A COMBINATORIAL PROOF OF AN ALGEBRAIC IDENTITY

BOGDAN ENESCU

The following well-known identity n2 (n + 1)2 , 4 which holds for any positive integer n, can be written, using another even better known identity, under the form 13 + 23 + + n3 = 13 + 23 + + n3 = (1 + 2 + + n)2 . (1) The standard proof of (1) is by induction, but several other ideas can be applied (like telescopic sums, etc.). In [1] the interested reader can nd seven proofs without words for it. We will prove (1) using a combinatorial argument, dierent from those used in [2] or [3] . Problem 48 in [4] reads as follows: Two rectangles are considered dierent if they have either dierent dimensions or a different location. How many dierent rectangles consisting of an integral number of squares can be drawn a. on a 8 8 chessboard? b. on a n n chessboard? The problem, in the general case, can be rephrased as follows: given the positive integer n, nd the number N of rectangles whose sides are parallel to the axes and whose vertices have integer coordinates in the set {0, 1, 2, . . . , n} . The key observation is that such a rectangle is uniquely determined by its projections onto the axes.

It results that the number of rectangles equals the number of ways one can choose a pair (a, b) , where a, b [0, n] are line segments with integral endpoints (see gure)1.
1In

order to keep notations simple, we denote by a both the line segment and its length.
1

On each axis, there are n such segments of length 1, n 1 segments of length 2, etc. In general, for a xed k , 1 k n, there are n k + 1 segments of length k. We deduce that the number of segments, and hence, the number of rectangles equals N = (1 + 2 + + n)2 . (2) An alternative count: a segment is uniquely determined by its endpoints, hence the number of segments a [0, n] with integral endpoints equals the number of ways one can choose two distinct numbers from the set {0, 1, 2, . . . , n} , that is, n+1 = n(n2+1) . 2 On the other hand, for each k {1, 2, . . . , n} , let us count the number of rectangles whose minimal dimension (length or width) equals k. In order to count the rectangles a b, with a < b, let us choose on the Ox axis a segment a of length k (we can do this in n k + 1 ways), and then choose a segment of length b > k on the Oy axis . The length of b can be k + 1, k + 2, . . . , n, hence b can be chosen in 1 (n k ) + (n k 1) + + 1 = (n k ) (n k + 1) 2 ways. It follows that the number of rectangles a b, with a < b equals 1 (n k ) (n k + 1)2 . 2 Obviously, there are as many rectangles a b, with a > b. The total number of rectangles is obtained by adding up the number of rectangles for which a = b = k, that is, (n k + 1)2 . The result is 1 (n k ) (n k + 1)2 + (n k + 1)2 = (n k + 1)3 . 2 Adding after k, we deduce that the requested number N equals 2 N = 13 + 23 + + n3 . Relation (2) and (3) give the desired result. references [1] Roger B. Nelsen, Proofs Without Words, Mathematical Association of America, 1993 [2] Arthur T. Benjamin, Michael E. Orrison, Two Quick Combinatorial Proofs, College Mathematics Journal 33 (2002), no. 5. [3] Arthur T. Benjamin, Jennifer J. Quinn, Proofs that Really Count, Mathematical Association of America, 2003 [4] A.M. Iaglom, I.M. Iaglom, Challenging Mathematical Problems With Elementary Solutions, Vol. 1, Dover Publications, 1987 Bogdan Enescu, B.P. Hasdeu National College, Buz au, Romania, bogdanenescu@buzau.ro

Mathematical Reflections 6 (2013)