
# 12.2E: Exercises


## Practice Makes Perfect

##### Exercise $$\PageIndex{25}$$ Write the First Few Terms of a Sequence

In the following exercises, write the first five terms of the sequence whose general term is given.

1. $$a_{n}=2 n-7$$
2. $$a_{n}=5 n-1$$
3. $$a_{n}=3 n+1$$
4. $$a_{n}=4 n+2$$
5. $$a_{n}=2^{n}+3$$
6. $$a_{n}=3^{n}-1$$
7. $$a_{n}=3^{n}-2 n$$
8. $$a_{n}=2^{n}-3 n$$
9. $$a_{n}=\frac{2^{n}}{n^{2}}$$
10. $$a_{n}=\frac{3^{n}}{n^{3}}$$
11. $$a_{n}=\frac{4 n-2}{2^{n}}$$
12. $$a_{n}=\frac{3 n+3}{3^{n}}$$
13. $$a_{n}=(-1)^{n} \cdot 2 n$$
14. $$a_{n}=(-1)^{n} \cdot 3 n$$
15. $$a_{n}=(-1)^{n+1} n^{2}$$
16. $$a_{n}=(-1)^{n+1} n^{4}$$
17. $$a_{n}=\frac{(-1)^{n+1}}{n^{2}}$$
18. $$a_{n}=\frac{(-1)^{n+1}}{2 n}$$

1. $$-5,-3,-1,1,3$$

3. $$4,7,10,13,16$$

5. $$5,7,11,19,35$$

7. $$1,5,21,73,233$$

9. $$2,1, \frac{8}{9}, 1, \frac{32}{25}$$

11. $$1, \frac{3}{2}, \frac{5}{4}, \frac{7}{8}, \frac{9}{16}$$

13. $$-2,4,-6,8,-10$$

15. $$1,-4,9,-16,25$$

17. $$1,-\frac{1}{4}, \frac{1}{9},-\frac{1}{16}, \frac{1}{25}$$

##### Exercise $$\PageIndex{26}$$ Find a Formula for the General Term ($$n$$th Term) of a Sequence

In the following exercises, find a general term for the sequence whose first five terms are shown.

1. $$8,16,24,32,40, \dots$$
2. $$7,14,21,28,35, \ldots$$
3. $$6,7,8,9,10, \dots$$
4. $$-3,-2,-1,0,1, \dots$$
5. $$e^{3}, e^{4}, e^{5}, e^{6}, e^{7}, \ldots$$
6. $$\frac{1}{e^{2}}, \frac{1}{e}, 1, e, e^{2}, \ldots$$
7. $$-5,10,-15,20,-25, \dots$$
8. $$-6,11,-16,21,-26, \dots$$
9. $$-1,8,-27,64,-125, \dots$$
10. $$2,-5,10,-17,26, \dots$$
11. $$-2,4,-6,8,-10, \dots$$
12. $$1,-3,5,-7,9, \dots$$
13. $$\frac{1}{4}, \frac{1}{16}, \frac{1}{64}, \frac{1}{256}, \frac{1}{1,024}, \dots$$
14. $$\frac{1}{1}, \frac{1}{8}, \frac{1}{27}, \frac{1}{64}, \frac{1}{125}, \dots$$
15. $$-\frac{1}{2},-\frac{2}{3},-\frac{3}{4},-\frac{4}{5},-\frac{5}{6}, \dots$$
16. $$-2,-\frac{3}{2},-\frac{4}{3},-\frac{5}{4},-\frac{6}{5}, \dots$$
17. $$-\frac{5}{2},-\frac{5}{4},-\frac{5}{8},-\frac{5}{16},-\frac{5}{32}, \dots$$
18. $$4, \frac{1}{2}, \frac{4}{27}, \frac{4}{64}, \frac{4}{125}, \dots$$

1. $$a_{n}=8 n$$

3. $$a_{n}=n+5$$

5. $$a_{n}=e^{n+2}$$

7. $$a_{n}=(-1)^{n} 5 n$$

9. $$a_{n}=(-1)^{n} n^{3}$$

11. $$a_{n}=(-1)^{n} 2 n$$

13. $$a_{n}=\frac{1}{4^{n}}$$

15. $$a_{n}=-\frac{n}{n+1}$$

17. $$-\frac{5}{2^{n}}$$

##### Exercise $$\PageIndex{27}$$ Use Factorial Notation

In the following exercises, using factorial notation, write the first five terms of the sequence whose general term is given.

1. $$a_{n}=\frac{4}{n !}$$
2. $$a_{n}=\frac{5}{n !}$$
3. $$a_{n}=3 n !$$
4. $$a_{n}=2 n !$$
5. $$a_{n}=(2 n) !$$
6. $$a_{n}=(3 n) !$$
7. $$a_{n}=\frac{(n-1) !}{(n) !}$$
8. $$a_{n}=\frac{n !}{(n+1) !}$$
9. $$a_{n}=\frac{n !}{n^{2}}$$
10. $$a_{n}=\frac{n^{2}}{n !}$$
11. $$a_{n}=\frac{(n+1) !}{n^{2}}$$
12. $$a_{n}=\frac{(n+1) !}{2 n}$$

1. $$4,2, \frac{2}{3}, \frac{1}{6}, \frac{1}{30}$$

3. $$3,6,18,72,360$$

5. $$2,24,720,40320,3628800$$

7. $$1, \frac{1}{2}, \frac{1}{3}, \frac{1}{4}, \frac{1}{5}$$

9. $$1, \frac{1}{2}, \frac{2}{3}, \frac{3}{2}, \frac{24}{5}$$

11. $$2, \frac{3}{2}, \frac{8}{3}, \frac{15}{2}, \frac{144}{5}$$

##### Exercise $$\PageIndex{28}$$ Find the Partial Sum

In the following exercises, expand the partial sum and find its value.

1. $$\sum_{i=1}^{5} i^{2}$$
2. $$\sum_{i=1}^{5} i^{3}$$
3. $$\sum_{i=1}^{6}(2 i+3)$$
4. $$\sum_{i=1}^{6}(3 i-2)$$
5. $$\sum_{i=1}^{4} 2^{i}$$
6. $$\sum_{i=1}^{4} 3^{i}$$
7. $$\sum_{k=0}^{3} \frac{4}{k !}$$
8. $$\sum_{k=0}^{4}-\frac{1}{k !}$$
9. $$\sum_{k=1}^{5} k(k+1)$$
10. $$\sum_{k=1}^{5} k(2 k-3)$$
11. $$\sum_{n=1}^{5} \frac{n}{n+1}$$
12. $$\sum_{n=1}^{4} \frac{n}{n+2}$$

1. $$1+4+9+16+25=55$$

3. $$5+7+9+11+13+15=60$$

5. $$2+4+8+16=30$$

7. $$\frac{4}{1}+\frac{4}{1}+\frac{4}{2}+\frac{4}{6}+\frac{32}{3}=10 \frac{2}{3}$$

9. $$2+6+12+20+30=70$$

11. $$\frac{1}{2}+\frac{2}{3}+\frac{3}{4}+\frac{4}{5}+\frac{5}{6}=\frac{71}{20}$$

##### Exercise $$\PageIndex{29}$$ Use Summation Notation to Write a Sum

In the following exercises, write each sum using summation notation.

1. $$\frac{1}{3}+\frac{1}{9}+\frac{1}{27}+\frac{1}{81}+\frac{1}{243}$$
2. $$\frac{1}{4}+\frac{1}{16}+\frac{1}{64}+\frac{1}{256}$$
3. $$1+\frac{1}{8}+\frac{1}{27}+\frac{1}{64}+\frac{1}{125}$$
4. $$\frac{1}{5}+\frac{1}{25}+\frac{1}{125}+\frac{1}{625}$$
5. $$2+1+\frac{2}{3}+\frac{1}{2}+\frac{2}{5}$$
6. $$3+\frac{3}{2}+1+\frac{3}{4}+\frac{3}{5}+\frac{1}{2}$$
7. $$3-6+9-12+15$$
8. $$-5+10-15+20-25$$
9. $$-2+4-6+8-10+\ldots+20$$
10. $$1-3+5-7+9+\ldots+21$$
11. $$14+16+18+20+22+24+26$$
12. $$9+11+13+15+17+19+21$$

1. $$\sum_{n=1}^{5} \frac{1}{3^{n}}$$

3. $$\sum_{n=1}^{5} \frac{1}{n^{3}}$$

5. $$\sum_{n=1}^{5} \frac{2}{n}$$

7. $$\sum_{n=1}^{5}(-1)^{n+1} 3 n$$

9. $$\sum_{n=1}^{10}(-1)^{n} 2 n$$

11. $$\sum_{n=1}^{7}(2 n+12)$$

##### Exercise $$\PageIndex{30}$$ Writing Exercises
1. In your own words, explain how to write the terms of a sequence when you know the formula. Show an example to illustrate your explanation.
2. Which terms of the sequence are negative when the $$n^{th}$$ term of the sequence is $$a_{n}=(-1)^{n}(n+2)$$?
3. In your own words, explain what is meant by $$n!$$ Show some examples to illustrate your explanation.
4. Explain what each part of the notation $$\sum_{k=1}^{12} 2 k$$ means.

## Self Check

a. After completing the exercises, use this checklist to evaluate your mastery of the objectives of this section.

b. If most of your checks were:

…confidently. Congratulations! You have achieved the objectives in this section. Reflect on the study skills you used so that you can continue to use them. What did you do to become confident of your ability to do these things? Be specific.

…with some help. This must be addressed quickly because topics you do not master become potholes in your road to success. In math, every topic builds upon previous work. It is important to make sure you have a strong foundation before you move on. Who can you ask for help? Your fellow classmates and instructor are good resources. Is there a place on campus where math tutors are available? Can your study skills be improved?

…no - I don’t get it! This is a warning sign and you must not ignore it. You should get help right away or you will quickly be overwhelmed. See your instructor as soon as you can to discuss your situation. Together you can come up with a plan to get you the help you need.

12.2E: Exercises is shared under a CC BY 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by OpenStax via source content that was edited to conform to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request.