Eliminating Odd Powers in the Expansion of (1+x)^n

  • Thread starter Lilia
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In summary, the formula for the number of words of length n that contain even 0s is ^nC(2k) * 2^(n-2k). This can be derived by considering the number of ways to choose and fill places for 0s and using the binomial theorem to get rid of odd powers of x.
  • #1
Lilia
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Homework Statement


Given an alphabet of {0,1,2}, how many "words" of length n are there that contain even 0s?

Homework Equations


Choose 2k 0s from n - C(n,2k), k=0,n/2

The Attempt at a Solution


I tried to solve this for n=4 and n=5. For n=4 I got 12 (or, if 0000 is also counted then 13), for n=5 - 30. But I can't figure out the formula
 
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  • #2
First, consider this problem : How many words of length ##n## contains ##2k## ##0##s?
There are ##^nC_{2k}## ways to choose the ##2k## places for ##2k## ##0##s. After setting ##0##s, we have ##n-2k## places to be filled up by ##1##s and ##2##s. We can use as many ##1##s and ##2##s as we like. So there are ##2^{n-2k}## ways to fill the rest ##n-2k## places by ##1##s and ##2##s.
Therefore, there are ##^nC_{2k}\cdot 2^{n-2k}## words of length ##n## that contain ##2k## 0s.
Can you figure out the formula now?
[Hints: Apply binomial theorem]
 
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  • #3
I know what is the binomial theorem but I don't know how to transform this formula to get the binomial form of it
 
  • #4
Lilia said:
I know what is the binomial theorem but I don't know how to transform this formula to get the binomial form of it
Consider the expansion of (1+x)n. Your problem is that you get both odd and even powers of x. How could you add another expansion to make only the odd powers disappear?
 

FAQ: Eliminating Odd Powers in the Expansion of (1+x)^n

What is the definition of "n-length words"?

N-length words refer to words that have a specific number of letters or characters. For example, if n = 5, then n-length words would be words with 5 letters or characters.

How do you calculate the number of n-length words?

The number of n-length words can be calculated using the formula n^k, where n is the number of possible characters and k is the length of the word. For example, if n = 26 (for the 26 letters in the alphabet) and k = 5, then there are 26^5 or 11,881,376 possible 5-length words.

What is the difference between words with repeating letters and words without repeating letters?

Words with repeating letters have the same letter appear multiple times, while words without repeating letters have each letter appear only once. For example, the word "apple" has repeating letters (the letter "p" appears twice), while the word "cat" does not have repeating letters.

Can n-length words include numbers or special characters?

Yes, n-length words can include numbers and special characters depending on the definition of "character" used. If we are referring to alphanumeric characters (letters and numbers), then n-length words can include numbers. If we are referring to only letters, then n-length words would not include numbers or special characters.

How does the number of n-length words change as n increases?

As n increases, the number of n-length words also increases. This is because as n increases, there are more possible combinations of letters or characters, resulting in a larger number of words. For example, the number of 4-length words is less than the number of 5-length words, and the number of 5-length words is less than the number of 6-length words, and so on.

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