Find the sum of the first 30 terms in the geometric series: 1+2+4+8...

Answer 1

So, for any finite geometric series with first term a, ratio between successive terms r, and n total terms, the sum is

Sn=a(r^n-1)/(r-1)

So, for the series at hand, we have a=1, r=2, and n=30, so

S30=1(2^30-1)/(2-1)=2^30-1=1,073,741,823