Question

Becky has one piece of paper. She cuts the paper in half and then has two pieces. She cuts these in half to get four pieces. The process continues. Which describes how many pieces she has at each step? (a) p(1) = 1; p(n) = 2p(n-1), for n is greater than or equal to 2 (b) p(1) = 1; p(n) = 1/2p(n-1), for n is greater than or equal to 2 (c) p(1) = 1; p(n) = p (n-1) +1, for n is greater than or equal to 2

Answer 1

C.) p(1) = 1; p(n) = p(n-1) + 1

Answer 2

1 piece cuts into 2, 2 pieces cuts into 4, 4 pieces get cut into 8, so there is a multiple of 2 involved so the equation needs a multiple of 2 in it.

 The correct answer is a) p(1) = 1; p(n) = 2p(n-1), for n is greater than or equal to 2