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For each sequence, write down the first 5 terms and hence, or otherwise, express the sequence using a recursive formula.

  1. un=5n+3

  2. vn=9−n2

  3. pn=2n

  4. qn=n!

(Note: n! is called 'n factorial' and is defined as

n!=n×(n−1)×(n−2)×…×3×2×1

so, for example, 4!=4×3×2×1 and 1!=1 )


After writing out the first 5 terms, focus on what you need to do to the previous term to get to the next term each time.

For (a), notice that 13=8+5, and then 18=13+5, and so on.