Stanford University EPGY

Math Olympiad

Stanford University EPGY Summer Institutes 2008 Math Olympiad Problem Solving Triangular Numbers
Triangular numbers are numbers that can be arranged in a triangular pattern:

The rst 5 triangular numbers are: T1 = 1, T2 = 3, T3 = 6, T4 = 10, T5 = 15. Observe that the triangular numbers are formed by partial sums of the series 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + . The n-th triangular number, which we will denote Tn , is Tn = 1 + 2 + 3 + + n. The triangular numbers exhibit some interesting number-theoretic properties that you will explore in this set of problems. 1. Make a table of the rst 10 triangular numbers. 2. Show that Tn = 3. (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) n(n + 1) for all integers n 1. 2 Compute T1 + T2 . Compute T2 + T3 . Compute T3 + T4 . Compute T4 + T5 . Computing more expressions of the form Tn + Tn+1 if necessary, make a conjecture about the sum of any two consecutive triangular numbers Tn and Tn+1 . Can you prove that your conjecture is true?

4. (a) Compute 9T1 + 1. (b) Compute 9T2 + 1. (c) Compute 9T3 + 1.

Summer 2008 1 Triangular Numbers

Stanford University EPGY

Math Olympiad

(d) Compute 9T4 + 1. (e) Compute 9T5 + 1. (f) If Tn is a triangular number, what can you say about 9Tn + 1? Is it always a triangular number? 5. What are the possible digits that a triangular number can end in? 6. (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) Compute 8T1 + 1. Compute 8T2 + 1. Compute 8T3 + 1. Compute 8T4 + 1. Compute 8T5 + 1. Computing more expressions of the form 8Tn + 1 if necessary, make a conjecture about the expression 8Tn + 1, where Tn is a triangular number. Can you prove that your conjecture is correct? Compute 13 . Compute 13 + 23 . Compute 13 + 23 + 33 . Compute 13 + 23 + 33 + 43 . Compute 13 + 23 + 33 + 43 + 53 . Computing more expressions of the form 13 + 23 + 33 + + n3 if necessary, make a conjecture about how the sum of the rst n cubes is related to the n-th triangular number Tn . Can you prove that your conjecture is correct? 8. Find three triangular numbers whose square is also a triangular number. 9. Compile some data and try to make a conjecture about which numbers can be written as a sum of two triangular numbers. For example, 7 = 1 + 6 and 25 = 10 + 15 are sums of two triangular numbers, while 19 cannot be written as the sum of two triangular numbers. 10. There are 6 triangular numbers that can be expressed as the product of three consecutive integers. Can you nd them? 11. Triangular numbers that can be expressed as a product of two primes are called triangular semiprimes. For example, 6 is a triangular semiprime because 6 = 2 3. Can you nd other triangular semiprimes?

7. (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f)

Summer 2008

Triangular Numbers