CAIE P3 2017 November — Question 9

Exam BoardCAIE
ModuleP3 (Pure Mathematics 3)
Year2017
SessionNovember
TopicIntegration by Parts

9 It is given that \(\int _ { 1 } ^ { a } x ^ { \frac { 1 } { 2 } } \ln x \mathrm {~d} x = 2\), where \(a > 1\).
  1. Show that \(a ^ { \frac { 3 } { 2 } } = \frac { 7 + 2 a ^ { \frac { 3 } { 2 } } } { 3 \ln a }\).
  2. Show by calculation that \(a\) lies between 2 and 4 .
  3. Use the iterative formula $$a _ { n + 1 } = \left( \frac { 7 + 2 a _ { n } ^ { \frac { 3 } { 2 } } } { 3 \ln a _ { n } } \right) ^ { \frac { 2 } { 3 } }$$ to determine \(a\) correct to 3 decimal places. Give the result of each iteration to 5 decimal places.