Infinite sequence
An infinite sequence is a list or string of discrete objects,
usually numbers, that can be paired off one-to-one with
the set of positive integer s {1, 2, 3, ...}. Examples of
infinite sequences are N = (0, 1, 2, 3, ...) and S = (1, 1/2,
1/4, 1/8, ..., 1/2 n , ...). The fact that a sequence is infinite is
indicated by three dots following the last listed member. An
infinite series is the sum of the values in an infinite
sequence of numbers. In the above examples, the sum of
the numbers in N is the series n = 0 + 1 + 2 + 3 + ..., which
is is undefined. But the sum of the numbers in S is the
series s = 1 + 1/2 + 1/4 + 1/8 + ... + 1/2 n + ..., which is
defined and equal to 2. When the sum of an infinite series
is finite and definable, then that series and its
corresponding seqeuence converge. Otherwise, the series
and its corresponding sequence diverge.
Infinite sequences and series are important in physics and
engineering. One of the most well-known is the Fourier
series , which can mathematically define certain
signal waveform s. Non-mathematicians often use the
term series when they mean sequence. Technically, a
series is always the sum of the numbers in a specific
sequence. An infinite series is the sum, if defined, of the
numbers in a specific infinite sequence.
Infinite Concept
The word 'infinite' implies 'endless' or 'without limit.' Some
consider space to be infinite, but we do not really know for
sure. Within mathematics, we can apply this concept to
the system of natural numbers, using the capital N to
represent natural numbers. The ellipsis mark that follows
the number 5 tells us that the numbers continue without
end.
N = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, …}
This is an infinite sequence or a sequence with no end. A
sequence is a progression of numbers with a clear starting
point. The elements of a sequence are not an arbitrary list
of numbers. In other words, they are not listed randomly
but follow a specific order. Often, infinite sequences follow
a specific mathematical pattern so that you can write rules
or formulas to easily find any member of the sequence.
The Nth Term
In an infinite sequence, there is a first term, second term,
and so on. It is common to represent the nth term of a
sequence as a(n). For instance, the first term of a sequence
is a(1), and the 23rd term of a sequence is a(23). The
numbers in parentheses next to the a are usually written
as subscripts.
Other Types of Infinite Sequences
An infinite sequence does not need to be arithmetic or
geometric; however, it usually follows some type of rule or
pattern. Let's look at this infinite sequence:
1, 4, 9, 16, 25, …
You might notice that this sequence is the square of
natural numbers:
12 = 1, 22 = 4, 32 = 9, 42 = 16, 52 = 25
The next term in this sequence would be 62 or 36.
An Infinite Sequence is just a list of numbers!
Seriously - there's nothing special going on here!
A "sequence" is just a list of numbers in a
particular order, and an "infinite sequence" is just
a list which keeps on going forever...
Here's one example of an infinite sequence:
Example:
Sequence "A" : 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, ...
(Note how I cleverly used the "..." to show how the
sequence kept going on and on, even though I was
too lazy to write it all)
One problem with infinite sequences, of course, is
that they're - well - infinite! And of course, that
means that I can't write out the whole thing even
if I want to! Instead, I have to rely on you
knowing what numbers should follow after the
"9". (You do know, don't you? ;) )
A sequence is an infinite ordered list of numbers, for example
the sequence of odd positive integers: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15,
17, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29 . . . Symbolically the terms of a
sequence are represented with indexed letters: a1, a2, a3, a4,
a5, a6, a7, . . . , an, . . . Sometimes we start a sequence with a0
(index zero) instead of a1. Notation: the sequence a1, a2,
a3, . . . is also denoted by {an} or {an}∞ n=1. Some sequences
can be defined with a formula, for instance the sequence 1, 3,
5, 7, . . . of odd positive integers can be defined with the
formula an = 2n − 1. A recursive definition consists of defining
the next term of a sequence as a function of previous terms.
For instance the Fibonacci sequence starts with f1 = 1, f2 = 1,
and then each subsequent term is the sum of the two previous
ones: fn = fn−1+fn−2; hence the sequence is: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13,
21, 34, 55, . . .
Examples:
{1, 2, 3, 4, ...} is a very simple sequence (and it is
an infinite sequence)
{20, 25, 30, 35, ...} is also an infinite sequence
{1, 3, 5, 7} is the sequence of the first 4 odd
numbers (and is a finite sequence)
{4, 3, 2, 1} is 4 to 1 backwards
{1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, ...} is an infinite sequence
where every term doubles
{a, b, c, d, e} is the sequence of the first 5
letters alphabetically
{f, r, e, d} is the sequence of letters in the name
"fred"
{0, 1, 0, 1, 0, 1, ...} is the sequence
of alternating 0s and 1s (yes they are in order, it
is an alternating order in this case)
