Let n be a positive integer. Does (2n−3)(2n−1)(2n+1)(2n+3)+16 equal the square of a positive integer? Does the number 2005×2007×2009×2011+16 equal the square of a positive integer?
Solution
Because (2n−3)(2n+3)=4n2−9 and (2n−1)(2n+1)=4n2−1, we have (2n−3)(2n−1)(2n+1)(2n+3)+16=(4n2−9)(4n2−1)+16. Expanding: (4n2−9)(4n2−1)=16n4−4n2−36n2+9=16n4−40n2+9. So, (2n−3)(2n−1)(2n+1)(2n+3)+16=16n4−40n2+9+16=16n4−40n2+25. Notice that 16n4−40n2+25=(4n2−5)2. Therefore, (2n−3)(2n−1)(2n+1)(2n+3)+16 is the square of a positive integer for every positive integer n.
For the number 2005×2007×2009×2011+16, if we set n=1004, then 2005×2007×2009×2011+16=(4×10042−5)2=10080162. Thus, 2005×2007×2009×2011+16 is also the square of a positive integer.
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