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    Sum 1

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    Akshay Bondade
    This document discusses which positive integers can be expressed as the sum of consecutive positive integers or consecutive odd positive integers. It is shown that a positive integer K can be expressed as a sum of consecutive positive integers if and only if K is not a power of 2. It is also shown that a positive integer n can be expressed as the sum of consecutive odd positive integers if and only if n is an odd composite number or divisible by 4. Examples are provided to illustrate the concepts.

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    Sum 1

    Uploaded by

    Akshay Bondade
    55 views3 pages
    This document discusses which positive integers can be expressed as the sum of consecutive positive integers or consecutive odd positive integers. It is shown that a positive integer K can be expressed as a sum of consecutive positive integers if and only if K is not a power of 2. It is also shown that a positive integer n can be expressed as the sum of consecutive odd positive integers if and only if n is an odd composite number or divisible by 4. Examples are provided to illustrate the concepts.

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    This document discusses which positive integers can be expressed as the sum of consecutive positive integers or consecutive odd positive integers. It is shown that a positive integer K can be expressed as a sum of consecutive positive integers if and only if K is not a power of 2. It is also shown that a positive integer n can be expressed as the sum of consecutive odd positive integers if and only if n is an odd composite number or divisible by 4. Examples are provided to illustrate the concepts.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    55 views3 pages

    Sum 1

    Uploaded by

    Akshay Bondade
    This document discusses which positive integers can be expressed as the sum of consecutive positive integers or consecutive odd positive integers. It is shown that a positive integer K can be expressed as a sum of consecutive positive integers if and only if K is not a power of 2. It is also shown that a positive integer n can be expressed as the sum of consecutive odd positive integers if and only if n is an odd composite number or divisible by 4. Examples are provided to illustrate the concepts.

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    Sum of consecutive positive integers

    Question 1: Which integer can be expressed as a sum of (more than 1) positive integers?
    Question 2: How to find out all the possible sums in Question 1?

    1. First, by direct computation:

    1 =? 11 =5+6
    2 =? 12 =3+4+5
    3 =1+2 13 =6+7
    4 =? 14 =2+3+4+5
    5 =2+3 15 =1+2+3+4+5=4+5+6=7+8
    6 =1+2+3 16 =?
    7 =3+4 17 =8+9
    8 =? 18 =3+4+5+6
    9 =4+5 19 = 9 + 10
    10 =1+2+3+4 20 =2+3+4+5+6
    It is easy to show that 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 can not be expressed as a sum of (more than 1) positive integers.
    This leads to the following conjecture : An integer K can be expressed as a sum of (more than 1)
    consecutive positive integers ⇔ K 6= 2m , where m is an integer. This conjecture can be proven
    from the following:

    2. Suppose a positive integer K = 2r s, where s ≥ 1 is odd and n > 1. Then K can be expressed as a
    sum of n consecutive positive integers iff
    1. n|2K

    2. 2K > n(n − 1)

    3. if n is even, then n = 2r+1 t for some t|s


    1
    Proof: If K = a + (a + 1) + · + (a + (n − 1)), then K = n(a + (a + (n − 1)))
    2
    1
    1. K = n(2a + (n − 1)) ⇒ n(2a + (n − 1)) = 2K ⇒ n|2K
    2

    2. 2K = n(2a + (n − 1)) > n(n − 1)

    2K 2r+1 s
    3. if n is even, then = 2a + n − 1 is odd ⇒ is odd ⇒ n = 2r+1 t for some t|s
    n n
    µ ¶
    1 2K
    Conversely, if conditions 1, 2, and 3 are satisfied, then we can choose a = − (n − 1) .
    2 n
    Condition 2 guarantees that a > 0. Conditions 1 and 3 guarantee that a is an integer.
    3. An integer K can be expressed as a sum of (more than 1) consecutive positive integers ⇔ K 6= 2m ,
    where m is an integer.
    Proof Suppose a positive integer K = 2m , where m is an integer and n > 1. If K can be expressed
    as a sum of n consecutive positive integers, conditions 1 and 3 in the previous result imply that
    n = 2m+1 ⇒ n(n − 1) = 2m+1 (2m+1 − 1) = 2K(2K − 1) ≥ 2K ⇒ condition 2 cannot be satisfied.
    Therefore, integers of the form K = 2m cannot be expressed as a sum of consecutive positive
    integers.
    Conversely, suppose K 6= 2m . Then K = 2r s, where r ≥ 0 and s > 1 is odd. We only need to
    consider the following 2 cases:

    1. s > 2r+1 − 1 ⇒ n = 2r+1 satisfies conditions 1, 2 and 3. In this case,


    s − (2r+1 − 1) s − (2r − 3) s−1 s+1 s + (2r+1 − 1)
    K= + + ··· + + + ··· +
    2 µ r+1 2 ¶ 2 2 2
    2 −1+1 r+1
    because RHS has 2 =2 terms, and first term + last term = s.
    2
    2r+1 s
    Therefore, RHS = =K
    r+1
    2
    2. s < 2µ + 1 ⇒ n¶= sµ satisfies conditions
    ¶ 1, 2 and 3.
    µ In this case,

    r s−1 r s−3 r r s−1
    K= 2 − + 2 − + ··· + 2 + ··· 2 +
    2 µ ¶ 2 2
    s−1
    because RHS has 2 + 1 = s terms, and first term + last term = 2r+1 .
    2
    s2r+1
    Therefore, RHS = =K
    2
    4. Example:
    9−7 9+7
    1 K = 36 = 22 9, 9 > 22+1 − 1 = 7, = 1, =8
    2 2
    ⇒ 36 = 1 + 2 + 3 + · · · + 8

    3−1 3−1
    2 K = 48 = 24 3, 3 < 22+1 + 1 = 9, 24 − = 15, 24 + = 17
    2 2
    ⇒ 48 = 15 + 16 + 17

    3. K = 60, n satisfies conditions 1, 2 and 3 in 2 ⇔ n = 3, 5, 8 which correspond to


    60 = 19+20+21 = 10+11+12+13+14 = 4+5+6+7+8+9+10+11
    5. The above problem can be rephrased as follows: Which number can be written as the sum of
    consecutive terms from the sequence

    1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, · · ·

    Replacing the above sequence by a different one, we get a different problem. For example, if we
    replace the sequence with
    1, 3, 5, 7, · · ·
    we have the following

    6. Which number can be written as the sum of consecutive odd positive integers?

    7. Again, we can start with some specific calculation:

    1 =? 11 =? 21 =5+7+9
    2 =? 12 =5+7 22 =?
    3 =? 13 =? 23 =?
    4 =1+3 14 =? 24 = 3 + 5 + 7 + 9 = 11 + 13
    5 =? 15 =3+5+7 25 =1+3+5+7+9
    6 =? 16 =1+3+5+7 26 =?
    7 =? 17 =? 27 = 7 + 9 + 11
    8 =3+5 18 =? 28 = 13 + 15
    9 =1+3+5 19 =? 29 =?
    10 =? 20 = 9 + 11 30 =?

    8. A positive integer n can be written as the sum of consecutive odd positive integers iff n is an odd
    composite number or 4|n.

    Proof: ” ⇒ ” Suppose n = (2x + 1) + (2x + 3) + · · · + (2y − 1), where y > x + 1. Then


    n = y 2 − x2 = (y + x)(y − x). If x and y are of the same parity, then both (y + x) and y − x are
    even and 4|n. If x and y are of different parities, then n is odd and composite.
    ” ⇐ ” If n is an odd composite number or 4|n, then we can write n = pq, where p ≥ q > 1 and p,
    p+q p−q
    q are of the same parity. Therefore, putting y = and x = ,we have y − x = q > 1 and
    2 2
    n = (y + x)(y − x) = y 2 − x2 = (2x + 1) + (2x + 3) + · · · + (2y − 1).

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