West Visayas State University

College of Arts and Sciences

December 2020

MTH 101
Assignment First Semester 2020-2021

Instruction: Perform the following as indicated. Provide all necessary solutions. Write your
solutions and answers on a clean sheet of paper and attach the images for submission. Make sure to
turn in your work on or before the said deadline.

1. Find the next two terms of each sequence. (1 point each)

a. √ √
b. 2, 7, -3, 2, -8
c. 2, 0, -18, -64, - 5

2. Find a number that provides a counterexample to show that a given statement is false.
(2 points each)
a.
b.

3. Logical Puzzles (5 points each)

a. Examine the two grids and determine the values of A, B, C, and D. Investigate the
pattern for 1, 6, 7, and 10, especially on their placements from the first grid in
comparison to their placements in the second grid.

b. Given the sequence below, determine what comes next.

Hint: S means straight and C means curl. Then, think of what objects (or something)
that use straights and curls.

c. Observe the pattern on the first four figures and determine what value corresponds
to the last figure.

Hint: Focus on the directions of the lines in each figure. Such puzzle above is related
to multiplication of two numbers as represented by the dot.
In this section, read the problems and study the examples or cases. Then, explore further
and perform the required tasks in each item. (10 points each)

4. Triangles in a Path

Problem:
A square measuring one unit on a side has both diagonals drawn (see image below). Count the
number of triangles formed. Note that triangles may vary in size. Construct a path composed of this
square and count the number of triangles formed.

Here, let n be the number of squares and be the number of triangles formed.

Case 1. Given a 1-square path (n=1).

In this case, given one such square, there are 8 triangles formed.

Case 2. Given a 2-square path (n=2).

Below is the illustration of a 2-square path. Counting the number of triangles formed, there are 18
of them (see illustrated below).

*simply count the number of colored triangles.

Tasks:
(a) Construct the 3-path square and the 4-path square and count the number of triangles
formed.
(b) Formulate a conjecture (any statement or in any form) on the number of triangles formed
given the length of the path.
(c) Use your conjecture to predict the number of triangles formed in a 10-square path (n=10).

5. Bouncing Bullet

Problem:
Consider a 3-by-n matrix of dots and a bullet with a property that it bounces back from the border
with mirror symmetry (45 degrees). Starting from the bottom-left dot, fire a bullet and count the
number of times it bounces back before reaching a corner dot. (See examples or cases below)
Case 1: n = 2

For a 3-by-2 dot matrix;

Solution:
As observed, the bullet will only bounce once
before reaching a corner dot. Hence, on this case
the bullet has 1 bounce (see figure at the right).

Case 2: n = 3
For a 3-by-3 dot matrix;
Solution: Since the bullet would only bounce at the
border, it will pass through the middle dot and
reached a corner point without bouncing. Hence, on
this case, the bullet has 0 bounce.

Case 3: n = 4
For a 3-by-4 dot matrix;
Solution: The bullet has 3 bounces, i.e.,
it bounces thrice before reaching a
corner dot.

Tasks:
a. Explore the cases of 3-by-5, 3-by-6, and 3-by-7. Provide an illustration for each case.
b. Formulate a conjecture (any statement or in any form) on the number of times the bullet
bounces before reaching a corner dot.
c. Then, use your conjecture to predict the number of times the bullet will bounce back for 3-
by-15 and 3-by-16.

----------------------------------------- (Total Points: 45 Points) -----------------------------------------