ELEMENTARY PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS

EDITED BY
RUSS EULER AND JAWAD SADEK
Please submit all new problem proposals and their solutions to the Problems Editor, DR.
RUSS EULER, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Northwest Missouri State Univer-
sity, 800 University Drive, Maryville, MO 64468, or by email at [email protected]. All
solutions to others proposals must be submitted to the Solutions Editor, DR. JAWAD SADEK,
Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Northwest Missouri State University, 800 Univer-
sity Drive, Maryville, MO 64468.
If you wish to have receipt of your submission acknowledged, please include a self-addressed,
stamped envelope.
Each problem and solution should be typed on separate sheets. Solutions to problems in this
issue must be received by August 15, 2012. If a problem is not original, the proposer should
inform the Problem Editor of the history of the problem. A problem should not be submitted
elsewhere while it is under consideration for publication in this Journal. Solvers are asked to
include references rather than quoting well-known results.
The content of the problem sections of The Fibonacci Quarterly are all available on the web
free of charge at www.fq.math.ca/.
BASIC FORMULAS
The Fibonacci numbers F
n
and the Lucas numbers L
n
satisfy
F
n+2
= F
n+1
+F
n
, F
0
= 0, F
1
= 1;
L
n+2
= L
n+1
+L
n
, L
0
= 2, L
1
= 1.
Also, = (1 +

5)/2, = (1

5)/2, F
n
= (
n

n
)/

5, and L
n
=
n
+
n
.
PROBLEMS PROPOSED IN THIS ISSUE
B-1101 Proposed by D. M. Batinet u-Giurgiu, Matei Basarab National Col-
lege, Bucharest, Romania and Neculai Stanciu, George Emil Palade
Secondary School, Buzau, Romania
Prove that
arctan

F
2
n
+F
2
n+1
2
+ arctan

L
2
n
+L
2
n+1
2
arctan
F
n+2
2
+ arctan
L
n+2
2
.
82 VOLUME 50, NUMBER 1
ELEMENTARY PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS
B-1102 Proposed by Diana Alexandrescu, University of Bucharest, Bucharest,
Romania and Jose Luis Daz-Barrero, BARCELONA TECH, Barcelona,
Spain
Let n be a positive integer. Prove that
_
_
3
_
F
2
n
+
3
_
F
2
n+1
3
_
F
2
n+2
_
_
_
_
3
_
L
2
n
+
3
_
L
2
n+1
3
_
L
2
n+2
_
_
<
3

4.
B-1103 Proposed by Hideyuki Ohtsuka, Saitama, Japan
If a +b +c = 0 and abc = 0, nd the value of
L
a
L
b
L
c
F
a
F
b
F
c
_
F
a
L
a
+
F
b
L
b
+
F
c
L
c
_
.
B-1104 Proposed by Javier Sebastian Cortes (student), Universidad Distrital
Francisco Jose de Caldas, Bogota, Colombia
Prove that
F
n+2k(k+1)
2k

i=0
L
n+2(k+1)i
= L
n+2k(k+1)
2k

i=0
F
n+2(k+1)i
.
B-1105 Proposed by Paul S. Bruckman, Nanaimo, BC, Canada
Let
G
m
(x) =
m+1

k=0
(1)
k(k+1)/2
_
m+ 1
k
_
F
x
m+1k
, m = 0, 1, 2, . . . ,
where
_
m+1
k

F
is the Fibonomial coecient
F
1
F
2
F
3
...F
m+1
(F
1
F
2
F
3
...F
k
)(F
1
F
2
F
3
...F
m+1k
)
, 1 k m; also dene
_
m+ 1
0
_
F
=
_
m+ 1
m+ 1
_
F
= 1.
Let G
m
(1) = U
m
. Prove the following, for n = 0, 1, 2, . . .:
(a) U
4n
= 0;
(b) U
4n+2
= 2(1)
n+1
{L
1
L
2
L
3
. . . L
2n+1
}
2
;
(c) U
2n+1
= (1)
(n+1)(n+2)/2
{L
1
L
3
L
5
. . . L
2n+1
}.
FEBRUARY 2012 83
THE FIBONACCI QUARTERLY
SOLUTIONS
From Cassinis Identity
B-1081 Proposed by Br. J. M. Mahon, Kensington, Australia
(Vol. 49.1, February 2011)
Prove that
F
2
n+1
F
2
n1
F
4
n
=
(1)
n
5
[2L
2n
+ (1)
n
] .
Solution by Carlos Rico, Student at Universidad Distrital Francisco Jose de Caldas
(ITENU), Bogota, Colombia.
Proof. Using Cassinis formula F
n+1
F
n1
F
2
n
= (1)
n
, [1, p. 74], it is easy to see that
F
2
n+1
F
2
n1
F
4
n
= (F
n+1
F
n1
)
2
F
4
n
= (F
2
n
+ (1)
n
)
2
F
4
n
= (1)
n
[2F
2
n
+ (1)
n
]
=
(1)
n
5
[10F
2
n
+ 5(1)
n
].
Since L
2n
= 5F
2
n
+ 2(1)
n
, [1, p. 97],
(1)
n
5
[10F
2
n
+ 5(1)
n
] =
(1)
n
5
[2L
2n
+ (1)
n
],
and the desired equality follows.
References
[1] T. Koshy, Fibonacci and Lucas Numbers with Applications, John Wiley, New York, 2001.
Also solved by Shanon Michaels Arford, Gurdial Arora and Sindhu Unnithan
(jointly), Brian D. Beasly, Scott H. Brown, Paul S. Bruckman, Jallisa Cliord,
Kristopher Liggins and Dickson Toroitich (jointly, students), Charles K. Cook,
Kenneth B. Davenport, Steve Edwards, Russell J. Hendel, Robinson Higuita and
Sergio Mayorga (jointly, students), Zbigniew Jakubczyk, Harris Kwang, John
Morrison, Jean Peterson,

Angel Plaza, Cecil Rousseau, Jaroslav Seibert, and the
proposer.
An Odd Equality
B-1082 Proposed by

Angel Plaza and Sergio Falcon, Universidad de Las Palmas
de Gran Canaria, Spain
(Vol. 49.1, February 2011)
84 VOLUME 50, NUMBER 1
ELEMENTARY PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS
The k-Fibonacci numbers F
n
= F
k,n
satisfy F
k,n+2
= kF
k,n+1
+F
k,n
, F
k,0
= 0, F
k,1
= 1. Let
m > 1 be a xed integer. Prove that

r=1
(1)
r1
F
2mr+m
F
2
mr
F
2
mr+m
=
1
F
3
m
.
Solution by Russell J. Hendel, Towson University, Towson, MD.
The problem identity is, as stated, true for odd m but not for even m.
The F
k,n
are the generalized Lucas sequences [2], with Binet form,
u
n
v
n
uv
, with u and v
solutions of the equation x
2
kx 1 = 0, or alternatively, u =
k+

D
2
, v =
k

D
2
, D = k
2
+4.
By a routine expansion of the Binet forms and straightforward simplication, we obtain for
any positive integer m,
F
m
F
2mr+m
= (1)
m+1
F
2
mr
+F
2
mr+r
,
which reduces for small values of m to known identities (e.g. [1, I11]).
When m is odd, substituting this last identity into the problem identity reduces it to the
telescoping sum

r=1
(1)
r1
F
2mr+m
F
2
mr
F
2
mr+m
= lim
n
1
F
m
n

r=1
(1)
r1
_
1
F
2
mr
+
1
F
2
mr+m
_
= lim
n
1
F
m
_
1
F
2
m
(1)
n
1
F
2
(n+1)m
_
=
1
F
3
m
.
Next, it suces to disprove the problem identity for one even value of m say m = 2. But
the innite sum is an alternating sum of strictly positive values going to 0 and hence, the limit
exists and is sandwiched between the partial sums,
P(n) =
n

r=1
(1)
r1
F
2mr+m
F
2
mr
F
2
mr+m
.
A straightforward computation shows that P(n) : n = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 equals 0.1215278, 0.1181576,
0.1182566, 0.1182537, 0.1182538, and hence, 0.1182537 < P() < 0.1182538, contradicting
the problem assertion that the limit is
1
F
3
m
=
1
2
3
= 0.125.
References
[1] S. Vajda, Fibonacci and Lucas Numbers, and the Golden Section: Theory and Applications, John Wiley,
New York, 1989.
[2] http://mathworld.wolfram.com/LucasSequence.html.
Also solved by Paul S. Bruckman, Kenneth B. Davenport, Zbigniew Jakubczyk,
and the proposer.
FEBRUARY 2012 85
THE FIBONACCI QUARTERLY
Much Ado About F
n
B-1083 Proposed by Br. J. M. Mahon, Kensington, Australia
(Vol. 49.1, February 2011)
Find a closed form for
[
n
2
]

j=0
(1)
j
n
n j
_
n j
j
_
F
2n3j
.
Solution by Cecil Rousseau, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN.
The sum equals F
n
. A proof thereof is based on the identity
K(n, z) :=
n/2

j=0
(1)
j
n
n j
_
n j
j
_
z
j
=
_
1 +

1 4z
2
_
2
+
_
1

1 4z
2
_
n
, (*)
which is in [1, p. 204]. By Binets formula, the sum to be evaluated is
S
n
:=
n/2

j=0
(1)
j
n
n j
_
n j
j
__

2n3j

2n3j

5
_
=

2n
K(n,
3
)
2n
K(n,
3
)

5
=

2n
K(n,
3
)
2n
K(n,
3
)

5
.
Note that 1 + 4
3
= 1 + 4(1 +) = (1 + 2)
2
, so
1 +

1 + 4
3
2
= 1 + =
2
and
1

1 + 4
3
2
= .
The same relations hold with replaced by . Hence, (*) yields

2n
K(n,
3
) =
2n
{(
2
)
n
+ ()
n
} = 1 +
n
and
2n
K(n,
3
) = 1 +
n
. Finally,
S
n
=

n

5
= F
n
.
References
[1] R. L. Graham, D. E. Knuth, and O. Patashnik Concrete Mathematics, second edition, Addison-Wesley,
Reading, MA, 1998.
Zbigniew Jakobczyk notes that a similar formula holds for Lucas Numbers, precisely,
[
n
2
]

j=0
(1)
j
n
n j
_
n j
j
_
L
2n3j
= L
n
+ 2.
Also solved by Paul S. Bruckman, Kenneth B. Davenport, Zbigniew Jakubczyk,

Angel Plaza and Sergio Falcon (jointly), Jaroslav Seibert, and the proposer.
86 VOLUME 50, NUMBER 1
ELEMENTARY PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS
And by the AM-GM Inequality . . ..
B-1084 Proposed by Jose Luis Daz-Barrero, Barcelona, Spain
(Vol. 49.1, February 2011)
Let n be a positive integer. Prove that
_
_
n

k=1
F
2
k
_
1 +F
2
k
_
_
_
n

k=1
(1 +F
2
k
)
_
1/2n
F
n
F
n+1
.
Solution by

Angel Plaza and Sergio Falcon (jointly), Universidad de Las Palmas
de Gran Canaria, Spain.
Since
n

k=1
F
2
k
= F
n
F
n+1
, the proposed inequality is equivalent to
_
_
n

k=1
F
2
k
_
1 +F
2
k
_
_
_
n

k=1
_
1 +F
2
k
_
1/n

k=1
F
2
k
.
This may be proved by the AM-GM and Chebyshev inequalities as follows:
_
_
n

k=1
F
2
k
_
1 +F
2
k
_
_
_
n

k=1
_
1 +F
2
k
_
1/n

_
_
n

k=1
F
2
k
_
1 +F
2
k
_
_
_
_

n
k=1
_
1 +F
2
k
n
_
_

k=1
F
2
k
.
The last inequality comes from the Chebyshev inequality since both sequences
_
F
2
k

1+F
2
k
_
and
__
1 +F
2
k
_
have the same monotonicity.
Also solved by Paul S. Bruckman, Kenneth B. Davenport, Russell Jay Hendel,
Robinson Higuita and Sergio Mayorga (jointly, students), Zbigniew Jakobczyk,
Harris Kwang, and the proposer.
A Fibonacci Fraction
B-1085 Proposed by Carsten Elsner and Martin Stein, University of Applied
Sciences, Hannover, Germany
(Vol. 49.1, February 2011)
Let (a
n
)
n1
be a sequence of positive integers. Let q
0
= 1, q
1
= a
1
and q
n
= a
n
q
n1
+q
n2
for n 2. Prove that
q
0
+q
1
+ +q
m1
q
m

F
m+2
1
F
m+1
for m 1.
FEBRUARY 2012 87
THE FIBONACCI QUARTERLY
Solution by Paul S. Bruckman, Nanaimo, BC V9R 0B8, Canada.
From q
m
= a
m
q
m1
+ q
m2
, m 2, along with
q
1
q
0
= a
1
, we see that
qn
q
m1
= a
m
+
1/(q
m1
/q
m2
), which implies that
qn
q
m1
= [a
m
, a
m1
, . . . , a
1
]; this is an abbreviation for the
simple continued fraction a
m
+ 1/a
m1
+ + 1/a
1
. Note that a
m
<
qn
q
m1
< 1 + a
m
. Also,
dene r
m
as follows:
r
m
=

m1
k=0
q
k
q
m
.
Then
r
m
=
q
0
q
1

q
1
q
2

q
m1
q
m
+
q
1
q
2

q
2
q
3

q
m1
q
m
+ +
q
m2
q
m1

q
m1
q
m
+
q
m1
q
m
=
1
[a
m
, . . . , a
1
]
_
1 +
1
[a
m1
, . . . , a
1
]
_
1 +
1
[a
m2
, . . . , a
1
]
{1 + }
__
.
From the last expression, we see that r
m
(as a function of the a
k
s) is maximized when all the
a
k
s are equal to one. It is easily veried, however, that in that case, q
m
= F
m+1
, hence,
r
m
=

m1
k=0
F
k+1
F
m+1
=
F
m+2
1
F
m+1
.
Therefore, r
m

F
m+2
1
F
m+1
.
Also solved by Russell J. Hendel,

Angel Plaza and Sergio Falcon (jointly), and
the proposer.
We wish to acknowledge Kenneth B. Davenport for solving problem B-1078.
88 VOLUME 50, NUMBER 1