Geometric

Geometric

Example 2

Write the first four terms of a sequence given that an = 3 · 2n-1 .

Step 1. Find the first term. To find the first term, a1, substitute the term number, n = 1 in the formula and solve.

a1 = 3·21-1

a1 = 3

Step 2. Find the second term. To find the second term, a2, substitute the term number, n = 2 in the formula and solve.

a2 = 3·22-1

a2 = 6

Step 3. Find the third term.

a3 = 3·23-1

a3=12

Step 4. Find the fourth term.

a4 = 3·24-1

a4 = 24

The first four terms of the sequence are 3, 6, 12, and 24.