26 April 2024 Shift 2 — Number Pattern Series
E · easyP · Verified PYQpattern-printingseries
Problem
Two number series are interleaved: Series A: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, … (natural numbers) Series B: 1, 4, 9, 16, 25, … (perfect squares) Merged: 1, 1, 2, 4, 3, 9, 4, 16, 5, 25, … Given N, find the Nth term of the merged series.
Example
Input
7
Output
4
If N is odd: answer = (N+1)//2. If N is even: answer = (N//2)^2.
Position 7: odd → (7+1)/2 = 4th natural number = 4