What is the term-to-term rule of the following sequence?
60, 50, 40, 30, ...
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What is the term-to-term rule of the following sequence?
60, 50, 40, 30, ...
To solve this problem, we'll follow these steps:
Now, let's work through each step:
Step 1: Observe the difference between consecutive terms:
- The difference between the first and second terms (60 - 50) is 10.
- The difference between the second and third terms (50 - 40) is also 10.
- Similarly, the difference remains constant at 10 for the remaining terms (40 - 30 = 10).
Thus, the common difference is -10, as the terms are decreasing by 10 each time.
Step 2: Use the formula for an arithmetic sequence:
The nth term of an arithmetic sequence can be expressed as , where is the initial term and is the common difference.
Here, and . Plugging these into the formula, we have:
Simplifying the expression:
Thus, the nth term is .
Therefore, the term-to-term rule for this sequence is , which matches the correct answer choice .
Is there a term-to-term rule for the sequence below?
18 , 22 , 26 , 30
Look at the pattern! If terms are getting smaller (like 60, 50, 40), the common difference is negative. If terms are getting larger, it's positive.
Both expressions are mathematically identical! -10n + 70 = 70 - 10n. The answer choices use the first form, so that's what we match.
The variable n represents the position of the term in the sequence. For example, n=1 gives the 1st term (60), n=2 gives the 2nd term (50), and so on.
Test it with the given terms! Substitute n=1, n=2, n=3 into your formula. If you get 60, 50, 40 respectively, your formula is correct!
a₁ is always the first term in the sequence. In this problem, a₁ = 60 because that's the first number we see: 60, 50, 40, 30...
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