Sequences and Series

Introduction
A sequence is an (infinite) list, and a series is an infinite sum. Both objects provide some of the
most powerful tools in all of mathematics, and their uses crop up everywhere. They can be used
to define functions, to provide solutions to problems (such as differential equations), to evaluate
difficult integrals, and many other applications.

Sequences
A sequence consists of a list of numbers which we assume to be infinite, and which is indexed
by the natural numbers. Sometimes a sequence can be defined by a formula, for example:
1
sn = , for n ≥ 1.
n
This sequence looks like this:
1 1 1 1 1
, , , , ,···
1 2 3 4 5
Or:
1
an = , for n ≥ 0.
2n
This sequence looks like this:
1 1 1 1 1
, , , , ,···
1 2 4 8 16
Or a sequence can be defined in terms of earlier values:
an−1 + 1
a0 = 1, an = for n ≥ 1.
3
We can compute the first few terms as follows:
a0 + 1
a1 =
3
2
=
3
a1 + 1
a2 =
3
5
=
9
a1 + 1
a2 =
3
14
=
27
a1 + 1
a2 =
3
41
=
81
and so on.

1
 A very famous sequence is defined as:

a0 = 1, a1 = 1 an = an−1 + an−2 for n ≥ 2.

This means that every term after the first two is the sum of the previous two terms:

1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, · · ·

and this sequence is called the Fibonacci sequence.

Here are a few other sequences; the prime numbers:

2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, · · ·

The factorials an = n!, starting at n = 0:

1, 1, 2, 6, 24, 120, 720, 5040, · · ·

The digits of the decimal expansion of π:

3, 1, 4, 1, 5, 9, 2, 6, 5, 3, 5, · · ·

Note that the sequences of prime numbers and of the digits of π can’t be defined by either a
formula or in terms of previous values.
There are hundreds of thousands of sequences in use throughout mathematics1 ; some of
these sequences are common, such as the few we’ve seen already; others are more specialized
(for example http://oeis.org/A214876).

Example 1. Find an explicit formula for the sequence:

3 9 27 81 243
, , , , ,···
4 7 10 13 16
Starting at n = 1, and treating numerators and denominators as separate sequences we get:
3n
an = .
3n + 1
Some recursive relations can be converted to explicit formulas and vice-versa. For example:

a1 = −4, and an = an−1 + 6

is the same as:

an = 6n − 10

1
The “Online Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences” at http://oeis.org currently lists nearly 230,000 different
sequences, and more are being added all the time.

2
Limit of a sequence
Suppose we have an = n1 for n = 1, 2, 3, · · · . The sequence is 1
1,
1
2,
1
3, · · · and when
n → ∞, an → 0.
Similarly to definition of the limit for functions we write:

lim an = L, where L ∈ R
n→∞

In the above case L = 0. If L cannot be found then we say that a given sequence diverges.

1 n


Example 2. If an = 1 − 10 for n = 0, 1, 2, 3, · · · then the sequence 0, 0.9, 0.99, 0.999,. . .
has the limit lim an = 1.
n→∞

Limits of sequences are similar to limits of functions and the same techniques can be applied
to determine convergence or divergence. All theorems are applicable, including the Squeeze
Theorem.

n2 + n + 5
Example 3. Show that a sequence an = converges to 13 .
3n2 − 4
 
1 5
n2 1+ + 2
n2 + n + 5 n n 1
lim = lim  =
n→∞ 3n2 − 4

n→∞ 4 3
n2 3 − 2
n

n2
Example 4. Find the limit of: an = .
2n − 5
L’Hopital rule can be used as well, as any sequence can be treated as a function of a real
x2
variable with discrete values:f (x) = x .
2 −5
And now:
x2 2x 2
lim = lim = lim =0
x→+∞ 2x − 5 x→+∞ (ln 2)2x x→+∞ (ln 2)2 2x

Please note that the manipulations must be done using a continuous variable (such as x) as
derivatives cannot be defined for discrete n.

Important sequences
Geometric progression is defined as an = rn , n = 0, 1, 2, . . . ; and r is a constant. Depending on
the value of r the sequence will behave differently when n → ∞.

• r = 0 then {an } = 0, 0, 0 . . . , and it converges to 0;

• r = 1 then {an } = 1, 1, 1 . . . , and it converges to 1;

• r = −1 then {an } = 1, −1, 1, −1 . . . , and it does not have a limit and it diverges but not
to ∞ as it oscillates between −1 and 1;

• r = 2 then {an } = 1, 2, 4, 8 . . . , and it diverges to ∞;

3
 • r = −2 then {an } = 1, −2, 4, −8 . . . , and it does not have a limit and it diverges as it
oscillates between −∞ and +∞;
• r = − 21 then {an } = 1, − 21 , 14 , − 81 . . . , it converges t 0 as the oscillations get smaller and
smaller;
Definition of the constant e
1 n
 
lim 1 + =e
n→∞ n

Series
We obtain a series by adding together the terms of a sequence, and this is denoted with the
capital Greek letter Sigma: Σ. Here are a few examples:
∞
X 1 1 1 1 1
k
= 1 + 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + ···
2 2 2 2 2
k=0
1 1 1 1
=1+ + + + + ···
2 4 8 16
∞
X (−1)n+1 (−1)2 (−1)3 (−1)4 (−1)5
= + + + + ···
n 1 2 3 4
n=1
1 1 1
+ − + ···
=1−
2 3 4
∞
X (−1)n (−1)0 (−1)1 (−1)2 (−1)3 (−1)4
= + + + + + ···
n! 0! 1! 2! 3! 4!
n=0
1 1 1 1 1
=1− + − + − + ···
1 2 6 24 120
X 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
= + + + + + + ···
p 2 3 5 7 11 13
p is prime

Convergence and divergence

From a series, we can obtain a new sequence whose values are equal to the sum of the first n
terms. For example, given the series
∞
X 1 1 1 1 1
=1+ + + + + ···
2k 2 4 8 16
k=0

we can define sn to be the sum of the first n terms, so that:

s0 = 1
1 3
s1 = 1 + = = 1.5
2 2
1 1 7
s2 = 1 + + = = 1.75
2 4 4
1 1 1 15
s3 = 1 + + + = = 1.875
2 4 8 8
1 1 1 1 31
s4 = 1 + + + + = = 1.9375
2 4 8 16 16
The next few values of sn can be computed to be:
s5 = 1.96875, s6 = 1.984375, s7 = 1.9921875, s8 = 1.99609375

4
and it looks as if these values are getting closer and closer to 2. When this happens: that the
finite sums get closer and closer to a particular value, we say that the series converges to that
value. So we can say that the original series converges to 2.
A sequence which doesn’t converge is said to diverge. A series may diverge by simply getting
bigger and bigger without bound, or it may alternate between values and never “settle down”.
It’s not obvious often whether a series converges or diverges, and there are many tests which
can be applied to a series to test its convergence.
But here are a few examples of convergent series, and their sums:
∞
X (−1)k 1 1 1 1 1
=1− + − + − + ···
2k + 1 3 5 7 9 11
k=0
π
=
4
∞
X 1 1 1 1 1 1
=1+ + + + + + ···
n! 1 2 6 24 120
n=0
= e1 ≈ 2.71828
∞
X (−1)k+1 1 1 1 1 1
=1− + − + − + ···
k 2 3 4 5 6
k=1
= ln(2) ≈ 0.693147
∞
X (−1)k 1 1 1 1 1
=1− + − + − + ···
3k 3 9 27 81 243
k=0
3
=
4
And here are some (surprisingly!) divergent series:
∞
X 1 1 1 1 1 1
= 1 + + + + + + ···
k 2 3 4 5 6
k=1
∞
X 1 1 1 1 1 1
= + + + + + ···
p 2 3 5 7 11
p∈Primes

We will look at some methods of testing whether a series converges or not. All we can hope
to do, often, is to work out whether or not it is convergent: we may be completely unable to
determine the sum. For example, it is known that:
∞
X 1 1 1 1
2
=1+ + + + ···
k 4 9 16
k=1
π2
= ,
6
∞
X 1 1 1 1
4
=1+ + + + ···
k 16 81 256
k=1
π4
= .
90
However, the series
∞
X 1 1 1 1
=1+ + + + ···
k3 8 27 64
k=1
∞
X 1 1 1 1
5
=1+ + + + ···
k 32 243 1024
k=1

5
are both known to converge, but nobody knows exactly the values of their sums.

Notation and terminology

We shall write a series as
∞
X
an
n=0

and refer to the value an as the n-th term of the series. The values produced by adding the first
terms:

s0 = a0
s1 = a0 + a1
s2 = a0 + a1 + a2
s3 = a0 + a1 + a2 + a3

(and so on), are called the partial sums of the series. So for example s17 would be the 17th
partial sum.

Now we can define the value of an infinite series as a limit, in infinity, of a sequence sn :

∞
X n
X
an = lim (sn ) = lim ak
n→∞ n→∞
n=0 k=0

The following are two rare examples of a series where a sequence sn can be expressed via an
explicit formula.

Telescoping series
In some cases a series can be rewritten as a sequence. That might happen if all terms in the
series but the first one and the last one cancel each other.

Example 5. Let’s consider:

∞
X 1 1 1 1 1
= + + + ··· + ···
n(n + 1) 1·2 2·3 3·4 n(n + 1)
n=1

1 1 1
Using partial fractions we can determine that: = −
m(m + 1) m m+1
Hence:
       
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
sn = − + − + − + ··· + − =1−
1 2 2 3 3 4 n n+1 n+1
1
And now as n+1 → 0 we get:
∞  
X 1 1
= lim sn = lim 1 − =1
n(n + 1) n→∞ n→∞ n+1
n=1

6
Geometric series
A geometric series is one for which the ratio between consecutive terms is constant. Or there is
a constant value r so that every term is r times the previous term. This means that if a0 = a
then

a1 = ra = ar
a2 = ra1 = ar2
a3 = ra2 = ar3

and in general an = ran . We can work out a formula for the n-th partial sum:

sn = a + ar + ar2 + ar3 + · · · + arn .

Suppose we multiply this by r:

rsn = ar + ar2 + ar3 + · · · + arn+1 .

If we add a to the front, and subtract an+1 we get the original sum back again:

a + rsn − arn+1 = a + ar + ar2 + ar3 + · · · + arn

= sn .

We now have an equation for sn :

a + rsn − arn+1 = sn

which can be rewritten as:

rsn − sn = arn+1 − a

and then solved for sn to obtain

arn+1 − a
sn = .
r−1
Alternatively,

rn+1 − 1
sn = a .
r−1
In practice often r < 1 and this is written

1 − rn+1
sn = a .
1−r
So the geometric series will converge or diverge depending on the behaviour of this fraction.
Take the series
∞
X 1
2n
n=0

which can be written alternatively as

∞  n
X 1
2
n=0

7
This is a geometric series with a = 1 and r = 1/2 and so

1 − (1/2)n+1
sn = (1)
1 − (1/2)
= 2(1 − (1/2)n+1 ).

The principal fact to help us is:

If |r| < 1 then lim rn = 0.

n→∞

This means that if |r| < 1 then

1 − rn+1
lim sn = lim a
n→∞ n→∞ 1−r
a
= .
1−r
For example, for the series above, with a = 1 and r = 1/2, we have
∞
X 1 1
= 1 = 2.
2n 1− 2
n=0

Example 6. Take the series

2 4 8
1− + − + ···
5 25 125
which is a geometric series with a = 1 and r = −2/5. So its sum will be
1 5
= .
1 − (−2/5) 7

Example 7. Consider the infinite decimal expansion

a = 0.36363636...

which is also alternatively written

a = 0.36

where the bar indicates that these digits repeat. We can break this up into a sum of two digit
blocks:

0.36 + 0.0036 + 0.00036 + 0.00000036 + · · ·

which can be written as a series of fractions:

36 36 36 36 36 36 36 36
+ + + + ··· = + 2
+ 3
+ + ···
100 10000 1000000 100000000 100 100 100 1004
This is now a geometric series with a = 36/100 and r = 1/100, so it converges to the value

36/100 36 4
= = .
1 − 1/100 99 11

8
Example 8. How about

a = 0.7818181818 . . . = 0.781.

This can be written as

7 81 81 81
a= + 3 + 5 + 7 + ···
10 10 10 10
Aside from the first term, the rest is a geometric series:
7 81 81 81
a− = 3 + 5 + 7 + ···
10 10 10 10
This left hand side is a geometric series with a = 81/103 and r = 1/100. This means that

7 81/1000 81 9
a− = = = .
10 1 − 1/100 990 110

Thus
7 9 77 9 77 + 9 86 43
a= + = + = = = .
10 110 110 110 110 110 55

Convergence tests
So far we know that a geometric series will converge if |r| < 1, and we can even determine the
sum. What we now do is to investigate some test which will help us determine whether or not
a series converges.
For a start, the series
∞
X
an
n=0

has no hope of converging if the individual terms themselves don’t approach zero. For example,
look at
∞
X n 1 2 3 4 5
= + + + + + ···
2n + 1 3 5 7 9 11
n=1

As n gets bigger, the individual terms get closer and closer to 1/2, and so the series ends up
looking like
1 1 1
··· + + + + ···
2 2 2
which clearly just keeps getting bigger and bigger, and so won’t converge.

The n-th term divergence test

∞
X
If lim an 6= 0 then the series an diverges.
n→∞
n=0

Note that this test (like almost all convergence tests) is a one-way test. It doesn’t say what will
happen if lim an = 0. Such a series may converge or diverge; we have to apply more tests to
n→∞
find out which.

9
 ∞
P n n 1
Example 9. diverges as lim =
n=1 3n + 1 n→∞ 3n + 1 3

The alternating series test

In many ways this is the easiest of all tests, but it only applies to series whose terms alternate
between positive and negative, such as:
∞
X (−1)n+1 1 1 1 1 1
=1− + − + − + ···
n 2 3 4 5 6
n=1

Here is the test:

If S = ∞
P
n=0 an is an alternating series for which limn→∞ an = 0, then the
series converges.
So the alternating harmonic series just above converges. (Actually it converges to ln(2), but
the test doesn’t tell us this.)

The ratio test

This is a very powerful test. The idea is that we may have a series which is not a geometric
series, but starts to look more and more like one as it grows. For example, the series
∞
X 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
= + + + + + + ···
2n +1 2 3 5 9 17 33
n=0

is not a geometric series, but as it grows it gets closer to the geometric series with r = 1/2. And
we can see this by looking at the ratios between successive terms:
a1 2
= = 0.66667
a0 3
a2 3
= = 0.6
a1 5
a3 5
= = 0.55556
a2 9
a4 9
= = 0.52941
a3 17
..
.
a11 1025
= = 0.50024
a10 2049
This particular series ends up behaving like a geometric series with r = 1/2, and so we can
deduce that it converges. This idea of looking at ratios leads to the ratio test:
∞
an+1 X
If lim = r then the series an converges if |r| < 1, and diverges if
n→∞ an
n=0
|r| > 1. If |r| = 1 the test is inconclusive.
Note that this test tells us nothing about the value of the sum of the series, just whether it
converges or not.

10
Example 10. Consider the series:
∞
X 2n + 1 3 5 9 17 33
=1+ + + + + + ···
3n +1 4 10 28 82 244
n=0

If we try to apply the ratio test then we need to determine the value of:
2n+1 + 1
an+1 n+1
lim = lim 3 n + 1
n→∞ an n→∞ 2 + 1
3n + 1
Using standard techniques we have:
2n+1 + 1
an+1 n+1 2n+1 + 1 3n + 1
lim = lim 3 n + 1 = lim n+1 × =
n→∞ an n→∞ 2 + 1 n→∞ 3 + 1 2n + 1
3n + 1

  

1 1
2n+11 + n+1 1+ n 3n
2 3 2n+1−n 2
lim  ×   = lim n+1−n =
n→∞ 1 1 n→∞ 3 3
3n+1 1 + n+1 2n 1 + n
3 2

Since |r| < 1 we deduce that the series converges.

P∞ n
Example 11. Test convergence of n
n=1 2
n n+1
an = n , an+1 = n+1
2  2
 n + 1 2n 
   
 an+1  n + 1 n 
r = lim   = lim   = lim  · 
n→∞ an  n→∞  2n+1 2n  n→∞  2 · 2n n 
   
1 n + 1
 = lim 1 +  = 1
1 1
 
= lim  ·
n→∞ 2 n  n→∞ 2  n 2
1
Since r = 2 < 1 the series converges.

∞
P 3n
Example 12. n2
n=1
 n+1
n2   3 · 3n n2 
    
 an+1 
 = lim  3

r = lim  = lim  
n→∞ an  n→∞  (n + 1)2 3n  n→∞  (n + 1)2 3n 
   
 n n   1 1 
= lim 3  ·  = lim 3  · =3
n→∞ n+1 n+1  n→∞  1 + 1/n 1 + 1/n 
Since r = 3 > 1 the series diverges.

The n-th root test

This is similar to the ratio test, in that it tests how “close” a series is to a geometric series. We
know that a geometric series converges if the common ratio r satisfies |r| < 1. And since in a
geometric series we have

an = arn

11
then
an+1
= r.
an
But consider the n-root of an :
(an )1/n = (arn )1/n
= a1/n r.
If a > 0 then a1/n → 1 and so (an )1/n → r. This idea of looking at n-th roots leads to the n-th
root test:
∞
X
If lim (an )1/n = r then the series an converges if |r| < 1, and diverges if
n→∞
n=0
|r| > 1. If |r| = 1 the test is inconclusive.
As with the ratio test, this test tells us nothing about the value of the sum of the series, just
whether it converges or not.

Example 13. Looking at the previous series, we would need to determine the limiting value
of
1/n
2n + 1

.
3n + 1
However, by our previous work we know that
 n
2n 1 + 21n


2n + 1 2
lim = lim n 1 = lim
n→∞ 3n + 1


n→∞ 3 1 + 3n n→∞ 3
and so
1/n  n 1/n
2n + 1

2 2
lim = lim =
n→∞ 3n + 1 n→∞ 3 3
Since the absolute value is less than 1, the series must converge.

The integral test

∞
P
Suppose an is a series with positive terms. Suppose there exists a function f and a positive
n=1
integer N such that the following three conditions are satisfied:
• f is continuous,
• f is decreasing, and
• f (n) = an for all integers n ≥ N
∞
P +∞
R
S= an and f (x)dx both converge or both diverge.
n=1 N

Importantly we can estimate the value of S using SN (it can be easily calculated) and the
N
P
above integral. Let RN = S − an = S − SN .
n=1
+∞
Z +∞
Z
f (x)dx < RN < f (x)dx
N +1 N

It is known as a remainder estimate.

12
 +∞
√ 1
P
Example 14. Use the integral test to determine whether the series S = 2n−1
converges
n=1
or diverges.
By plotting f (x) = √ 1 we can see that it satisfies the integral test conditions so:
2x−1

+∞
Z Zb
dx dx √ b
√ = lim √ = lim 2x − 1 1 = ∞
2x − 1 b→+∞ 2x − 1 b→+∞
1 1

Based on the integral test the original series diverges.

+∞
√ 1
P
Example 15. Use the integral test to determine whether the series 2n3 −1
converges or
n=1
100
√ 1
P
diverges. Then estimate the error of approximating S by S100 = 2n3 −1
= 2.009.
n=1

Again, f (x) = √ 1 satisfy the integral test conditions. By using CAS we have:
2x3 −1

+∞
Z
dx
√ = 1.48 → converges
2x3 − 1
1

+∞
Z +∞
Z
dx dx
√ < RN < √
2x3 − 1 2x3 − 1
101 100
0.14 < RN < 0.1414
2.009 + 0.14 < S < 2.009 + 0.1414
2.1490 < S < 2.1504

The comparison test

Suppose we have two series
∞
X ∞
X
S= an , T = bn
n=0 n=0

and all terms an and bn are positive. Suppose we know whether or not S converges. Sometimes
we can compare the terms of T with those of S and so decide whether or not T converges:
P∞
If S = n=0 an converges, and if 0 < bn < an for all n, then the series
P∞
T = n=0 bn also converges.

P∞
If S = n=0 an diverges, and if bn > an > 0 for all n, then the series
P∞
T = n=0 bn also diverges.

Basically what this is saying is that a series T which is smaller than a convergent series S will
also converge, and a series T which is larger than a divergent series will also diverge.

13
Example 16. Let’s consider the series
∞
X 1 1 1 1 1
S= = 1 + + + + + ···
n 2 3 4 5
n=1

This series is called the harmonic series.

If we try the ratio or n-th root tests, both produce a value of 1, so don’t tell us anything.
What we are going to do is to break this series up into blocks as follows:
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
S =1+ + + + + + + + + + ··· + +···
2 3 4
| {z } |5 6 {z 7 8 9
} | 10 {z 16
}
Block 1 Block 2 Block 3
so that block 1 has 2 elements, block 2 has 4 elements, and each block has twice as many
elements as the previous block. Since the elements are given in decreasing order, every element
in a block is greater than the last element, so that
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
S >1+ + + + + + + + + + ··· + +···
2 4 4
| {z } 8
| 8 {z 8 8 16
} | 16 {z 16}
New block 1 New block 2 New block 3
In this new series, the elements in each block add up to 1/2, so that
1 1 1 1
S >1+ + + + + ···
2 2 2 2
and the right hand side of this inequality is a divergent series. Since S is greater than a divergent
series, it must also diverge.

The p-series
For comparing series, a useful series to compare with is the p-series, defined by
∞
X 1 1 1 1 1
= 1 + p + p + p + p + ···
np 2 3 4 5
n=1

which converges for p > 1 and diverges for p ≤ 1. (The harmonic series is a p-series with p = 1).

Example 17. Consider the series

∞
X 1 1 1 1 1 1
= + + + + + ···
n2 + n 2 6 12 20 30
n=1

Since n2 + n > n2 then 1/(n2 + n) < 1/n2 . The series

∞
X 1
n2
n=1

is a p-series with p = 2 and so converges. Since our series is a positive series which less than a
convergent series, it must also converge.

14
Limit comparison test
The test is very similar to the comparison test, but ona plus side, often leads to easier algebraic
calculations. The comparison is made on the asymptotic behaviour of a series against another
one with already known behaviour.

Let an , bn > 0 for all n > 1

∞ ∞
an P P
1. If lim = L, then an and bn both converge or both diverge.
n→∞ bn n=1 n=1
∞ ∞
an P P
2. If lim = 0, then if bn converges then an converges.
n→∞ bn n=1 n=1
∞ ∞
an P P
3. If lim = ∞, then if bn diverges then an diverges.
n→∞ bn n=1 n=1

∞
P n3 + n − 8
Example 18. Check converges of 5 4
n=1 4n − n − 3n + 2
n3 + n − 8
We have an =
4n5 − n4 − 3n + 2
1
Let select bn = n2
- from p-series test we know that bn converges.
Now we have:

n3 1 + n12 − n83


an n3 + n − 8 n2 n2
lim = 5 · = lim ·
4n − n4 − 3n + 2 1 n→∞ n5 4 − 1 − 34 + 25


n→∞ bn 1
n n n
an 1
lim =
n→∞ bn 4

As bn converges an converges as well (test condition 1).

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Putting it all together
So many tests! So much confusion! Confronted with a new series, what can you do with it?
This flow chart indicates how you might check its convergence:

START
X∞
S= an Is r = 1? No
n=0

Yes

Does Apply n-th No

Diverges lim an = 0? Is r < 1?
No n→∞ root test

Yes Yes

No
Is r = 1? Converges
Is S an al-
Converges ternating
Yes
series? Yes

Apply
No comparison Diverges
test
Apply
ratio test

Use a
p-series

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Exercises
1. For each of the following sequences, write out the first five elements, starting with n = 1:
√ 1 n
(a) an = n + 1 (b) an = 2 (c) an = 2
n +1 n +1
2n n2 + 1 n
(d) an = (e) an = 3 (f) an = n
n! n +1 2 +1
2. For each of the following series, write out in full the first five partial sums, and evaluate
those sums numerically:
∞ ∞ ∞
X 1 X n X 1
(a) (b) (c)
n2 + 1 n3 + 1 2n + 1
n=1 n=1 n=1
∞ ∞ ∞
X n2 X 1 X (n!)2
(d) (e) (f)
n! + 1 n2 + n + 1 (2n)!
n=1 n=1 n=1

3. Determine the sums of the following infinite geometric series:

∞ ∞ ∞
X 1 X 1 X 5(2n )
(a) (b) (c)
2n 5n 3n
n=0 n=0 n=0
(d) 0.515151 (e) 0.3272727 (f) 0.387387
4. Use the ratio test to determine the convergence of the following series:
∞ ∞ ∞
X n+1 X n3 + 1 X n2 + 1
(a) (b) (c)
2n + 1 3n + 1 2n + 1
n=0 n=0 n=0
∞ ∞ ∞
X n2 X 1 X (n!)2
(d) (e) (f)
n! + 1 3 + 2n + 1
n (2n)!
n=0 n=0 n=0

5. Compare each of the following series with an appropriate p-series to determine if it is

convergent or not:
∞ ∞ ∞
X n+1 X 1 X 1
(a) (b) (c)
n2 + 1 n 3/2 7n +3
n=0 n=1 n=0
∞ ∞ ∞
X n2 X n2 + n + 1 X n
(d) (e) (f) √
n3 + 1 n3 + n2 + n + 1 (n2 + 1) n
n=1 n=0 n=1

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Answers
√ √ √ √ √
1. (a) 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, (b) 1/2, 1/5, 1/10, 1/17, 1/26 (c) 1/2, 2/5, 3/10, 4/17, 5/26
(d) 1, 2, 4/3, 2/3, 4/15 (e) 1, 5/9, 5/14, 17/65, 13/63 (f) 1/3, 2/5, 1/3, 4/17, 5/33

2. The partial sums (to eight decimal places) are:

(a) 0.5, 0.7, 0.8, 0.858823529, 0.89728507,
(b) 0.5, 0.72222222, 0.82936508, 0.89090354, .93058608,
(c) 0.33333333, 0.53333333, 0.644444444, 0.70326797, 0.733571004,
(d) 0.5, 1.833333333, 3.11904762, 3.75904762, 3.96565919,
(e) 0.33333333, 0.47619048, 0.55311355, 0.60073260, 0.63299067,
(f) 0.5, 0.666666666, 0.716666667, 0.730952381, 0.73492063

3. (a) 2, (b) 5/4, (c) 15, (d) 17/33, (e) 18/55 (f) 43/111

4. They all converge.

5. (a) diverges, (b) converges, (c) diverges, (d) diverges, (e) diverges, (f) converges

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