POWER ROUND

8
th
Polya Mathematics Competition 28 October 2000
Please submit written proofs in legible and coherent style. Even where a problem calls
for finding solutions instead of proving, be sure you give some argument that convinces the
reader your solution is correct, and if appropriate also show that you have found all possible
solutions. Please don't combine two different numbered problems on the same sheet, though
lettered sub-problems may be solved on the same sheet if you wish. Each part has a point value
indicated in [ ]. Partial credit will be awarded for partial solutions.
Your team has one hour to work together to solve these problems. Please spend some of
that time on proofreading and checking each other's work! When the hour is up, before you put
your answers in the envelope, please number each page sequentially, indicate the total number of
pages you have used, and put the team name and problem number on the top of each page.
Whether or not you solve a part, you may still use the result to aid in the solution of later
parts. The problems proceed roughly in order of difficulty, but some of the later parts may still
be easier than some of the earlier ones, so make sure your team looks at all the problems!
No calculators or other aids are allowed.
This round explores powers of the roots of polynomials, and sums of those powers.
Recall that the roots of a polynomial are the values of z (which may be complex) which make the
polynomial equal zero. Every polynomial of degree n has exactly n roots; for example,
z
2
6z + 9 has the two roots 3 and 3.
Throughout this problem, we'll use ak as the coefficient of z
k
, so a generic polynomial
would be represented as

a
n
z
n
!a
n" 1
z
n " 1
!K !a
1
z !a
0
. We will always assume that the leading
coefficient an of any polynomial we're talking about is not zero.
1.
a) [2] Prove that the sum of the roots of the polynomial z
2
!a
1
z !a
0
is a1 and the product
of the roots is a0.
b) [2] Prove that the sum of the roots of the polynomial a
2
z
2
!a
1
z !a
0
is a1/a2 and the
product of the roots is a0/a2.
2. Let s
k
#x
k
! y
k
(s stands for sum, and the subscript stands for the power), so s
1
#x ! y and
s
2
#x
2
! y
2
and so on. Also let p stand for product, so p = xy.
a) [1] Write s2 in terms of s1 and p.
b) [1] Write s3 in terms of s2, s1, and p, using s1
3
in your answer.
c) [1] Write s3 in terms of s2, s1, and p, without using any powers of s2 or s1.
3. Now let x and y be the two roots of a
2
z
2
!a
1
z !a
0
. Let sk be defined as in problem 2.
a) [2] Prove that
a
2
s
3
!a
1
s
2
! a
0
s
1
#0.
Hint: Rewrite your answer to part (2c), using the
answer to (1b). There may be easier ways to do this particular part, but the idea
suggested in the hint might be useful for some later parts.
b) [1] Use the answer to (a) to find s3 for the quadratic 3z
2
+ 4z 5.
c) [2] Generalize the answer to (a) to involve s4, and prove your generalization.
4. Now let sk stand for the sum of the k
th
powers of the roots of the polynomial
a
3
z
3
! a
2
z
2
!a
1
z !a
0
.
a) [1] Prove that a3s1 + a2 = 0.
b) [1] Prove that
a
3
s
2
!a
2
s
1
! 2a
1
#0.
c) [1] Generalize: state a formula that starts with a3s3. You need not prove your formula.
d) [1] Generalize further: state a formula that starts with a3s4. Again, no need to prove it.
e) [2] Generalize fully: state and prove a formula that starts with a3sk. Make sure your
formula works when k is 1, 2, 3, 4, ...
5. Now let sk stand for the sum of the k
th
powers of the roots of the polynomial

a
n
z
n
!a
n" 1
z
n " 1
!K !a
1
z !a
0
a) [2] Generalize further: write a formula that starts with ansk. Make sure your formula
makes sense when k < n, when k = n, and when k > n. Write a different formula for each
of those cases if you need to.
b) [2] Prove your formula(s).
6. Apply what you've discovered:
a) [1] Compute the sum of the cubes of the roots of
2z
4
!3z
3
!z
2
" 4z " 4
.
b) [2] Compute the sum of the 1000
th
powers of the roots of
z
1000
" 10z !10 #0
.
7. Generalize in a different direction, or invent a new technique.
a) [1] Compute s1, the sum of the reciprocals of the roots, of 3z
2
+ 4z 5.
b) [1] Compute s2, for 3z
2
+ 4z 5.
c) [1] Compute s2, for
2z
3
" z
2
!3z " 4
.
d) [1] Give a general rule, with proof, for computing s1 in terms of the coefficients of a
polynomial.
e) [1] Give a general rule, with proof, for computing s2 in terms of the coefficients of a
polynomial and, if necessary, s1.