Find the Fifth Term in the n²-1 Sequence: Step-by-Step Solution

Question

n21 n^2-1

What is the fifth term in the above sequence?

Video Solution

Solution Steps

00:00 Find the 5th element
00:03 Let's substitute the position of the matching element in the formula and solve
00:16 Always solve exponents first
00:23 And this is the solution to the question

Step-by-Step Solution

To solve this problem, we'll directly calculate the fifth term of the sequence defined by n21 n^2 - 1 :

  • Step 1: Use the given formula for the sequence, n21 n^2 - 1 .
  • Step 2: Substitute n=5 n = 5 , as we need the fifth term.
  • Step 3: Calculate 521 5^2 - 1 .

Now, perform these calculations:
Substitute n=5 n = 5 :
n21=521 n^2 - 1 = 5^2 - 1 .
Calculate 52=25 5^2 = 25 .
Then subtract 1: 251=24 25 - 1 = 24 .

Therefore, the fifth term in the sequence is 24 24 , which matches choice 2 from the provided options.

Answer

24