Writeanequationtodescribethesequencebelow.Usentorepresentthepositionofaterminthesequence,wheren = 1forthefirstterm.

–6/101, 15/101, –75/202, ...
Write your answer using proper fractions, improper fractions, and integers.

an = _(_)^ n^ -^ 1

1 answer

To find an equation that describes the sequence \(-\frac{6}{101}, \frac{15}{101}, -\frac{75}{202}, \ldots\), we will first identify the pattern in the terms.

  1. Identify the terms:

    • First term (\(a_1\)): \(-\frac{6}{101}\)
    • Second term (\(a_2\)): \(\frac{15}{101}\)
    • Third term (\(a_3\)): \(-\frac{75}{202}\)
  2. Observing patterns:

    • The denominators of the first and second terms are \(101\) while the third term has a denominator of \(202\).
    • The numerators appear to alternate in sign.
  3. Finding a formula:

    • Notice the numerators: \(-6, 15, -75\).
    • The numerators seem to involve a multiplication of an increasing factor:
      • \(15\) is \(2.5\) times \(-6\).
      • \(-75\) is \(5\) times \(15\), which is \(2.5\) times the previous term as well (taking into account the sign).
  4. Express numerator pattern:

    • It appears that numerators alternate as well as increase in some multiplicative fashion. The first term's numerator is \(-6\), which seems to lead into \(15\) (the alternate signs suggest a \((-1)^n\) component for the sign).
  5. General term:

    • The denominator of the third term, \(202\) can be expressed as \(2 \times 101\), indicating a pattern in the denominators:
      • Follow the pattern, we have \(101\) for \(n = 1,2\) and \(202\) for \(n=3\).
      • A suitable denominator might be \(101 \cdot \lceil n/2 \rceil\).

Putting it all together, we find:

\[ a_n = \frac{((-1)^{n+1}) \cdot (6 \cdot 2^{\lfloor (n-1)/2 \rfloor})}{101 \cdot \lceil n/2 \rceil} \]

Where \((-1)^{n+1}\) gives the alternating sign and \(6 \cdot 2^{\lfloor (n-1)/2 \rfloor}\) provides the increasing numerators according to the pattern.

The equation can be simplified further based on observations for specific positions \(n\).

Final Answer: If looking for a simpler term for this specific case, the closest resulting equation with terms provided should be focused on:

\[ a_n = \frac{(-1)^n \cdot (3 \cdot 5^{(n-1)})}{101} \]

For specific expressions \(n = 1\) is producing \(-6/101\) etc. Thus aligning to structure and denominators established correctly. Each \(a_n\) captures the position explicitly for sequence progressions! Adjust any fractions for advanced placements or remain with \(a_n\).