164,893 views
3 votes
3 votes
classify the series -1+2+(-4)+8+...as arithmetic or geometric. Then, determine whether the series is convergent or divergent.

User Jvecsei
by
2.9k points

1 Answer

15 votes
15 votes

Answer:

The series -1+2+(-4)+8+... is an arithmetic series because it has a common difference between consecutive terms. Specifically, the common difference is -4 - 2 = -6.

To determine whether the series is convergent or divergent, we need to find its sum. The sum of an arithmetic series is given by the formula:

sum = (n/2)(a1 + an)

where n is the number of terms in the series, a1 is the first term, and an is the nth term.

Since the series is infinite, we cannot determine its sum using this formula. However, we can determine its sum by taking the limit as n approaches infinity. Using the formula above, we find that the sum is equal to:

sum = (infinity/2)(-1 + infinity)

Since the series contains an infinite number of negative terms, it is divergent.

User Duri
by
3.1k points
Welcome to QAmmunity.org, where you can ask questions and receive answers from other members of our community.