DISCRETE FUNCTIONS /26

Overall Expectations
● Demonstrate an understanding of recursive sequences, represent recursive sequences in a variety of ways,
and make connections to Pascal’s triangle;
● Demonstrate an understanding of the relationships involved in arithmetic and geometric sequences and series,
and solve related problems;
● Make connections between sequences, series, and financial applications, and solve problems involving
compound interest and ordinary annuities.

Pascal’s Triangle and Recursion

Below are the first 6 rows of Pascal’s Triangle. Each number is the sum of the two numbers
directly above it. This is a process called recursion, where previous objects are used to create
new ones. Recursion is an important tool used by many mathematicians and programmers to
solve problems.

Question 1 Fill in the next row of Pascal’s Triangle. [1]

1 6 15 20 15 6 1
Recursive Sequences
Recursion is also often found in sequences. A sequence is a list of numbers that often follow a
pattern. Each number in the sequence is called a term. A very famous example is the Fibonacci
sequence, which starts with two 1’s, and then each term in the sequence is the sum of the
previous two terms.
1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21,...
We use � to represent the nth term of the sequence. For example, would be the first term, would
��1 �2 be the second term, and so on. We can use this notation to create a
recursive formula.
 �3 = �1 + �2, �4 = �2 + �3, �5 = �3 + �4, ....

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General Formula: �� = ��−2 + ��−1

Question 2 Write the recursive formula and determine the next three terms for each of the following
sequences. [4]

17 20 2381 -243 729

a) 2, 5, 8, 11, 14,___, ___, ___ b) 1, − 3, 9, − 27,___, ___, ___

t₂ = t₁ + 3 t₂ = (t₁)(-3)
Formula: ___________ Formula: ___________

Arithmetic Sequences
When each term in a sequence is created by adding the same amount to the previous term, we call
this an arithmetic sequence, and what you add to each term is called the common difference. The
recursive formula for arithmetic sequences is � , where d is the common difference. We � = ��−1 +
� do not always have knowledge of the previous terms, but if we know that the sequence is
arithmetic,
we can use a different general formula.
�� = � + (� − 1)�

�- the first term �- the term number �- the common difference

Example Find the general formula for the sequence 4, 10, 16, 22, 28,...Then determine the 100th
term.
Solution
The first term is 4, and the common difference is 6, so the general formula would
be �� = 4 + (� − 1)6

To find the 100th term, we plug in � = 100.

�100 = 4 + (100 − 1)6 = 4 + (99)(6) = 4 + 594 = 598

Question 3 Find the general formula for the following sequences. Then determine the 100th term. [4]
a) 2, 9, 16, 23, 30,... b) 10, 2, − 6, − 14, − 22,...

�� = 2 + (� − 1)7 = 2 + (100 − 1)7

= 10 + (100 − 1)-8
= 2 + (99)(7)�� = 10 + (� − 1)-8
Formula: ___________ Formula: ___________ = 10 + (-792)

= 2 + (99)(7)

= 2 + 693 695-782� = ___________ 100 � = ___________ 100

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Geometric Sequences
When each term in a sequence is created by multiplying the previous term by the same amount, we
call this a geometric sequence, and what you multiply each term by is called the common ratio. The
recursive formula for arithmetic sequences is � , where r is the common ratio. We do not � = ���−1
always have knowledge of the previous terms, but if we know that the sequence is geometric, we
can use a different general formula.
�� = ���−1

�- the first term �- the term number �- the common ratio

Example Find the general formula for the sequence 2, 8, 32, 128, 512,...Then determine the 100th
term.
Solution
The first term is 2, and we can find the common ratio by dividing any term by the previous term. 8
divided by 2 is 4, and if we check with any of the other terms, we will also find a ratio of 4.
Therefore the general formula would be

�� = 2(4)�−1
To find the 100th term, we plug in � = 100.

�100 = 2(4)100−1 = 2(4)99 = 8 × 1059

Geometric sequences grow much faster than arithmetic sequences which is why this number is
so massive.

Question 4 Find the general formula for the following sequences. Then determine the 10th term. [4]
c) 2, 6, 18, 54, 162,... d) − 1, 5, − 25, 125, − 625,...

�� = 2(3)^�−1 = 2(3)^10−1
= 2(3)^9�� = -1(-5)^�−1 = -1(-5)^10−1Formula: ___________ Formula:

___________

39366= -1(-5)^91953125
� = ___________ 10 � = ___________ 10

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Question 5 A chain email is sent to 6 people. Each of these 6 people forward this email to another 6
people. How many emails will be sent out in the 5th round of emails? [2]

Arithmetic and Geometric Series

Series and sequences are very closely related, but there is a big difference. A sequence is an
ordered list of numbers. A series is when you add the terms of a sequence together. The formulas
we used previously still apply but now we also have formulas to find the sum of a series for a certain
number of terms.
General Term Sum

Arithmetic = � + (� − 1)�
�� �� = �2 [2� + (� − 1)�]

Geometric �� = ���−1�� = �(��−1)

�−1

Example Find the sum of the first 20 terms of the arithmetic series 7, 13, 19, 25,...
Solution

The first term (a) is 7, and the difference (d) between each term is 6. We are looking for the sum of
the first 20 terms, so n=20.

�� = �2 [2� + (� − 1)�]

�20 = 202 [2(7) + (20 − 1)(6)] = 10[14 + (19)(6)] = 10[14 + 114] = 10(128) = 1280
Therefore the sum of the first 20 terms is 1280.

Question 6 Find the sum of the first 8 terms of the geometric series 3, 12, 48, 192,... [2]
�₈=
3(4^10-1)/4-1 =
3(1048575)/3 =
3145725/3
=1048575

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Example A bouncy ball bounces to 70% of its height when dropped on a hard surface. Suppose the
ball is dropped from 20m. What is the total distance travelled by the ball after 10 bounces. Solution

Because the ball is bouncing to 70% of the height after every bounce, this is a geometric series with
a common ratio (r) of 0.7. The first term (a) is 20m and we are looking for the sum of the first 10
terms (n=10). However, the ball goes up and down on each bounce after the first 20m drop, and the
sum only counts one distance per bounce. This means the sum only finds the distance that includes
the first 20m drop, and one of each of the subsequent bounces.
�� = �(��−1)
�−1

�10=20(0.710−1)
20(−0.97)
0.7−1=

−0.3= 64. 8
This is 20m more than half the distance, so we subtract 20 from this total to get 44.8m. This means
that after the first drop, the ball travels 89.6m. Adding back the 20m means that the ball travels a
total distance of 109.6m.

Question 7 On his 12th birthday, Marvin’s grandparents deposited $25 into a savings account for
him. Each month after that up to and including his 20th birthday, they deposit $10 more than the
previous month. How much money will Marvin have on his 20th birthday, excluding interest? [3]
��= �/2 [2�+(�−1)�] = 48000
�96= 96/2 [2(25)+(96−1)10]
Simple and Compound Interest
= 48 [50 + (95)10]
Marvin will have $48000 on his 20th
= 48 [50 + 950]
birthday.
8 years = 96 months

= 48(1000)

A lot of concepts in the field of finance utilize series and sequences, specifically when calculating
interest earned when you are investing or borrowing money. There are two types of interest,
simple and compound.Simple interest is always calculated based on the principal, or initial
amount, while compound interest is recalculated based on the most recent amount.
Simple Interest �������� = ���

Compound Interest
����� ������ = �(1 + �)�

�- Principal Amount, �- Annual Interest rate, �- Number of years,

�- Compounding Interest Rate, �- Number of Compounding Periods

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Example Steve deposits $835 into an account that earns 8% per year. Determine the amount in the
account after 5 years if the interest is:
a) Simple Interest
b) Compounded Semi-annually

a) Simple Interest
Solution
The interest rate is 8% so r is 0.08. The principal amount is $835 and t is 5.
� = ��� = (835)(0. 08)(5) = 334
This is just the interest, so to find the total amount in the account, we add the interest to the
principal amount.
� = � + � = 835 + 334 = 1169
Therefore there would be $1169 in the account after 5 years.
 b) Compounded Semi-annually
Solution
The interest rate is 8% and the compounding frequency is semi-annual, meaning twice a year. We
divide the interest rate by 2 to determine the compounding interest rate, so� is 0.04. In 5 years,
there would be 10 compounding periods (n=10).
����� ������ = �(1 + �)� = 835(1 + 0. 04)10 = 1236
Unlike simple interest, this is the total amount that is in the account, therefore there would be
$1236 in the account after 5 years.

Question 8 Ryder deposits $500 into an account that earns 4.5% per year. Determine the amount
in the account after 5 years if the interest is:
a) Simple Interest [1] b) Compounded Monthly [3] a)
Prt = (500)(0.045)(5)
� = � + � = 500 + 112.5 = 612.5

b)
����� ������ = �(1 + �)� = 500(1 + 0. 045)^10 = $776.49

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Annuities
In the previous examples regarding interest, the amount of money came only from the principal
amount and the interest earned. However, in most cases where money is invested, regular
payments are made. An annuity is when a sum of money is paid as a series of regular payments.
The amount of an annuity can be calculated using the formula
� = �[(1+�)�−1]
�
where R are the regular payments.

Example At the end of every month, Sydney deposits $100 in an account that pays 6% per year,
compounded monthly. She does this for 3 years. Determine the amount in the account after 3
years. Solution

The regular payments, R, are 100. It is compounded monthly, so we divide the interest rate 0.06
by 12 to get a compounding interest,�, of 0.005. In three years there will be 36 compounding
periods (n=36).
� = �[(1+�)�−1]
100[(1+0.005)36
�= −1]
100(0.1967)
0.005 =

0.005 = 3933. 61

Therefore there would be $3933.61 in the account after 3 years.

Question 9 Marvin wants to save up for college so he deposits $50 every month in an account that
pays 8% per year, compounded monthly. If Marvin starts depositing on his 15th birthday, how much
will we have on his 18th birthday? [2]

� = �[(1+�)�−1]/i
= 50[(1+0.008)^36−1]/0.008
= 50(1.33222983678)/0.008
= $8326.44

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