The Unmasking of the Summation
Combinatorics problems often look like a dense forest of symbols, but beneath the surface, they are governed by elegant, simple symmetries. Today, we are tackling a problem that might seem intimidating at first glance:
r=0∑25{50Cr⋅50−rC25−r}=K(50C25)
It looks like a mess of indices and combinations, but by the end of this, you will see the beauty in how these terms dance together to simplify into something remarkably clean.
Phase 1
The Factorial Expansion
Our first step is to strip away the notation. We know that the combination formula is our best friend:
Let's apply this to the two terms inside our summation.
First, we have 50Cr, which expands to:
Next, we have 50−rC25−r. Applying the same logic, the numerator is (50−r)!. The denominator is the product of the lower index factorial, (25−r)!, and the difference factorial, (50−r−(25−r))!.
Look closely at that difference: 50−r−25+r=25. So, the second term simplifies to:
Phase 2
The Great Cancellation
Now, let's bring these two pieces together inside the summation:
r=0∑25(r!(50−r)!50!⋅(25−r)!25!(50−r)!)
Do you see it? The (50−r)! in the denominator of the first fraction and the (50−r)! in the numerator of the second fraction are begging to be canceled. When we remove them, the expression becomes much lighter:
This is the turning point. We have successfully removed the variable r from the factorial terms that were causing the most trouble.
Phase 3
The Art of Targeting
We are told this sum equals K(50C25). Let's look at our target, 50C25, which is:
Our current expression has 25!50! in it. We are missing a 25! in the denominator.
In mathematics, when you need something, you create it—as long as you balance the equation. We multiply and divide the inside of the summation by 25!:
r=0∑2525!25!50!⋅r!(25−r)!25!
Since 25!25!50! is just 50C25 and it does not depend on r, we can pull it right out of the summation sign.
Phase 4
The Final Victory
Now we are left with:
50C25⋅r=0∑25r!(25−r)!25!
That internal term, r!(25−r)!25!, is the definition of 25Cr. So the expression is now ^{50}C_{25} \cdot \sum_{r=0}^{25} ^{25}C_{r}.
We know the classic identity for the sum of binomial coefficients:
\sum_{r=0}^{n} ^{n}C_{r} = 2^{n}
With n=25, our sum is simply 225. Comparing this to K(50C25), we see that K=225.