MHB Show that the number of questions he answered is 14, Arithmetic progressions

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A competitor in a television quiz show answers questions with prize money increasing in an arithmetic progression, starting at 50. After answering 14 questions correctly, the competitor incorrectly answers the 15th, resulting in a total prize of 1300, which is half of the total earned for the 14 correct answers. The total prize for 14 questions is calculated to be 2600, confirming the arithmetic progression formula used. The quadratic equation derived from the calculations shows that the competitor answered 13 questions correctly before the incorrect answer, thus leaving the total at 14. Therefore, the competitor answered a total of 14 questions before exiting the competition.
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A competitor participating in a programme organised by a certain telelvision channel, wins by answering 15 questions correctly. The price money of 50 for the first question, 75 for second question , 100 for third question etc ... given for correct answers , are in an arithmetic progressionA competitor has to leave the programme if a wrong answer is given . In this case , the competitor's prize money is half the amount allocated for all the questions he has answered correctly thus far. If a certain competitor had to leave the competition with 1300 due to not giving the correct answer to a certain question , show that the number of questions he answered is 14.

Thoughts

The original prize money he earned is 2600

This is an sum of an arithmetic progression right?

Formula preferences

I would think that two formulas are possible in this case

$\displaystyle S_n=\frac{n}{2}\left(2a_1+(n-1)d\right)$

or $\displaystyle S_n=\frac{n}{2}\left(a_1+l\right)$ since we know the last term

My attempt

I tried substituting the values into the formula

a=50, n = ? , d= 25

$\displaystyle S_n=\frac{n}{2}\left(2a_1+(n-1)d\right)$

$\displaystyle 2600=\frac{n}{2}\left(50+(n-1)25\right)$

$\displaystyle 2600=\frac{n}{2}\left(50+25n-25\right)$

$\displaystyle 5200={n}\left(50+25n-25\right)$

$\displaystyle 5200=50n+25n^2-25n$

$\displaystyle 5200=25n+25n^2$

$\displaystyle 208=n+n^2$

Assuming that my method of solving this method was true what should be done further to obtain the answer

Many Thanks :)
 
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You substituted 50 for $2a_1$, when you need to use 100...and then your resulting equation would be:

$$208=3n+n^2$$

or

$$n^2+3n-208=0$$

Now, we may observe that:

$$(16)(-13)=-208$$ and $$(16)+(-13)=3$$

Thus, the equation may be written as:

$$(n+16)(n-13)=0$$

Discarding the negative root, we are left with:

$$n=13$$

And this is the number of questions answered correctly, and so the error must have occurred on the 14th question.
 
mathlearn said:
A competitor participating in a programme organised by a certain telelvision channel, wins by answering 15 questions correctly. The price money of 50 for the first question, 75 for second question , 100 for third question etc ... given for correct answers , are in an arithmetic progressionA competitor has to leave the programme if a wrong answer is given . In this case , the competitor's prize money is half the amount allocated for all the questions he has answered correctly thus far. If a certain competitor had to leave the competition with 1300 due to not giving the correct answer to a certain question , show that the number of questions he answered is 14.

Thoughts

The original prize money he earned is 2600

This is an sum of an arithmetic progression right?

Formula preferences

I would think that two formulas are possible in this case

$\displaystyle S_n=\frac{n}{2}\left(2a_1+(n-1)d\right)$

or $\displaystyle S_n=\frac{n}{2}\left(a_1+l\right)$ since we know the last term

My attempt

I tried substituting the values into the formula

a=50, n = ? , d= 25

$\displaystyle S_n=\frac{n}{2}\left(2a_1+(n-1)d\right)$

$\displaystyle 2600=\frac{n}{2}\left(50+(n-1)25\right)$

$\displaystyle 2600=\frac{n}{2}\left(50+25n-25\right)$

$\displaystyle 5200={n}\left(50+25n-25\right)$

$\displaystyle 5200=50n+25n^2-25n$

$\displaystyle 5200=25n+25n^2$

$\displaystyle 208=n+n^2$

Assuming that my method of solving this method was true what should be done further to obtain the answer

Many Thanks :)

The problematic point is
$\displaystyle 2600=\frac{n}{2}\left(50+25n-25\right)$
which should be
$\displaystyle 2600=\frac{n}{2}\left(2* 50+25n-25\right)$

proceeding you shall get

$\displaystyle 208=3n+n^2$

this is quadratic in n and we have
$(n^2+3n- 208 = 0$ factoring we get $(n-13)(n+16) = -$ so n = 13 or - 16
but n is positive so n = 13
one incorrect ans giving 14 as the answer
 
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