1. sigma notation You should be able to…
Express a series using sigma notation.
Expand and evaluate an expression written in sigma notation.

2. A Greek letter - in maths it translates as “the sum of”
the sum of the first 5 terms
end term r=5
start term r=1
What type of series is it?
3, 7, 11, ....
Make r=1, r=2, ....
AP: u1=3, d=4, n=5
r=1, 4-1=3
=55
r=2, 8-1=7
r=3, 12-1=11

3. Find the following information:
1. Type of series (AP or GP)
2. n
3. u1
4. difference (d) or ratio (r)
5. The sum
1. 8, 16, 32, .... a GP
2. n=6 (careful .. use your fingers to count)
3. u1 = 8
4. r = 2
5. 504

4. Solve each of the following sums
1. GP:
2. AP: 858
3. GP: 1023
4. GP: (approx.)
5. AP: 102.5
6. AP: 10400

5. Question
(a) Write down the first three terms of the sequence

6. Question continued…
(b) Find (i)

7. Question continued…
(ii)

8. You should know…
The Greek letter is used to denote the sum of the terms of a series.
To express a series using sigma notation, use the
form (general term).
For example,

9. GDC (graphic display calculator)
Use the sum and sequence functions to evaluate expressions written in sigma notation. For example, to observe the terms of the arithmetic sequence:
and to evaluate its sum, we could use the following

10. Be Prepared
Both arithmetic and geometric series can be expressed using sigma notation