The sum of the 2nd and the 7th terms of an AP is 30. If its 15th term is 1 less than twice its 8th term, find the AP.
Question:
The sum of the 2nd and the 7th terms of an AP is 30. If its 15th term is 1 less than twice its 8th term, find the AP.
Solution:
Let a be the first term and d be the common difference of the AP. Then,
$a_{2}+a_{7}=30$ (Given)
$\therefore(a+d)+(a+6 d)=30 \quad\left[a_{n}=a+(n-1) d\right]$
$\Rightarrow 2 a+7 d=30 \quad \ldots$ (1)
Also,
$a_{15}=2 a_{8}-1$ (Given)
$\Rightarrow a+14 d=2(a+7 d)-1$
$\Rightarrow a+14 d=2 a+14 d-1$
$\Rightarrow-a=-1$
$\Rightarrow a=1$
Putting a = 1 in (1), we get
$2 \times 1+7 d=30$
$\Rightarrow 7 d=30-2=28$
$\Rightarrow d=4$
So,
$a_{2}=a+d=1+4=5$
$a_{3}=a+2 d=1+2 \times 4=9$
Hence, the AP is 1, 5, 9, 13,...