x x
x x x x x x
n n
n n
n n
n n
n n
= = =
( (
= =
( (
+ + +

+
+
+
+
(
+
(
+
(
= +
(
+ +

+
=
+ +

1 1
2
1 1
lim
( 2) ( 2)
(3 5)
lim
4( 1)( 2)
5
3
lim
12 8
4
3
4
n
n
x x
n
n
x x x x
n n
n n
n
n n
= =
=
+ +
+
=
+ +
+
=
+ +
=

12
3 Use of Graphic Calculator in Sequence and Series (Self-Exploration)

3.1 Generating and Summing a Sequence

Example 3.1
(i) Write down the first four terms of the sequence in which the general term,
r
u , is
2
1 r + .
(ii) Find the sum to the first four terms of the sequence in (i).

Method 1: Use of the operator seq(

Steps Screenshot
1
Press and select option 5: seq( , under
OPS. Press .

2 Input the 5 parameters in the following order, each
separated by a comma:
1) the formula for the general rth term
2) the variable used in the above formula (X in this case)
3) the first value that X takes
4) the last value that X takes
5) increment of X in the sequence

3

Press and the GC will generate the sequence of
numbers according to the input given in Step 2.

4

To find the sum of the sequence, press
and select option 5:sum( , under MATH.

Press and . The sum of the
sequence will be computed.

13
Method 2: Creating a list of numbers under a table

Steps Screenshot
1
Press and select option 1: Edit under EDIT.
Press .

2

Scroll up to select the heading L1 (it will be highlighted).

3

Perform Steps 1 to 3 as in Method 1 to generate a list of the
terms of the sequence.
L1(1) gives the 1
st
term of the sequence.

To get the nth term, scroll down the column until you reach
L1(n).

4

To find the sum of the sequence, press to
go to Home Screen. press and select
option 5:sum( , under MATH.

Press to select the list L
1
and .
The sum of the sequence will be computed.

14
3.2 Generating a Sequence by a Recurrence Relation

Example 3.2
A sequence
1 2 3 4
, , , , .... u u u u , is defined by
1
1 u = and
1
3 1
r r
u u
+
= for r > 0. Write down
the first 4 terms of the sequence.

Steps Screenshot
1
Press
to highlight SEQ. You are now in
Sequence Mode.

2
Press to access the Function Editor Menu. Enter
minimum value for n which is 1. Enter the formula for u
n

as

Enter 1 for u(nMin).

3

Press to go to Home Screen. To obtain
the values of u
1
, u
2
, u
3
and u
4
, key in

The first 4 terms of the sequence is now generated.

15
GC Solution to Example 1.7

A sequence of positive numbers an is given recursively by the relation
1
7 9
2
n
n
a
a
+
+
= for 1, 2, 3... n =
It is known that as ,
n
n a l . Find the exact value of l.

Steps Screenshot
1
Press to access the Function Editor Menu. Enter
minimum value for n which is 1. Enter the formula for u
n

as

Enter 1 for u(nMin).

2
Press to set up the table of sequence
values.

Enter TblStart = 2 and Tbl 1 = .

3
To view a table of sequence values, press
.

By scrolling down the table, we observe that the terms of
the sequence u(n) converges to 4.5. Hence 4.5 l = .

16
National Junior College
2010 H2 Mathematics (Senior High 1)
Sequences and Series (Tutorial)

Basic Mastery Questions

1. Evaluate the following series:
(a) ( )
=
+
8
1
1
r
r r (b) ( )
10
3
5 2
r
r
=
+
(c) ( )( )
=
+ +
n
i
i i
1
2 1
(leave your answer in terms of n)

2. In the sequence
1 2 3 4
, , , , ...., , ....
n
u u u u u , where
2
8 u = and
1
2 4
r r
u u
+
= , find
5
u
and
5
1
r
r
u
=
.

3. Write down the general r
th
term of the following series and express each series in
summation notation:
(a) terms 30 to ...... 10 7 4 1 + + + + (b) terms 20 to ..... 7 5 3 1
2 2 2 2
+ + + +
(c) ( )( ) ( )( ) ( )( ) terms 2 to ..... 6 5 5 4 4 3 n + + + (d) terms to .....
7
1
5
1
3
1
1 n + +

4. Express the following series in the form f ( )
b
r a
r
=
, one beginning at r = 0 and the other

beginning at r = 1:
(a) ( )( ) ( )( ) ( )( ) ( )( ) 12 10 ... 5 3 4 2 3 1 + + + + (b)
n
1
...
6
1
5
1
4
1
+ + + +

5. Use the method of difference to evaluate
( )
100
1
1
2 2
r r
r
.

Tutorial Questions

1. Evaluate the following series, simplifying your answer as far as possible:
(a) ( )
2
2
0
m
i
m i
=
(b) ( )( )
=
+ +
1
1
1
n
j
n j j (c)
( )
1
log 2
n
i
a
i
a
=

2. Evaluate the following series using your GC:
(a) ( )
8
1
1
2
3
r
r=
(b) ( )
10
2
0.1
j
j =

3. Given that
( )( )
6
1 2 1
1
2
+ +
=
=
n n n
r
n
r
, find
(i) ( )
2 2 2 2
2 ... 3 2 1 n + + + + (ii) ( )
2 2 2 2
2 ... 6 4 2 n + + + +

Hence, find ( )
2 2 2 2
1 2 ... 5 3 1 + + + + n .
17
4. By expressing
1
(3 2)(3 1) r r +
in partial fractions, evaluate
=
+
n
r
r r
1
) 1 3 )( 2 3 (
1
.

Hence, find (i)
25
11
1
(3 2)(3 1)
r
r r
=
+
(ii)
1
1
(3 2)(3 1)
r
r r
=
+
.

5. Express
( ) ( )( ) 2 1 2 1 2 3
r
r r r + +
in partial fractions. Hence, or otherwise, show
that
( )( )( )
1
( 1)
2 1 2 1 2 3 2(2 1)(2 3)
n
r
r n n
r r r n n
=
+
=
+ + + +
, and evaluate the infinite series

+

+

+
9 7 5
3
7 5 3
2
5 3 1
1
.

6. The sequence of real numbers
0 1 2
, , ,... a a a is such that
1
1
r
r
r
a
a
ra
+
=
+
. By using the
method of difference, or otherwise, find the value of
100 0
1 1
a a
.

7. Given that
1
f( ) r
r
= , where r is a positive integer, find a single expression for
f ( ) f ( 1). r r +
Hence, find the sum to 2n terms of the series
1 1 1 1
...
2 6 12 20
+ + + + .
Deduce that the sum to 2n terms of the series
2 2 2 2
1 1 1 1
...
2 3 4 5
+ + + + is less than 1.

8. The n
th
term of a sequence is given by ( ) ! 1
n
u n n = , for all positive integers n where
n 2. Show that ( ) ( )
2
1
1 ! 2 2
n n
u u n n n
= + and
( )
( )
1
2
2
1 !
1 ! 1 .
2 2
N
n
N N
n
n n
+
=
( + | |
+ =
( |
\

Hence find the value of N such that ( ) ( )
1
2
5
1 ! 5 10 10 163295640.
N
n
n n n
+
=
(
+ =

9. The positive numbers
n
x satisfy the relation ( )
1
2
1
5
n n
x x
+
= + , for n = 1, 2, 3, .
As n ,
n
x l.
(i) Find (in either order) the value of l to 3 decimal places and the exact value of l.
(ii) Prove that ( )
2
2
1 n n
x l x l
+
= .
(iii) Hence show that if
n
x l > , then
1 n n
x x l
+
> > .

18
10. The numbers x
n
satisfy the relation
1
12
7
n
n
x
x
+
=
for all positive integers n.

As n , x
n
s.

(i) Find the exact value(s) of s.

(ii) Show that if 3 < x
n
< 4, then x
n+1
< x
n
.

11. The diagram shows the graph of 3
x
y e x = . The two roots of the equation
3 0
x
e x = are denoted by a and b where a < b.

(i) Find the values of a and b, each correct to 3 decimal places.

A sequence of real numbers
1 2 3
, , , ... x x x satisfies the recurrence relation,

1
1
3
n
x
n
x e
+
= for 1 n .
(ii) Prove algebraically that, if the sequence converges, then it converges to either
a or b.
(iii) Use the GC to determine the behaviour of the sequence for each of the cases
1
0 x = ,
1
1 x = and
1
2 x = .
(iv) By considering
1 n n
x x
+
, prove that

1 n n
x x
+
> if
n
a x b < < ,

1 n n
x x
+
< if or
n n
x a x b < > .
(v) State briefly how the results in part (iv) relate to the behaviours determined in
part (iii).
a b
x
y
O
19
Challenging Questions

1. Express
( )( )
2
1 2 x x x
in partial fractions.
By using the above result, show that
( )
3
3
1 1 1
4 2 1
N
n
n N N
=

.
Hence find a and b such that
3
1
1
1
b
n
b
n a
=
+
.

Assignment Questions

1. Find, in terms of n, the following expressions:
(a) ( )
=
+
n
r
r
r
1
2 (b) ( )
2
0
2 1 2
n
r
n r
=
+
(c) ( )
n
j
j
0
5

2. A sequence of real numbers satisfy the recurrence relation

1
1
( 1)
+
=
+
n
n x
n
x
x e
for n = 1, 2, 3,
(i) If as ,
n
x k n find the value of k correct to 3 decimal places.
(ii) Using a graphical method, show that if >
n
x k , then
1 n n
x x
+
< .

3. (i) Show that
( ) ( )( )
3 2 1 16 16
2 1 2 1 2 3 2 1 2 1 2 3
r
r r r r r r
+
=
+ + + +
.
(ii) Hence find
( ) ( )( )
1
1
2 1 2 1 2 3
n
r
r
r r r
=
+
+ +
, giving your answer in the form

( ) f k n , where k is a constant.
(iii) State the sum to infinity of the series in which the rth term is
( ) ( )( )
1
2 1 2 1 2 3
r
r r r
+
+ +
.

4. Show that sin( 1) sin( 1) 2cos( ) sin n x n x nx x + =

Hence, by using the method of difference, show that, for 0 x < < ,

( )
1
2 1
2
2cos( ) sin cos 1
sin 2 2
N
n
N x
x
nx
x
=
( + | |
| |
=
( | |
\ (
\
.
Deduce that
1
2cos( ) cosec 1
2
N
n
x
nx
=
| |

|
\
.
20
Numerical Answers to Sequences and Series Tutorial

Basic Mastery Questions

1(a) 240 (b) 276 (c)
1
( 1)( 5) 6
3
n n n n + + +
2)
5 53
,
2 2
; 5)
100
2 1

Tutorial Questions

1(a) (2 1)( 1)
3
m
m m
| |
+ +
|
\
(b)
( 1)(5 8)
6
n n n +
(c)
( 1)
log 2
2
a
n n
n
+
+

2(a) 170 (b)
1
90

3(i)
(2 1)(4 1)
3
n n n + +
(ii)
(2 )( 1)(2 1)
3
n n n + +
,
(2 1)(2 1)
3
n n n +

4)
3 1
n
n +
, (i)
15
2356
(ii)
1
3

5)
1 1 3
16(2 1) 8(2 1) 16(2 3) r r r
+
+ +
,
( 1)
2(2 1)(2 3)
n n
n n
+
+ +
,
1
8

6) 4950

7)
( )
1
1 r r +
,
1
1
2 1 n
+

8) 9

9(i) 2.791,
1 21
2
+

10(i) 3, 4

11(i) a = 0.619 , b = 1.51

Challenging Questions

1. a = 2 and b = 3

NJC Sequence and Series Lecture Notes and Tutorial Teachers Edition

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National Junior College Mathematics Department 2010

2010 / SH1 / H2 Maths / Sequences and Series (Teachers Edition)

notation to express the sum to n terms (

represents the series

denotes the sum to infinity of a series, i.e. S

has a finite sum of 55, i.e.

has a finite sum, 1,

, one beginning at r = 0 and the other

, and evaluate the infinite series

for all positive integers n.

, giving your answer in the form

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