2022 AMC 10B Problems/Problem 15
Contents
[hide]Problem
Let be the sum of the first term of an arithmetic sequence that has a common difference of . The quotient does not depend on . What is ?
Solution 1
Suppose that the first number of the arithmetic sequence is . We will try to compute the value of . First, note that the sum of an arithmetic sequence is equal to the number of terms multiplied by the median of the sequence. The median of this sequence is equal to . Thus, the value of is . Then, Of course, for this value to be constant, must be for all values of , and thus . Finally, we have .
~mathboy100
Solution 2
Let's say that our sequence is Then, since the value of n doesn't matter in the quotient , we can say that Simplifying, we get , from which Solving for , we get that . Now, we proceed similar to Solution 1 and get that .
Solution 3 (Quick Insight)
Recall that the sum of the first odd numbers is .
Since , we have .
~numerophile
Video Solution 1
~Education, the Study of Everything
See Also
2022 AMC 10B (Problems • Answer Key • Resources) | ||
Preceded by Problem 14 |
Followed by Problem 16 | |
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