A sequence has 101 terms, each of which is a positive integer. If a term, , is even, the next term is equal to . If a term, , is odd, the next term is equal to . If the first term is 16, what is the 101st term?
Solution
The 1st term is 16. Since 16 is even, the 2nd term is . Since 9 is odd, the 3rd term is . Since 5 is odd, the 4th term is . Since 3 is odd, the 5th term is . Since 2 is even, the 6th term is . This previous step shows us that when one term is 2, the next term will also be 2. Thus, the remaining terms in this sequence are all 2. In particular, the 101st term is 2.
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