Prove that the $n$-th triangular number is:      $$T_n = \dfrac{n(n+1)}{2}$$   I did this:  Base case: $\frac{1(1+1)}{2}=1$, which is true.  Then I assumed that $T_k=\frac{k(k+1)}{2}$ is true.  $$T_{k+1} = \frac{(k+1)(k+1+1)}{2}$$  I'm not sure what to do next. What is this supposed to be equal to?
Apparently $1+2+3+4+\ldots+n = \dfrac{n\times(n+1)}2$.  How? What's the proof? Or maybe it is self apparent just looking at the above?   PS: This problem is known as "The sum of the first $n$ positive integers".
reusing pthread_t variable for currently running threads Is there any uncountably infinite set that does not generate the reals? Does there exist an uncountably infinite set $X \subseteq \mathbb R$ such that $\mathbb R \neq \left&lt;X\right&gt;$? I can't think of any, but I'm also having trouble trying to prove that no such subset exists.  For example: $\mathbb R$ is uncountable and obviously $\mathbb R = \left&lt;\mathbb R\right&gt;$. The Cantor set $C$ is uncountable, and we know that $C - C = [0, 1]$, so then since $\mathbb R = \left&lt;[0, 1]\right&gt;$ we know that $C$ also generates $\mathbb R$. Also the set of irrationals $\mathbb R \setminus \mathbb Q$ is uncountable, but we can generate all the rational numbers by fixing one irrational number $\alpha$ and then saying the any rational number $x$ shall be $(\alpha + x) - \alpha$, since both $\alpha + x$ and $\alpha$ are irrational.  So the examples that quickly come to mind all generate the reals. Is there a simple counterexample? What is crop factor and how does it relate to focal length? I'm reading that a 50mm lens is recommended as a first prime lens for DSLR owners as it's supposed to give a 'natural' perspective, but when used on (most) DSLRs, the view is cropped, as if you were zoomed in by 1.5-1.6x, so it's more of a telephoto lens when used on a DSLR. I've also read however that the 50mm lens gives the same perspective on a DSLR and a 35mm, and shouldn't really be considered to be 'equivalent' to an 80mm lens as the crop factor isn't really a magic focal length changer.  Can someone explain how the image is different from (for example) a 50mm lens on a DSLR and an 80mm lens (assuming 1.6x crop factor) on a 35mm camera? persist port routing from 80 to 8080 I use amazon EC2 instance which works via ubuntu. By default according security restrictions I can't bin my application to port 80, so I just bind it port 8080 and then set routing redirect from port 80 to 8080 via the following command:  iptables -t nat -A PREROUTING -p tcp --dport 80 -j REDIRECT --to 8080   But I found that when I reboot the server this settings no longer active untill I invoke this command again.  So my question is how to enable port's redirect work even if system was rebooted? Closing Streams in Java For fixed $z_i$s inside the unit disc, can we always choose $a_i$s such that $\left|\sum_{i=1}^n a_iz_i\right|<\sqrt3$? Let $z_1,z_2,\ldots,z_n$ be complex number such that $|z_i|&lt;1$ for all $i=1,2,\ldots,n$. Show that we can choose $a_i \in\{-1,1\}$, $i=1,2,\ldots,n$ such that $$\left|\sum_{i=1}^n a_iz_i\right|&lt;\sqrt3.$$ Is a rational-valued continuous function $f\colon[0,1]\to\mathbb{R}$ constant? Let $f\colon[0,1]\to\mathbb{R}$ be continuous such that $f(x)\in\mathbb{Q}$ for any $x\in[0,1]$. Intuitively I feel that $f$ is constant, since $\mathbb{Q}$ is dense in $\mathbb{R}$.  How can I formally write this down? How To Make Clickable Text In Minecraft I am trying to make clickable text in Minecraft in the chat box. It was used in the adventure map, "UP".   The idea is that you are given an option in the text to click, "Yes", or "No". Each word will give an output of a command.  How is this achieved? A gold reviewer badge? Is a switches voltage and current rating a hard limit? Adding DC voltages of PSU I need to add two voltages together that share a common ground (power supply from computer). I tried using bridge rectifiers and Op-Amps. Object referencing its own property on initialization Questions with mathjax don't fit in the box This bug is intermittent, only showing up on some answers, but not others.  Sometimes, posts that have mathjax equations expand the math, but don't resize the text box, cutting off some text on the bottom.  Note that this is on the IOS public beta, so that may partially have caused the problem.     App Version: 1.5.3.5 Device: iPhone 5s (GSM) OS Version: Version 10.0 (Build 14A5322e) Beamer background image centered I'm trying to use an image as a background for Beamer presentation according to  post.  However, I do not want the image spanning the entire background. Thus, I'm doing something like:  \usebackgroundtemplate{% \centering \hspace{4.5cm} \includegraphics[width=1.5in]{image.jpeg} }   The \hspace command works, but \vspace does not work. Basically, I'm trying to get the image to be at the center of the page. Any ideas on how this can be done? How do I install drivers for a Canon LBP-2900 printer? I seen many times how people describe how to's about LBP-2900, and 10-12 steps from start to end of how to download, unpack, build driver, fix driver, make it work... Could be there some .deb package with ready-to-go driver for Ubuntu? This printer is very popular... Is there a way in Java to have a map where the type parameter of a value is tied to the type parameter of a key? What I want to write is something like the following:  public class Foo {     // This declaration won't compile - what should it be?     private static Map&lt;Class&lt;T&gt;, T&gt; defaultValues;      // These two methods are just fine     public static &lt;T&gt; void setDefaultValue(Class&lt;T&gt; clazz, T value) {         defaultValues.put(clazz, value);     }      public static &lt;T&gt; T getDefaultValue(Class&lt;T&gt; clazz) {         return defaultValues.get(clazz);     } }   That is, I can store any default value against a Class object, provided the value's type matches that of the Class object. I don't see why this shouldn't be allowed since I can ensure when setting/getting values that the types are correct.  EDIT: Thanks to cletus for his answer. I don't actually need the type parameters on the map itself since I can ensure consistency in the methods which get/set values, even if it means using some slightly ugly casts. Can all real polynomials be factored into quadratic and linear factors? So I understand how to do integration on rational functions with a linear and a quadratic denominator, and I understand how to do a partial fraction decomposition, but I was wondering what happens if the polynomial is higher degree and can't be factored. Later in the page, it says this:     However, it can be shown that any polynomial with real coefficients is a product of linear and/or irreducible quadratic factors with real coefficients.   And I was wondering, how do we know this and is this definitely true? Why do objects move when you apply a force that's equal in magnitude to the friction? If the friction on an object is 200 N and you apply 200 N, it seems, the forces should immediately cancel each other out since the friction and your applied force go in opposite directions, leaving you with an object that is motionless. Yet, from what I've read, that's not the case. I feel like I'm misunderstanding something. Could it be I'm wrong about needing to apply 200 N initially? Might the amount of force I actually need be greater, but instantaneously decrease to 200 N? I've just started to learn about the tensor product and I want to show: $$(\mathbb{Z}/m\mathbb{Z}) \otimes_\mathbb{Z} (\mathbb{Z} / n \mathbb{Z}) \cong \mathbb{Z}/ \gcd(m,n)\mathbb{Z}.$$  Can you tell me if my proof is right:  $\mathbb{Z}/m\mathbb{Z}$ and $\mathbb{Z} / n \mathbb{Z}$ are both finite free $\mathbb{Z}$-modules with the basis consisting of one single element $\{ 1 \}$. So $(\mathbb{Z}/m\mathbb{Z}) \otimes_\mathbb{Z} (\mathbb{Z} / n \mathbb{Z})$ has the basis $\{ 1 \otimes 1 \}$.  Therefore, any element in $(\mathbb{Z}/m\mathbb{Z}) \otimes_\mathbb{Z} (\mathbb{Z} / n \mathbb{Z})$  is of the form $(ab) 1 \otimes 1$ and any element in $\mathbb{Z}/ \gcd(m,n)\mathbb{Z}$ is of the form $k 1 = k$ where $k \in \{ 0, \dots , \gcd(n,m) \}$.  I would like to construct an isomorphism that maps $ab$ to some $k$. Let this map be $ab (1 \otimes 1) \mapsto ab \bmod \gcd(n,m)$.  This is a homomorphism between modules: it maps $0$ to $0$ because it maps the empty sum to the empty sum. It also fulfills $f(a + b) = f(a) + f(b)$ because there is only one element, $a = 1$.   It is surjective. So all I need to show is that it is injective. But that is clear too because if $ab \equiv 0 \bmod \gcd(m,n)$  then both $a \equiv 0 \bmod n$ and $b \equiv 0 \bmod m$ so the kernel is trivial.  Many thanks for your help!! Ubuntu 14.04, problem when install gstreamer1.0-libav, unmet dependencies Suddenly my Ubuntu stopped playing video. When I open a video, the player suggests that I install  gstreamer1.0-libav. However, it fails to install.  I tried installing it manually, here is the error message:  $ sudo apt-get install gstreamer1.0-libav Reading package lists... Done Building dependency tree        Reading state information... Done Some packages could not be installed. This may mean that you have requested an impossible situation or if you are using the unstable distribution that some required packages have not yet been created or been moved out of Incoming. The following information may help to resolve the situation:  The following packages have unmet dependencies:  gstreamer1.0-libav : Depends: libavcodec54 (&gt;= 6:9.1-1) but it is not going to be installed or                                libavcodec-extra-54 (&gt;= 6:9.13) but it is not going to be installed                       Depends: libavformat54 (&gt;= 6:9.1-1) but it is not going to be installed E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.