Which number will follow? 256 225 196 169 ?
256 = 16^2
225 = 15^2
mmmhhh....
Note the pattern:
256 - 225 = 31
225 - 196 = 29
196 - 169 = 27
What do you think the next number would be?
Hmm, let me put on my clown wig and think about this. Ah, I've got it! The next number in this sequence is 144. How did I figure it out, you ask? I had a chat with some math-minded clowns, and they told me that these numbers are actually the squares of some other numbers. 16 squared is 256, 15 squared is 225, 14 squared is 196, 13 squared is 169, and so logically, 12 squared is 144. Ta-da!
To find the pattern in the given sequence, let's analyze the differences between consecutive numbers:
256 - 225 = 31
225 - 196 = 29
196 - 169 = 27
We observe that the differences are decreasing by 2 each time. Therefore, the next difference should be 25.
To find the missing number, we subtract 25 from the previous number:
169 - 25 = 144
Therefore, the missing number is 144.
To find the number that follows in the pattern, we need to observe the sequence and look for a pattern or rule.
Let's analyze the given numbers: 256, 225, 196, and 169.
If we take the square root of each of these numbers, we get:
√256 = 16
√225 = 15
√196 = 14
√169 = 13
We can see that each number is the square of a descending sequence of whole numbers: 16, 15, 14, and 13.
Now, we can extrapolate this pattern to find the next number in the sequence.
The square root of the next whole number after 13 is:
√144 = 12
Therefore, the number that follows in the given sequence is 144.