The Integers

Basic Properties of Integers

Well-Ordering Principle
Every nonempty set S of nonnegative integers contains a least
element; that is, there is some integer a in S such that a ≤ b for all b
belonging to S.

Principle of Mathematical Induction

Let S be a set of positive integers with the properties
( i ) 1 belongs to S, and
( ii ) whenever the integer k is in S, then the next integer k + 1 must
also be in S.
Then S is the set of all positive integers.

Sigma Notation

Let the Greek letter ∑ indicate the “summation of”, thus we can write
n

the sum of the observations as ∑X

i =1
i = x1 + x 2 + .... + x n

The numbers 1 and n are called the lower and upper limits of
summation, respectively.

Some Results on Summation

1. The summation of the sum of variables is the sum of their

summations
n n n

∑ (x
i =1
i + y i ) = ∑ xi + ∑ y i
i =1 i =1

n n n n

∑ (a
i =1
i + bi + ... + z i ) = ∑ ai + ∑ bi + ... + ∑ z i
i =1 i =1 i −1

2. If c is a constant, then
 n n

∑ cx
i =1
i = c ∑ xi
i =1

3. If c is a constant then
n

∑ c = nc
i =1

Product Notation
n
The product x1 x2 x3 ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ xn is ∏x
k =1
k

The symbol is read as “ the product of all the xk as k runs from 1 to

n.”

n
If n is a natural number, then ∏ k =n!
k =1

The Binomial Coefficients

(x + y)1 = 1x + 1y
2
(x + y) = 1x + 2xy + 1y2
2

(x + y)3 = 1x3 + 3 x2 y + 3xy2 + 1y2

(x + y)4 = 1x4 + 4 x3 y + 6x2y2 + 4xy3 + 1y4
If we copy the coefficients, we obtain what is called Pascal’s triangle:

1 1
1 2 1
1 3 3 1
1 4 6 4 1

…….

Definition: If n is a natural number and k is an integer such that 0≤k≤

n, then we define the binomial coefficient as
n n!
 =
 k  k!(n − k )!

Some Properties of Binomial Coefficients:

Let n be a natural number. Let k be an integer such that 0 ≤ k ≤ n.
Then
1. Symmetry Property
n  n 
 = 
k n−k
2. Pascal’s Identity
 n   n   n +1
 +  =  if 1 ≤ k ≤ n
 k −1  k   k 
3. Binomial Theorem
n
n
( x + y) n
= ∑   x n−k y k
k =0  k 
Note:
1. The first term of the expansion is xn .
2. The second term is nx n −1 y .
3. The exponent of x decreases by 1 and the exponent of y
increases by 1 as we move from left to right.
4. There are n+1 terms in the expansion.
th
5. The n , or the next to last, term of the expansion is nxy n −1
th
6. The k term of the expansion (x + y )n is

 n  n−( k −1) k −1
 x y
 k −1
Example:
1. Use the binomial theorem to obtain the expansion of (2a+b)6.
Solution:
Let x = 2a and y = b and n = 6. Then

6 6 6

(2a + b)6=   (2a)6 +   (2a)5 b +   (2a)4 b2
0 1 2
6 6 6
+   (2a)3 b3 +   (2a)2 b4 +   (2a) b5
3 4 5
6
+   b6.
6

= 64a6 + 6(32a5 )b + 15(16a4 )b2 + 20(8a3 )b3

+ 15 (4a2 )b4 + 6 (2a) b5 + b6

= 64a6 + 192a5b + 240a4b2 + 160a3b3 + 60a2b4

+ 12ab5 + b6

2. Find the fourth term in the expansion of (2a – b)9.

Solution:
Given: k = 4 x = 2a y = -b n=9
9
Fourth term:   (2a)6(-b)3 = 84(64a6)(-b)3 = -537a6b3
 3
Exercises:
1. Write the following in summation notation
a. 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + … + n
b. 1 + 3 + 5 + 7 + … + (2n – 1)
c. 3 + 5 + 7 + 9 + … + (2n + 1)
2
d. 1 + 4 + 9 + 16 + … + n
2. Write the product of the first n even natural numbers in
product notation, and then simplify your result.
3. Write the product of the first n odd natural numbers in
product notation, and use factorials to give a formula for
this product.
4. Use mathematical induction to prove the following:
a. The sum of the first n natural numbers is ½ n(n+1).
n
n(n + 1)
∑
i =1
i=
2
2
b. 1 + 3 + 5 + … + (2n-1) = n for all n ≥ 1.
n

∑ (2i − 1) = n
i =1
2

n 2
n( n + 1)(2n + 1)
c. ∑i
i =1
=
6

n
d. ∑ (2i + 1) = n(n + 2) = n
i =1
2
+ 2n
5. Use the binomial theorem to obtain the expansion of the
following:
4
a. (2x + 3y) b. (a + b)7.
6. Find the first three terms of the expansion of the following
binomials:
a. (a + y)33 b. (m –2y)101
7. Find the indicated power of the number and round off to
four decimal places.
5
a. (1 + 0.04) b. 1.054.
8. Find the specified term of the expansion
7
a. fifth term of (x - 2y)
9
b. sixth term of (3x + y)
10 7
c. the term in (x + 2y) that involves x .