Chapter 8 – Sequences and Series

Chapter 8 gives a brief introduction to sequences and series. Sigma Notation is introduced, as well as Arithmetic and Geometric Sequences. Connections are made between arithmetic sequences and equations of lines and the explicit formula for an arithmetic sequence is given as [latex]a_n = d(n) + a_0[/latex]. This differs from others formulation of [latex]a_n = a_1 + d(n-1)[/latex] as the former more closely matches the slope-intercept form of a line [latex]y=mx+b[/latex]. Similarly, a connection is built between geometric sequences and exponential functions. Standard techniques to find the sum of arithmetic and geometric series are also discussed.