1 Sequences - Examples

1. Prove the following sequences are fundamental sequences

a) r
n
=
n

k=1
1
/
2
for all : _ 1
b) r
n
=
n

k=1
cos(2/ + 1)
/
2
for all : _ 1
Then approximate their limit "1" by 2 exact digits.
Actually nd a rank : such that
[1 r
n
[ <
1
10
2
Proof. a) Use the "fundamental" test
[r
n+p
r
n
[ =

n+p

k=1
1
/
2

n

k=1
1
/
2

=
=

k=n+1
1
/
2

=
p

k=n+1
1
/
2
_
_
p

k=n+1
1
/(/ 1)
=
p

k=n+1
_
1
(/ 1)

1
/
_
=
=
1
:

1
: + 1
+
1
: + 1

1
: + 2
+ ... +
1
: + j 1

1
: + j
=
=
1
:

1
: + j
_
1
:

n!1
0 , for all j _ 1
Therefore the sequence is a fundamental sequence. Consequently it is convergent and has a (unique) limit, say
1 = lim
n!1
r
n
Next, consider the inequality we just proved
[r
n+p
r
n
[ _
1
:
, for all j _ 1
and take the limit as j . We get
lim
n!1
[r
n+p
r
n
[ _
1
:
=

lim
n!1
r
n+p
r
n

_
1
:
=
= [1 r
n
[ _
1
:
for all : _ 1
To approximate 1 by 2 exact digits we need : such that
[1 r
n
[ _
1
:
<
1
10
2
It is clear that for any : _ 101 we get the above inequality.
Now you can write a simple computer program to perform the computation
r
101
=
101

k=1
1
/
2
and get the corresponding approximation of the limit 1.
1
Comment. It is possible to compute exactly the limit 1 , using Fourier series, namely
1 = lim
n!1
r
n
= lim
n!1
n

k=1
1
/
2
=
1

n=1
1
:
2
=

6
b) Use precisely the same technique
[r
n+p
r
n
[ =

n+p

k=1
cos(2/ + 1)
/
2

n

k=1
cos(2/ + 1)
/
2

=
=

k=n+1
cos(2/ + 1)
/
2

_
p

k=n+1
[cos(2/ + 1)[
/
2
_
p

k=n+1
1
/
2
_
_
p

k=n+1
1
/(/ 1)
=
p

k=n+1
_
1
(/ 1)

1
/
_
=
=
1
:

1
: + 1
+
1
: + 1

1
: + 2
+ ... +
1
: + j 1

1
: + j
=
=
1
:

1
: + j
_
1
:

n!1
0 , for all j _ 1
Therefore the sequence is a fundamental sequence. Consequently it is convergent and has a (unique) limit, say
1 = lim
n!1
r
n
Next, consider the inequality
[r
n+p
r
n
[ _
1
:
, for all j _ 1
and take the limit as j . We get
lim
n!1
[r
n+p
r
n
[ _
1
:
=

lim
n!1
r
n+p
r
n

_
1
:
=
= [1 r
n
[ _
1
:
for all : _ 1
To approximate 1 by 2 exact digits we need : such that
[1 r
n
[ _
1
:
<
1
10
2
It is clear that for any : _ 101 we get the above inequality.
You can write a simple computer program to perform the computation
r
101
=
101

k=1
cos(2/ + 1)
/
2
and get the corresponding approximation of the limit 1.

Remark. The same technique works for any sequence (a

n
)
n
r
n
=
n

k=1
cos(a
n
)
/
2
for all : _ 1
or for any bounded sequence (/
n
)
n
, that is [/
n
[ _ ' for all : _ 1
r
n
=
n

k=1
/
n
/
2
for all : _ 1
2
2. Find the values of r R for which the sequence r
n
, : _ 1 is convergent.
Proof. It is easy to see that
for r = 0 we get 0
n
= 0 , a constant sequence, thus convergent to 0
for r = 1 we get 1
n
= 1 , a constant sequence, thus convergent to 1
for [r[ < 1 we get r
n

n!1
0
for r 1 we get r
n

n!1
+
for r = 1 we get (1)
n
, which is a divergent sequence
for r < we get also a divergent sequence
We summarize these results as
lim
n!1
r
n
=
_
_
_
0 , for [r[ < 1
1 , for r = 1
divergent otherwise

We may apply this to the sequence

:
n
= 1 + r + r
2
+ ... + r
n
=
1 r
n+1
1 r
for r ,= 1
to see that (:
n
)
n
is convergent only for [r[ < 1 and
lim
n!1
:
n
= lim
n!1
(1 + r + r
2
+ ... + r
n
) = lim
n!1
1 r
n+1
1 r
=
1
1 r
Clearly the sequence (:
n
)
n
is divergent for [r[ _ 1 , since
for r = 1 we have :
n
= 1 + 1 + 1
2
+ ... + 1
n
= : + 1
as for other values of r we have
:
n
=
1 r
n+1
1 r
=
1
1 r

r
n+1
1 r
from which it should be clear that (:
n
)
n
is convergent (divergent) if and only if (r
n+1
)
n
is convergent (divergent).

3. Use contraction principle to approximate the solution of the equation

r
3
+ 4r 1 = 0
Proof.
Step 1. Find out the number of real roots for the equation.
Let /(r) = r
3
+ 4r 1 , then /
0
(r) = 3r
2
+ 4 _ 4 0 . Consequently / is strictly increasing and since
/(0) = 1 < 0 , /(1) = 4 0 the equation has a unique real root, say j, and moreover j (0, 1).
Step2. This is the hardest part, to rewrite (equivalently) the equation as
)(r) = r
such that ) is a contraction on some interval [c, ,] (0, 1).
There is no "standard" procedure how to get such a contraction. Just try dierent possiblities and see which is
working.
NOTE. This is supposed to be a "school" problem, that is, there should be a solution.
In general, for an arbitrary equation, it could be impossible to apply the contraction principle, no matter how
hard we try.
Let us try
r
3
+ 4r 1 = 0 = r =
1 r
3
4
def
= )(r)
We get
)
0
(r) =
3
4
r
2
, and so [)
0
(r)[ =

3
4
r
2

=
3
4
r
2
_
3
4
< 1
3
for all r [0, 1], which shows that ) is a contraction on the interval [0, 1] and
3
4
is a contraction constant.
Now nd the values of ) on the interval [0, 1]. Since the rst derivative is negative, the function ) is strictly
decreasing and so
0 _ r _ 1 = )(0) _ )(r) _ )(1) = 1 _ )(r) _ 0
Therefore
) ([0, 1]) = [0, 1]
Finally we were "lucky", the choice we made satises all requirements in the contraction principle. So for any
choice of r
0
[0, 1] , the corresponding sequence dened as
r
n+1
= )(r
n
) =
1 r
3
n
4
is convergent to the unique root j (0, 1) , to be more precise we have
[r
n
j[ _
_
3
4
_
n
[r
0
r
1
[
1
3
4
So by choosing r
0
= 0 we get r
1
= 1,4 and

1 r
3
n1
4
j

_
_
3
4
_
n
[1,4[
1
3
4
=
_
3
4
_
n
To approximate j by 2 exact digits, just let

1 r
3
n1
4
j

_
_
3
4
_
n
<
1
10
2
Then write a computer program to nd the rst rank : _ 1 for which the previous inequality holds and compute
the corresponding term r
n
.
Remark. It is clear that we are interested to get a contraction constant as small as possible, in order to speed
up the approximation process. But for a "school" problem, or exam problem, any constant C < 1 is good enough.

2 Series - Examples
1. Use the necessary test for

n1
:
: + 1
Proof. Just compute the limit
lim
n!1
:
: + 1
= lim
n!1
:
:(1 +
1
n
)
= 1 ,= 0
and by necessary test it follows the series is divergent.

4
2. Find the values of r R for which the series is convergent. Then compute the sum of the series when it is
convergent.

n0
r
n
Proof. Use the necessary test. Since lim
n!1
r
n
= 0 only for [r[ < 1 , the series is divergent for [r[ _ 1. For [r[ < 1
, we may actually compute the partial sums
:
n
(r) =
n

n=0
r
n
= 1 + r + r
2
+ ... + r
n
=
1 r
n+1
1 r
and the corresponding limit
lim
n!1
:
n
(r) = lim
n!1
1 r
n+1
1 r
=
1
1 r
Therefore the series is convergent only for [r[ < 1 and the sum of the series is
:(r) =
1
1 r

3. Use the integral test to nd the values of c R for which the "harmonic" series are convergent.

n1
1
:

Proof. Use the necessary test to see that for c _ 0 the limit lim
n!1
1
n

,= 0 , and consequently the series is

divergent.
Now for c 0. Clearly the function )(r) =
1
x

is decreasing on [1, +) and ) : [1, +) [1, +). So, we

may apply the integral test. All we need is just compute the limit.
Case i) for c = 1 we have
lim
c!1
_
_
c
_
1
1
r
dr
_
_
= lim
c!1
[ lnr[
x=c
x=1
] = lim
c!1
[lnc ln1] = +
Consequently, by integral test the series is divergent.
Case ii) for c 1 we have ( c 1 0 ) and
lim
c!1
_
_
c
_
1
1
r

dr
_
_
= lim
c!1
_
_
c
_
1
r

dr
_
_
= lim
c!1
_
r
+1
c + 1

x=c
x=1
_
=
= lim
c!1
_
c
+1
c + 1

1
+1
c + 1
_
=
1
c + 1
lim
c!1
_
1
c
1
1
_
=
1
c 1
Consequently, by integral test the series is convergent.
Case iii) for c < 1 we have ( 1 c 0 ) and
lim
c!1
_
_
c
_
1
1
r

dr
_
_
= lim
c!1
_
_
c
_
1
r

dr
_
_
= lim
c!1
_
r
+1
c + 1

x=c
x=1
_
=
= lim
c!1
_
c
+1
c + 1

1
+1
c + 1
_
=
1
c + 1
lim
c!1
_
c
1
1

= +
Consequently by integral test the series is divergent.
We summarize these result as
The "harmonic" series

n1
1
:

is
_
convergent for c 1
divergent for c _ 1
5

4. Use a comparison test for the series

a)

n1
sin

:
b)

n1
(
1
:
sin
1
:
)
Proof. It seems that the inequality comparison test should be easy to use. In fact it is not so easy. We need
to know many inequalities, then combine them to get something suitable for any particular case, and there is no
"standard" way how to do that.
On the other hand, it is a bit easier to compute a limit (for which there are "standard" techniques, like lHospital
rule). The question is once we consider a series, what is the best choice for another series to compare to ?
Again, there is no "standard" choice. However, in many cases it works if we compare to harmonic series

n1
1
n

. Procced as follows
a)

n1
sin

n
lim
n!1
sin

n
1
n

(A bit of practice could tell you that c = 1 is the right choice.)

Let
1
n
= r and r 0 as : , so we get the limit
lim
x&0
sin(r)
r

which is a "
0
0
" case
take derivatives
lim
x&0
(sin(r))
0
(r

)
0
= lim
x&0
cos(r)
cr
1
=
_
_
_
for c = 1
0 for c < 1
"innity" for c 1 , actually @lim
Consequently for c = 1 ,
lim
n!1
sin

n
1
n
=
and by limit comparison test the series

n1
sin

n
and

n1
1
n
have the same nature. Since

n1
1
n
is divergent,
it follows that

n1
sin

n
is also divergent.
b)
lim
n!1
1
n
sin
1
n
1
n

Just as before, let

1
n
= r and r 0 as : , so we get the limit
lim
x&0
r sinr
r

, a "
0
0
" case
Take derivatives
lim
x&0
(r sinr)
0
(r

)
0
= lim
x&0
1 cos r
cr
1
we need c 1 to hope for a nonzero limit, so take again derivatives
lim
x&0
(1 cos r)
0
(cr
1
)
0
= lim
x&0
sinr
c(c 1)r
2
for =3
=
1
3 2
=
1
6
Now it should be clear that we get a nonzero limit only for c 2 = 1 , that is c = 3.
So for c = 3 we have
lim
n!1
1
n
sin
1
n
1
n
3
=
1
6
,= 0
and by limit comparison test, the series

n1
(
1
n
sin
1
n
) and

n1
1
n
3
have the same nature, that is convergent ,
since the harmonic series

n1
1
n
3
is convergent.
6

5. Use the integral test for

n2
1
:ln:
Proof. Consider the function : [2, +) (0, +) dened by
)(r) =
1
rlnr
It is easy to see this function is decreasing on [2, +) , just take its derivative
)
0
(r) =
_
1
rlnr
_
0
=
lnr + r
1
x
r
2
(lnr)
2
=
lnr + 1
r
2
(lnr)
2
< 0
Then compute the limit
lim
c!+1
c
_
2
1
rlnr
dr = lim
c!+1
[ ln(lnr)[
x=c
x=2
] =
= lim
c!+1
[lnc (ln2)] = +
and since the limit is innite, by integral test the series

n2
1
nln n
is divergent.

6. Use ratio test for

a)

n1
:
2
n
Proof. In this particular case we have "a
n
" =
n
2
n
, therefore
lim
n!1
a
n+1
a
n
= lim
n!1
n+1
2
n+1
n
2
n
= lim
n!1
: + 1
2
n+1

2
n
:
= lim
n!1
1
2

: + 1
:
=
1
2
< 1
Therefore by ratio test the series

n1
n
2
n
is convegrent.

7. Use root test for

a)

n1
_
:
2: + 1
_
n
Proof. In this particular case we have "a
n
" =
_
n
2n+1
_
n
, therefore
lim
n!1
n
_
a
n
= lim
n!1
n
_
_
:
2: + 1
_
n
= lim
n!1
:
2: + 1
= lim
n!1
:
:(2 +
1
n
)
=
1
2
< 1
Therefore by root test the series

n1
_
n
2n+1
_
n
is convergent.
8. Use Leibniz test for
a)

n1
(1)
n
_
:
Proof. Clearly
1
p
n
0 , that is the sequence is decreasing and the limit is zero. Then by Leibnizs test the
series

n1
(1)
n
p
n
is convergent.

9. Compute the sum of the series :

1

n=1
1
(: + 1)(: + 2)
7
Proof. These are very special examples. The technique we use does not apply to other series.
Simple computation shows that
1
(: + 1)(: + 2)
=
1
(: + 1)

1
(: + 2)
consequently we may actually compute the partial sums
:
n
=
n

k=1
1
(/ + 1)(/ + 2)
=
n

k=1
1
(/ + 1)

1
(/ + 2)
=
=
1
2

1
3
+
1
3

1
4
+ ... +
1
: + 1

1
: + 2
=
1
2

1
: + 2
and then
lim
n!1
:
n
= lim
n!1
_
1
2

1
: + 2
_
=
1
2
Which proves the series is convergent and its sum is
1
2
.

10. Compute the sum of the series

1

n=1
n(n+1)
n!
knowing that c =
1

n=0
1
n!
.
Proof. Simple computation shows that
n

k=1
/(/ + 1)
/!
= 2 +
n

k=2
/(/ + 1)
/!
= 2 +
n

k=2
/ + 1
(/ 1)!
=
let / 1 = j
= 2 +
n1

k=1
j + 2
j!
= 2 +
n1

k=1
j
j!
+
n1

k=1
2
j!
=
= 2 +
n1

k=1
1
(j 1)!
+ 2
n1

k=1
1
j!
= 2 +
n2

k=0
1
j!
+ 2
n1

k=1
1
j!
Then take the limit as j and since
1

n=0
1
:!
= lim
p!1
n

p=0
1
j!
= c
we get
1

n=1
:(: + 1)
:!
= lim
p!1
n

k=1
/(/ + 1)
/!
= lim
p!1
_
2 +
n2

k=0
1
j!
+ 2
n1

k=1
1
j!
_
=
= 2 + c + 2(c 1) = 3c

11. Knowing that

1

n=1
1
n
2
=

2
6
nd the sum of the series

n1
1
n
2
(n+1)
2
.
Proof. Notice that
1
:
2
(: + 1)
2
=
_
1
:(: + 1)
_
2
=
_
1
:

1
: + 1
_
2
=
=
1
:
2
2
1
:(: + 1)
+
1
(: + 1)
2
=
=
1
:
2
2
_
1
:

1
: + 1
_
+
1
(: + 1)
2
8
Therefore the partial sums are
:
n
=
n

k=1
1
/
2
(/ + 1)
2
=
n

k=1
1
/
2
2
n

k=1
_
1
/

1
/ + 1
_
+
n

k=1
1
(/ + 1)
2
=
=
n

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

k=2
1
/
2
Now tale the limit as : and remember that
1

n=1
1
n
2
=

2
6
1

n=1
1
:
2
(: + 1)
2
= lim
n!1
n

k=1
1
:
2
(: + 1)
2
=
= lim
n!1
_
n

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

k=2
1
/
2
_
=

2
6
2 +

2
6
1 =

2
3
2