Sequence and SeriesMCQMTP May 19Question 1840 of 213
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Find the three numbers in G.P. whose sum is 19 and product is 216.

Select Your Answer (Keyboard: A, B, C, D)
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Correct Answer

✅ Option a — 9, 6, 4 or 4, 6, 9

All Options:

  • A9, 6, 4 or 4, 6, 9
  • B9, 6, 3 or 3, 6, 9
  • C9, 3, 1 or 1, 3, 9
  • D9, 3, -1 or -1, 3, 9

Detailed Solution & Explanation

Let the three numbers be ar,a,ar\displaystyle ar\displaystyle \frac{a}{r}, a, ar.
Their product is $216\displaystyle :<br><span class="katex-display"><span class="katex"><span class="katex-mathml"><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="block"><semantics><mrow><msup><mi>a</mi><mn>3</mn></msup><mo>=</mo><mn>216</mn><mtext>  </mtext><mo>⟹</mo><mtext>  </mtext><mi>a</mi><mo>=</mo><mn>6</mn></mrow><annotation encoding="application/x-tex">a^3 = 216 \implies a = 6</annotation></semantics></math></span><span class="katex-html" aria-hidden="true"><span class="base"><span class="strut" style="height:0.8641em;"></span><span class="mord"><span class="mord mathnormal">a</span><span class="msupsub"><span class="vlist-t"><span class="vlist-r"><span class="vlist" style="height:0.8641em;"><span style="top:-3.113em;margin-right:0.05em;"><span class="pstrut" style="height:2.7em;"></span><span class="sizing reset-size6 size3 mtight"><span class="mord mtight">3</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.2778em;"></span><span class="mrel">=</span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.2778em;"></span></span><span class="base"><span class="strut" style="height:0.6684em;vertical-align:-0.024em;"></span><span class="mord">216</span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.2778em;"></span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.2778em;"></span><span class="mrel">⟹</span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.2778em;"></span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.2778em;"></span></span><span class="base"><span class="strut" style="height:0.4306em;"></span><span class="mord mathnormal">a</span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.2778em;"></span><span class="mrel">=</span><span class="mspace" style="margin-right:0.2778em;"></span></span><span class="base"><span class="strut" style="height:0.6444em;"></span><span class="mord">6</span></span></span></span></span><br><br>Their sum is &#36;19:
6r+6+6r=19  ⟹  6(1r+r)=136r+6+6r=19\displaystyle \frac{6}{r} + 6 + 6r = 19 \implies 6\left(1r+r\displaystyle \frac{1}{r} + r\right) = 13
6r2−13r+6=0  ⟹  (2r−3)(3r−2)=0  ⟹  r=32 or r=236r^2 - 13r + 6 = 0 \implies (2r-3)(3r-2) = 0 \implies r = 32\displaystyle \frac{3}{2}  or \displaystyle \text{ or } r = 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3}

If r=32\displaystyle r = 32\displaystyle \frac{3}{2}, the numbers are $4, 6, 9.<br>If\displaystyle .<br>Ifr = 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3}$, the numbers are $9, 6, 4$.
Hence, **Option A** is the correct answer.

About This Chapter: Sequence and Series

Paper

Paper 3: Quantitative Aptitude

Weightage

4-6 Marks

Key Topics

Arithmetic & Geometric Progressions

This chapter covers Arithmetic Progressions (AP) and Geometric Progressions (GP). Students learn how to find the nth term, sum of n terms, arithmetic/geometric means, and sum to infinity of a GP.

View Official ICAI Syllabus

Exam Strategy Tip

For complex 'sum of series' questions, a great hack is to substitute n = 1 and n = 2 into the question and the options to see which one matches, completely bypassing the formula.

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