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Lesson: Pre-Calculus
1. Which of the following is not representative of an arithmetic sequence?
A. Counting normally from 1 to 100
B. A taxi fare that demands an extra dollar every two miles
C. The schedule of buses arriving at a station every 30 minutes
D. The total amount (recorded monthly) earned by a firm from a debtor that
repays his debt in equal installments every day
2. Given an arithmetic sequence that has 44 as its first term, which of the following
values cannot be a term in the sequence?
A. 59
B. 164
C. -19
D. All values can be a possible term depending on the common difference.
3. Given the arithmetic sequence starting with 2, 6, 10, 14…, what is the 15th term of
the sequence?
A. 54
B. 58
C. 62
D. 65
4. While waiting for a two hour class to end, an impatient student decides to check
his watch every 4 minutes. Given that his class starts at 2:00pm and that he starts
checking his watch at 2:10pm, what will be the last time he checks his watch?
A. 3:48pm
B. 3:57pm
C. 3:58pm
D. 4:00pm
5. What is the sum of an infinite geometric sequence with a common ratio of ½ and a
fourth term of ¾?
A. 10
B. 12
C. 14
D. None of the above
6. A geometric sequence has a 3rd term of 18 and a 7th term of 1458. Find the first
term of the sequence.
A. 2
B. 3
C. 6
D. 81
7. The first three terms of an arithmetic sequence are 2a − 1 , 5a , and 6 + 4a
respectively. Find the value of a.
A. ⅘
B. 5/4
C. 7/4
D. -7/6
8. Which of the following statements is true?
A. If the common ratio and the common difference of two sequences are
equal, the sum of the first five terms of the geometric sequence will always
be greater than the sum of the first five terms of the arithmetic sequence.
B. Every sequence must have either a common difference or a common ratio.
C. The greatest number in a finite arithmetic or geometric sequence is always
either the first or last term.
D. None of the above statements are true.
9. In his newest hit single, a rapper says the phrase “I’m biracial” four times in the
first line then says it an additional three times for every succeeding line, for a
record-breaking total of 3014 times. How many lines does the song have?
A. 34
B. 44
C. 54
D. 64
10. An arithmetico-geometric sequence is described as a sequence where its terms
are the products of the corresponding terms of an arithmetic and geometric
sequence (ex. 1st term arithmetic x 1st term geometric = 1st term
arithmetico-geometric). Given the arithmetico-geometric sequence 4/2, 13/10,
22/50, 31/250… where the first term of the arithmetic sequence is 4, find the sixth
term of the sequence.
A. 40/1250
B. 40/6250
C. 49/1250
D. 49/6250
11. Four arithmetic means are inserted between two numbers to form an arithmetic
sequence. Given that the sum of the newly formed sequence is 132 and that the
last term is three times the first term, which of the following values below is an
arithmetic mean inserted into the sequence?
A. 19.4
B. 24.8
C. 28.6
D. 33.0
12. Find the geometric mean of a 13 term geometric sequence with a first term of 4
and a common ratio that is the reciprocal of half the first term.
A. 1/16
B. 1/32
C. 1/64
D. 1/128
13. The common difference of an arithmetic sequence is twice the common ratio of a
geometric sequence. If the third and fifth terms of the arithmetic sequence are 6
and 9 respectively, and the third term of the geometric sequence is 18, find the
first term of the geometric sequence.
A. 3
B. 24
C. 32
D. 40
14. A billionaire wants to buy 6 luxury cars to fill out the rest of the space in his 12 car
garage. He decides to buy the cars at a special dealership, where each
succeeding car is sold for a specific number of dollars more than the previous car.
Given that he paid a total of $289500, what are the possible prices for the
cheapest and most expensive cars he bought?
A. 24000, 24250
B. 30500, 66500
C. 40300, 56200
D. 45250, 50250
15. A cubic sequence is listed as follows: 16, 26, 52, 100, 176… What is the common
difference?
A. 6
B. 10
C. 12
D. There is no common difference.
16. The sum of the first 11 terms of an arithmetic sequence is 594 while the sum of the
next 11 terms is 1562. What is the first term of the sequence?
A. 14
B. 18
C. 22
D. 26
17. The value of a rare motorcycle depreciates by 5% annually. Given that it is worth
$7220 2 years from now, how much would one need to sell the motorcycle for 3
years from now to make $1000 more than it is worth at that time?
A. $1001
B. $7516.05
C. $7859
D. $8220
18. An infinite geometric sequence has a 4th term of 2/9 and a 6th term of 2/81. How
many possible sums does the sequence have?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
19. A mathematics-obsessed general manager allows one of the team’s re-signing
players to choose one of three possible four-year contracts. Given that the player
wants to make the most money possible but also earn a total of at least 200
million for the entire duration of the contract, which of the contracts should he
choose?
A. Contract A: A contract that adds a fixed amount per year, with 35 million
offered in the first year and 45 million offered in the final year
B. Contract B: A contract that multiplies a fixed amount each year, with 15
million offered in the second year and 75 million offered in the third year
C. Contract C: A contract that decreases by a 9 million each year, with 60
million offered in the first year
D. Do not accept any of the contracts, as none of them will give him at least
200 million over the four years
20.The sum of the six terms of one arithmetic series is equal to the sum of the nine
terms of another arithmetic series. If the two series have the same first term, which
of the following equations shows the relationship between the first term a1 , the
last term an of the six-term series, and the common difference d of the nine-term
series, as well as possible values for each?
A. 3an − 10d = 7a1 ( a1 = 5, an = 20, d = 2.5 )
B. 3an − 10d = a1 ( a1 = 40, an = 3, d = 5 )
C. an − 12d = 2a1 ( a1 = 1, an = 50, d = 4 )
D. an − 12d = 4a1 ( a1 = 8, an = 68, d = 3 )
21. The sides of a right triangle arranged from shortest to longest form a geometric
series with three terms. What is the square of the common ratio of this series?
1±√5
A. 2
1±√5
B. − 2
C. √ 1±√5
2
D. −√ 1±√5
2
22.The diameter of a circle is divided into five parts, whose lengths happen to form a
geometric sequence. If the shortest segment is 3 centimeters long while the
second longest segment is 192 centimeters long, how long is the circumference of
the circle?
E. 2046pi
F. 1023pi
G. 511.5pi
H. None of the above