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Find the sum of the infinite geometric series.\newline5+52+54+58+5 + \frac{5}{2} + \frac{5}{4} + \frac{5}{8} + \dots\newlineWrite your answer as an integer or a fraction in simplest form.\newline__\_\_

Full solution

Q. Find the sum of the infinite geometric series.\newline5+52+54+58+5 + \frac{5}{2} + \frac{5}{4} + \frac{5}{8} + \dots\newlineWrite your answer as an integer or a fraction in simplest form.\newline__\_\_
  1. Identify first term and common ratio: To find the sum of an infinite geometric series, we need to identify the first term aa and the common ratio rr of the series. The first term is the first number in the series, and the common ratio is the factor by which we multiply to get from one term to the next.\newlineIn this series, the first term aa is 55, and the common ratio rr is 12\frac{1}{2}, because each term is half of the previous term.
  2. Use formula for sum: The sum SS of an infinite geometric series can be found using the formula S=a1rS = \frac{a}{1 - r}, where aa is the first term and rr is the common ratio, but only if |r| < 1. Since the common ratio here is 12\frac{1}{2}, which is less than 11, we can use this formula.
  3. Plug in values: Now we plug the values of aa and rr into the formula to find the sum of the series:\newlineS=5112S = \frac{5}{1 - \frac{1}{2}}
  4. Calculate denominator: We calculate the denominator of the fraction: 112=121 - \frac{1}{2} = \frac{1}{2}
  5. Divide first term: Now we divide the first term by the result we just found: S=5(12)S = \frac{5}{(\frac{1}{2})}
  6. Multiply by reciprocal: To divide by a fraction, we multiply by its reciprocal. So we multiply 55 by 21\frac{2}{1} (which is the reciprocal of 12\frac{1}{2}):S=5×(21)S = 5 \times \left(\frac{2}{1}\right)
  7. Perform multiplication: We perform the multiplication: S=10S = 10

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