Question

How many terms of the arithmetic sequence 88, 85, 82, . . . appear before the number -17 appears?

Answer 1

in your sequence, a = 88, d = -3
so you want a + (n-1)d = -17

88 + (n-1)(-3) = -17
88 - 3n + 3 = -17
-3n = -108
n = 36

state your conclusion