find the general term of the following number sequence.
6, 13, 20, 27, ...
MathBot Answer:
$$6,13,20,27,...$$This infinite sequence is an arithmetic sequence. The nth term rule for the sequence is $a_n=7 n - 1$, where $n>0$. The recursive formula is $a_n=a_{n-1} + 7$, where $n>1$ and $a_{1}=6$.
$$\begin{matrix}6&&13&&20&&27\\[6pt]&+7&&+7&&+7\\[6pt]\end{matrix}$$
Explicit Formula
The formula for an arithmetic sequence where $a_1$ is the 1st term, $d$ is the common difference, and $n$ is the term number is $$a_n=a_1 + d (n - 1)$$
Find $a_1$ and $d$: $$\begin{aligned} a_1&=6 \\ d&=7 \end{aligned}$$
The nth term rule is:$$\begin{aligned} a_n&=a_1 + d (n - 1) \\ &=6 + 7 (n - 1) \\ &=7 n - 1 \end{aligned}$$
Recursive Formula
The formula for an arithmetic sequence where $a_{n-1}$ is the (n-1)th term, $d$ is the common difference, and $n>1$ is $$a_n=a_{n-1} + d$$
Find $d$: $$\begin{aligned} d=7 \end{aligned}$$
The nth term rule is:$$\begin{aligned} a_n&=a_{n-1} + d \\ &=a_{n-1} + 7 \\ &=a_{n-1} + 7 \end{aligned}$$