{
  "index": "2003-B-2",
  "type": "ALG",
  "tag": [
    "ALG",
    "COMB",
    "NT"
  ],
  "difficulty": "",
  "question": "Let  $n$  be a positive integer. Starting with the sequence\n$1, \\frac{1}{2}, \\frac{1}{3}, \\dots, \\frac{1}{n}$,\nform a new sequence of  $n-1$  entries\n$\\frac{3}{4}, \\frac{5}{12}, \\dots, \\frac{2n-1}{2n(n-1)}$\nby taking the averages of\ntwo consecutive entries in the first sequence. Repeat the\naveraging of neighbors on the second sequence to obtain a third\nsequence of  $n-2$  entries, and continue until the final sequence produced\nconsists of a single number  $x_n$.  Show that  $x_n < 2/n$.",
  "solution": "It is easy to see by induction that the $j$-th entry of the $k$-th\nsequence (where the original sequence is $k=1$) is\n$\\sum_{i=1}^k \\binom{k-1}{i-1}/(2^{k-1} (i+j-1))$, and so\n$x_n = \\frac{1}{2^{n-1}} \\sum_{i=1}^n \\binom{n-1}{i-1}/i$.\nNow $\\binom{n-1}{i-1}/i = \\binom{n}{i}/n$; hence\n\\[\nx_n = \\frac{1}{n2^{n-1}} \\sum_{i=1}^n \\binom{n}{i}\n= \\frac{2^n-1}{n 2^{n-1}} < 2/n,\n\\]\nas desired.",
  "vars": [
    "i",
    "j",
    "k",
    "x_n"
  ],
  "params": [
    "n"
  ],
  "sci_consts": [],
  "variants": {
    "descriptive_long": {
      "map": {
        "i": "termindex",
        "j": "sequenceindex",
        "k": "stageindex",
        "x_n": "finalvalue",
        "n": "totalcount"
      },
      "question": "Let $\\text{totalcount}$ be a positive integer. Starting with the sequence\n$1, \\frac{1}{2}, \\frac{1}{3}, \\dots, \\frac{1}{\\text{totalcount}}$,\nform a new sequence of $\\text{totalcount}-1$ entries\n$\\frac{3}{4}, \\frac{5}{12}, \\dots, \\frac{2\\text{totalcount}-1}{2\\text{totalcount}(\\text{totalcount}-1)}$\nby taking the averages of\ntwo consecutive entries in the first sequence. Repeat the\naveraging of neighbors on the second sequence to obtain a third\nsequence of $\\text{totalcount}-2$ entries, and continue until the final sequence produced\nconsists of a single number $\\text{finalvalue}$.  Show that $\\text{finalvalue} < 2/\\text{totalcount}$.",
      "solution": "It is easy to see by induction that the $\\text{sequenceindex}$-th entry of the $\\text{stageindex}$-th\nsequence (where the original sequence is $\\text{stageindex}=1$) is\n$\\sum_{\\text{termindex}=1}^{\\text{stageindex}} \\binom{\\text{stageindex}-1}{\\text{termindex}-1}/(2^{\\text{stageindex}-1} (\\text{termindex}+\\text{sequenceindex}-1))$, and so\n$\\text{finalvalue} = \\frac{1}{2^{\\text{totalcount}-1}} \\sum_{\\text{termindex}=1}^{\\text{totalcount}} \\binom{\\text{totalcount}-1}{\\text{termindex}-1}/\\text{termindex}$.  \nNow $\\binom{\\text{totalcount}-1}{\\text{termindex}-1}/\\text{termindex} = \\binom{\\text{totalcount}}{\\text{termindex}}/\\text{totalcount}$; hence\n\\[\n\\text{finalvalue} = \\frac{1}{\\text{totalcount}2^{\\text{totalcount}-1}} \\sum_{\\text{termindex}=1}^{\\text{totalcount}} \\binom{\\text{totalcount}}{\\text{termindex}}\n= \\frac{2^{\\text{totalcount}}-1}{\\text{totalcount}\\, 2^{\\text{totalcount}-1}} < 2/\\text{totalcount},\n\\]\nas desired."
    },
    "descriptive_long_confusing": {
      "map": {
        "i": "kingfish",
        "j": "waterfall",
        "k": "pineapple",
        "x_n": "butterscotch",
        "n": "dragonfly"
      },
      "question": "Let  $dragonfly$  be a positive integer. Starting with the sequence\n$1, \\frac{1}{2}, \\frac{1}{3}, \\dots, \\frac{1}{dragonfly}$,\nform a new sequence of  $dragonfly-1$  entries\n$\\frac{3}{4}, \\frac{5}{12}, \\dots, \\frac{2dragonfly-1}{2dragonfly(dragonfly-1)}$\nby taking the averages of\ntwo consecutive entries in the first sequence. Repeat the\naveraging of neighbors on the second sequence to obtain a third\nsequence of  $dragonfly-2$  entries, and continue until the final sequence produced\nconsists of a single number  $butterscotch$.  Show that  $butterscotch < 2/dragonfly$.",
      "solution": "It is easy to see by induction that the $waterfall$-th entry of the $pineapple$-th\nsequence (where the original sequence is $pineapple=1$) is\n$\\sum_{kingfish=1}^{pineapple} \\binom{pineapple-1}{kingfish-1}/(2^{pineapple-1} (kingfish+waterfall-1))$, and so\n$butterscotch = \\frac{1}{2^{dragonfly-1}} \\sum_{kingfish=1}^{dragonfly} \\binom{dragonfly-1}{kingfish-1}/kingfish$.\nNow $\\binom{dragonfly-1}{kingfish-1}/kingfish = \\binom{dragonfly}{kingfish}/dragonfly$; hence\n\\[\nbutterscotch = \\frac{1}{dragonfly2^{dragonfly-1}} \\sum_{kingfish=1}^{dragonfly} \\binom{dragonfly}{kingfish}\n= \\frac{2^{dragonfly}-1}{dragonfly 2^{dragonfly-1}} < 2/dragonfly,\n\\]\nas desired."
    },
    "descriptive_long_misleading": {
      "map": {
        "i": "constantindex",
        "j": "fixedcounter",
        "k": "settledlevel",
        "x_n": "startnumber",
        "n": "negativebound"
      },
      "question": "Let  $negativebound$  be a positive integer. Starting with the sequence\n$1, \\frac{1}{2}, \\frac{1}{3}, \\dots, \\frac{1}{negativebound}$,\nform a new sequence of  $negativebound-1$  entries\n$\\frac{3}{4}, \\frac{5}{12}, \\dots, \\frac{2negativebound-1}{2negativebound(negativebound-1)}$\nby taking the averages of\ntwo consecutive entries in the first sequence. Repeat the\naveraging of neighbors on the second sequence to obtain a third\nsequence of  $negativebound-2$  entries, and continue until the final sequence produced\nconsists of a single number  $startnumber$.  Show that  $startnumber < 2/negativebound$.",
      "solution": "It is easy to see by induction that the $fixedcounter$-th entry of the $settledlevel$-th\nsequence (where the original sequence is $settledlevel=1$) is\n$\\sum_{constantindex=1}^{settledlevel} \\binom{settledlevel-1}{constantindex-1}/(2^{settledlevel-1} (constantindex+fixedcounter-1))$, and so\n$startnumber = \\frac{1}{2^{negativebound-1}} \\sum_{constantindex=1}^{negativebound} \\binom{negativebound-1}{constantindex-1}/constantindex$.\nNow $\\binom{negativebound-1}{constantindex-1}/constantindex = \\binom{negativebound}{constantindex}/negativebound$; hence\n\\[\nstartnumber = \\frac{1}{negativebound 2^{negativebound-1}} \\sum_{constantindex=1}^{negativebound} \\binom{negativebound}{constantindex}\n= \\frac{2^{negativebound}-1}{negativebound 2^{negativebound-1}} < 2/negativebound,\n\\]\nas desired."
    },
    "garbled_string": {
      "map": {
        "i": "qzxwvtnp",
        "j": "hjgrksla",
        "k": "mnbvcxzq",
        "x_n": "azsxdcfv",
        "n": "lkjhgfds"
      },
      "question": "Let  $lkjhgfds$  be a positive integer. Starting with the sequence\n$1, \\frac{1}{2}, \\frac{1}{3}, \\dots, \\frac{1}{lkjhgfds}$,\nform a new sequence of  $lkjhgfds-1$  entries\n$\\frac{3}{4}, \\frac{5}{12}, \\dots, \\frac{2lkjhgfds-1}{2lkjhgfds(lkjhgfds-1)}$\nby taking the averages of\ntwo consecutive entries in the first sequence. Repeat the\naveraging of neighbors on the second sequence to obtain a third\nsequence of  $lkjhgfds-2$  entries, and continue until the final sequence produced\nconsists of a single number  $azsxdcfv$.  Show that  $azsxdcfv < 2/lkjhgfds$.",
      "solution": "It is easy to see by induction that the $hjgrksla$-th entry of the $mnbvcxzq$-th\nsequence (where the original sequence is $mnbvcxzq=1$) is\n$\\sum_{qzxwvtnp=1}^{mnbvcxzq} \\binom{mnbvcxzq-1}{qzxwvtnp-1}/(2^{mnbvcxzq-1} (qzxwvtnp+hjgrksla-1))$, and so\n$azsxdcfv = \\frac{1}{2^{lkjhgfds-1}} \\sum_{qzxwvtnp=1}^{lkjhgfds} \\binom{lkjhgfds-1}{qzxwvtnp-1}/qzxwvtnp$.\nNow $\\binom{lkjhgfds-1}{qzxwvtnp-1}/qzxwvtnp = \\binom{lkjhgfds}{qzxwvtnp}/lkjhgfds$; hence\n\\[\nazsxdcfv = \\frac{1}{lkjhgfds2^{lkjhgfds-1}} \\sum_{qzxwvtnp=1}^{lkjhgfds} \\binom{lkjhgfds}{qzxwvtnp}\n= \\frac{2^{lkjhgfds}-1}{lkjhgfds 2^{lkjhgfds-1}} < 2/lkjhgfds,\n\\]\nas desired."
    },
    "kernel_variant": {
      "question": "Fix two integers $d\\ge 1$ and $n\\ge 2$.  Put  \n\\[\nA_{0}(i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d})=\\frac{7}{\\,i_{1}+\\dots +i_{d}-d+1\\,},\n\\qquad 1\\le i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d}\\le n .\n\\]\n\nFor every integer $t$ with $0\\le t\\le n-2$ define  \n\\[\nm_{t}:=n-t\\quad\\bigl(\\text{so }m_{0}=n,\\;m_{n-1}=1\\bigr).\n\\]\nThe array $A_{t}$ has side length $m_{t}$.  \nConstruct the next array $A_{t+1}$ (side length $m_{t+1}=m_{t}-1$) by averaging, for every  \n\\[\n1\\le j_{1},\\dots ,j_{d}\\le m_{t+1},\n\\]\nover the $2^{d}$ vertices of the axis–parallel unit hyper-cube  \n\\[\nH_{t}(j_{1},\\dots ,j_{d})\n      :=\\{(j_{1}+\\varepsilon_{1},\\dots ,j_{d}+\\varepsilon_{d})\n          \\mid \\varepsilon_{k}\\in\\{0,1\\}\\}.\n\\]\nPrecisely,\n\\[\nA_{t+1}(j_{1},\\dots ,j_{d})\n         :=2^{-d}\\!\\!\\sum_{\\varepsilon\\in\\{0,1\\}^{d}}\n                A_{t}(j_{1}+\\varepsilon_{1},\\dots ,j_{d}+\\varepsilon_{d}).\n\\]\n\nAfter $n-1$ rounds exactly one entry is left; denote this number by $z_{n,d}$.\n\na)  Prove the closed formula  \n\\[\n\\boxed{\\;\n        z_{n,d}= \\frac{14\\bigl(1-2^{-d(n-1)-1}\\bigr)}\n                       {\\,d(n-1)+1\\,}\n      \\;}. \\tag{$\\star$}\n\\]\n\nb)  Deduce the sharp universal bound\n\\[\n\\boxed{\\;z_{n,d}\\le \\dfrac{14}{\\,d(n-1)+1\\,}\\;},\n\\]\nshowing at the same time that the inequality is always strict but that\nthe ratio of the two sides tends to $1$ as $d(n-1)\\to\\infty$.",
      "solution": "Throughout put $m_{t}=n-t$.\n\nStep 0.  One–dimensional weights after an arbitrary number of rounds  \nFor a vector $x=(x_{1},\\dots ,x_{m})$ define the linear operator\n\\[\n(T_{m}x)_{j}:=\\frac{x_{j}+x_{j+1}}{2},\\qquad 1\\le j\\le m-1 .\n\\]\nA direct induction on $t$ shows that after $t$ consecutive neighbour–averagings\nthe coefficient of the original entry $x_{i}$ in the $j$-th component of the\nshortened vector is\n\\[\n2^{-t}\\binom{t}{\\,i-j\\,},\\qquad\n1\\le j\\le m-t,\\;j\\le i\\le j+t .\n\\]\nIn particular, after the full $m-1$ rounds that leave only a single number\nthe weight of $x_{i}$ equals\n\\[\n2^{-(m-1)}\\binom{m-1}{\\,i-1\\,}. \\tag{1D}\n\\]\n\nStep 1.  Averaging operators in $d$ dimensions  \nLet $\\mathcal T_{m}$ denote the $d$-dimensional averaging operator that sends\nan $m^{d}$ array $A$ to the $(m-1)^{d}$ array obtained by one cube–averaging:\n\\[\n(\\mathcal T_{m}A)(j_{1},\\dots ,j_{d})\n     =2^{-d}\\!\\!\\sum_{\\varepsilon\\in\\{0,1\\}^{d}}\n            A(j_{1}+\\varepsilon_{1},\\dots ,j_{d}+\\varepsilon_{d}).\n\\]\nFor every coordinate $\\nu$ put\n\\[\nT_{m}^{(\\nu)}:=\\underbrace{I\\otimes\\dots\\otimes I}_{\\nu-1}\n               \\otimes\\,T_{m}\\,\\otimes\n               \\underbrace{I\\otimes\\dots\\otimes I}_{d-\\nu},\n\\]\nwhere $I$ is the identity on $\\mathbb R^{m}$.\nBecause averaging over a cube can be performed by successively averaging\nalong each axis, one has the factorisation\n\\[\n\\mathcal T_{m}=T_{m}^{(1)}\\circ\\dots\\circ T_{m}^{(d)}\n              =T_{m}^{\\otimes d}. \\tag{1}\n\\]\n\nStep 2.  Composition of the successive rounds  \nStarting from $A_{0}$ of side length $n=m_{0}$ we successively apply\n$\\mathcal T_{m_{0}},\\mathcal T_{m_{1}},\\dots ,\\mathcal T_{m_{n-2}}$.\nBy equation (1) this equals the composition\n\\[\nA_{n-1}\n  = \\bigl(T_{m_{n-1}}^{\\otimes d}\\bigr)\\circ\n    \\bigl(T_{m_{n-2}}^{\\otimes d}\\bigr)\\circ\\dots\\circ\n    \\bigl(T_{m_{0}}^{\\otimes d}\\bigr)(A_{0}). \\tag{2}\n\\]\nEach factor $T_{m}^{\\otimes d}$ acts only on arrays whose side length is\nexactly $m$, so all terms in the composition are well defined.\n\nStep 3.  The weight of an initial entry  \nFix an initial index $(i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d})$ with $1\\le i_{\\nu}\\le n$.\nBecause the operators acting along different axes commute, the overall\nweight with which this entry contributes to the final single number is the\nproduct of the one-dimensional weights from (1D):\n\\[\nw(i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d})\n   =\\prod_{\\nu=1}^{d}2^{-(n-1)}\\binom{n-1}{\\,i_{\\nu}-1\\,}\n   =2^{-d(n-1)}\n     \\prod_{\\nu=1}^{d}\\binom{n-1}{\\,i_{\\nu}-1\\,}. \\tag{3}\n\\]\nThe family $\\{w(i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d})\\}$ forms a probability distribution,\nsince each one-dimensional weight sequence is stochastic.\n\nStep 4.  Probabilistic reformulation  \nIntroduce independent random variables\n$X_{1},\\dots ,X_{d}$ with distribution\n\\[\n\\mathbb P\\!\\bigl[X_{\\nu}=i\\bigr]\n     =2^{-(n-1)}\\binom{n-1}{\\,i-1\\,},\\qquad i=1,\\dots ,n .\n\\]\nWith $S:=X_{1}+\\dots +X_{d}$ the representation (3) gives\n\\[\nz_{n,d}=7\\,\\mathbb E\\!\\bigl[S-d+1\\bigr]^{-1}. \\tag{4}\n\\]\n\nStep 5.  Converting the reciprocal into an integral  \nFor any integer $m\\ge 1$,\n\\[\n\\frac{1}{m}=\\int_{0}^{1}t^{\\,m-1}\\,dt .\n\\]\nTaking $m=S-d+1$ in (4) yields\n\\[\nz_{n,d}=7\\int_{0}^{1}\\mathbb E\\!\\bigl[t^{\\,S-d}\\bigr]\\,dt\n       =7\\int_{0}^{1}\\prod_{\\nu=1}^{d}\\mathbb E\\!\\bigl[t^{\\,X_{\\nu}-1}\\bigr]\\,dt. \\tag{5}\n\\]\n\nStep 6.  Evaluating the inner expectation  \nFor every $\\nu$,\n\\[\n\\mathbb E\\!\\bigl[t^{\\,X_{\\nu}-1}\\bigr]\n   =2^{-(n-1)}\\sum_{i=1}^{n}\\binom{n-1}{\\,i-1\\,}t^{\\,i-1}\n   =2^{-(n-1)}(1+t)^{\\,n-1}. \\tag{6}\n\\]\nInsert (6) into (5) and denote $M:=d(n-1)$:\n\\[\nz_{n,d}=7\\cdot 2^{-M}\\int_{0}^{1}(1+t)^{M}\\,dt. \\tag{7}\n\\]\n\nStep 7.  A Beta–type integral  \n\\[\n\\int_{0}^{1}(1+t)^{M}\\,dt\n     =\\Bigl[\\frac{(1+t)^{M+1}}{M+1}\\Bigr]_{0}^{1}\n     =\\frac{2^{M+1}-1}{M+1}. \\tag{8}\n\\]\nCombining (7) and (8) gives\n\\[\nz_{n,d}\n   =7\\cdot 2^{-M}\\cdot\\frac{2^{M+1}-1}{M+1}\n   =\\frac{14\\bigl(1-2^{-(M+1)}\\bigr)}{M+1}. \\tag{9}\n\\]\nRemembering $M=d(n-1)$ establishes the closed formula $(\\star)$.\n\nStep 8.  The uniform bound  \nBecause $1-2^{-(M+1)}<1$ for every finite $M$,\n\\[\nz_{n,d}\n   =\\frac{14\\bigl(1-2^{-(M+1)}\\bigr)}{M+1}\n   <\\frac{14}{M+1}\n   =\\frac{14}{\\,d(n-1)+1\\,}. \\tag{10}\n\\]\nReplacing the strict inequality by $\\le$ does not affect truth, hence\npart (b) follows.  Equality would force $2^{-(M+1)}=0$, impossible for\nfinite $M$; thus the inequality is always strict.\nSince $1-2^{-(M+1)}\\to 1$ as $M\\to\\infty$, the ratio of the two sides\ntends to $1$, proving optimality.\n\nRemark.  The argument never used $d\\ge 2$; for $d=1$ it reduces to the\nclassical neighbour-averaging problem with the initial harmonic sequence.",
      "metadata": {
        "replaced_from": "harder_variant",
        "replacement_date": "2025-07-14T19:09:31.780961",
        "was_fixed": false,
        "difficulty_analysis": "1. Higher dimension.  \n The original single–index process is promoted to an averaging\nprocedure on a d-dimensional lattice; the relevant combinatorics now\ninvolves d independent binomial distributions and a d-fold convolution.\n\n2. Sophisticated tools.  \n To keep the problem tractable the solution introduces a probabilistic\nmodel, integral transforms, the Beta function and properties of the\ngamma function—none of which appear in the original exercise.\n\n3. Additional layers of reasoning.  \n Deriving the common weight (1) already requires an\ninduction-on-dimension argument; converting the discrete expectation\nto the integral (7) and evaluating it with a non-trivial substitution\nis another conceptual leap.\n\n4. Sharper estimates.  \n After obtaining an exact integral expression the solver still needs a\ncareful chain of inequalities—(9) through (13)—to finish the bound\nrequested.  Balancing factorials against powers demands good mastery\nof asymptotic or combinatorial bounds.\n\n5. Interacting concepts.  \n Combinatorics (multinomial weights), analysis (integral\nrepresentations and Beta functions) and probability (interpretation of\nthe weights as a distribution, expectation manipulation) all interact\nessentially; no single elementary trick suffices.\n\nBecause of these extra dimensions—literally and figuratively—the\nenhanced variant is substantially more challenging than both the\noriginal problem and the one–dimensional kernel variant."
      }
    },
    "original_kernel_variant": {
      "question": "Fix two integers $d\\ge 1$ and $n\\ge 2$.  Put  \n\\[\nA_{0}(i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d})=\\frac{7}{\\,i_{1}+\\dots +i_{d}-d+1\\,},\n\\qquad 1\\le i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d}\\le n .\n\\]\n\nFor every integer $t$ with $0\\le t\\le n-2$ define  \n\\[\nm_{t}:=n-t\\quad\\bigl(\\text{so }m_{0}=n,\\;m_{n-1}=1\\bigr).\n\\]\nThe array $A_{t}$ has side length $m_{t}$.  \nConstruct the next array $A_{t+1}$ (side length $m_{t+1}=m_{t}-1$) by averaging, for every  \n\\[\n1\\le j_{1},\\dots ,j_{d}\\le m_{t+1},\n\\]\nover the $2^{d}$ vertices of the axis–parallel unit hyper-cube  \n\\[\nH_{t}(j_{1},\\dots ,j_{d})\n      :=\\{(j_{1}+\\varepsilon_{1},\\dots ,j_{d}+\\varepsilon_{d})\n          \\mid \\varepsilon_{k}\\in\\{0,1\\}\\}.\n\\]\nPrecisely,\n\\[\nA_{t+1}(j_{1},\\dots ,j_{d})\n         :=2^{-d}\\!\\!\\sum_{\\varepsilon\\in\\{0,1\\}^{d}}\n                A_{t}(j_{1}+\\varepsilon_{1},\\dots ,j_{d}+\\varepsilon_{d}).\n\\]\n\nAfter $n-1$ rounds exactly one entry is left; denote this number by $z_{n,d}$.\n\na)  Prove the closed formula  \n\\[\n\\boxed{\\;\n        z_{n,d}= \\frac{14\\bigl(1-2^{-d(n-1)-1}\\bigr)}\n                       {\\,d(n-1)+1\\,}\n      \\;}. \\tag{$\\star$}\n\\]\n\nb)  Deduce the sharp universal bound\n\\[\n\\boxed{\\;z_{n,d}\\le \\dfrac{14}{\\,d(n-1)+1\\,}\\;},\n\\]\nshowing at the same time that the inequality is always strict but that\nthe ratio of the two sides tends to $1$ as $d(n-1)\\to\\infty$.",
      "solution": "Throughout put $m_{t}=n-t$.\n\nStep 0.  One–dimensional weights after an arbitrary number of rounds  \nFor a vector $x=(x_{1},\\dots ,x_{m})$ define the linear operator\n\\[\n(T_{m}x)_{j}:=\\frac{x_{j}+x_{j+1}}{2},\\qquad 1\\le j\\le m-1 .\n\\]\nA direct induction on $t$ shows that after $t$ consecutive neighbour–averagings\nthe coefficient of the original entry $x_{i}$ in the $j$-th component of the\nshortened vector is\n\\[\n2^{-t}\\binom{t}{\\,i-j\\,},\\qquad\n1\\le j\\le m-t,\\;j\\le i\\le j+t .\n\\]\nIn particular, after the full $m-1$ rounds that leave only a single number\nthe weight of $x_{i}$ equals\n\\[\n2^{-(m-1)}\\binom{m-1}{\\,i-1\\,}. \\tag{1D}\n\\]\n\nStep 1.  Averaging operators in $d$ dimensions  \nLet $\\mathcal T_{m}$ denote the $d$-dimensional averaging operator that sends\nan $m^{d}$ array $A$ to the $(m-1)^{d}$ array obtained by one cube–averaging:\n\\[\n(\\mathcal T_{m}A)(j_{1},\\dots ,j_{d})\n     =2^{-d}\\!\\!\\sum_{\\varepsilon\\in\\{0,1\\}^{d}}\n            A(j_{1}+\\varepsilon_{1},\\dots ,j_{d}+\\varepsilon_{d}).\n\\]\nFor every coordinate $\\nu$ put\n\\[\nT_{m}^{(\\nu)}:=\\underbrace{I\\otimes\\dots\\otimes I}_{\\nu-1}\n               \\otimes\\,T_{m}\\,\\otimes\n               \\underbrace{I\\otimes\\dots\\otimes I}_{d-\\nu},\n\\]\nwhere $I$ is the identity on $\\mathbb R^{m}$.\nBecause averaging over a cube can be performed by successively averaging\nalong each axis, one has the factorisation\n\\[\n\\mathcal T_{m}=T_{m}^{(1)}\\circ\\dots\\circ T_{m}^{(d)}\n              =T_{m}^{\\otimes d}. \\tag{1}\n\\]\n\nStep 2.  Composition of the successive rounds  \nStarting from $A_{0}$ of side length $n=m_{0}$ we successively apply\n$\\mathcal T_{m_{0}},\\mathcal T_{m_{1}},\\dots ,\\mathcal T_{m_{n-2}}$.\nBy equation (1) this equals the composition\n\\[\nA_{n-1}\n  = \\bigl(T_{m_{n-1}}^{\\otimes d}\\bigr)\\circ\n    \\bigl(T_{m_{n-2}}^{\\otimes d}\\bigr)\\circ\\dots\\circ\n    \\bigl(T_{m_{0}}^{\\otimes d}\\bigr)(A_{0}). \\tag{2}\n\\]\nEach factor $T_{m}^{\\otimes d}$ acts only on arrays whose side length is\nexactly $m$, so all terms in the composition are well defined.\n\nStep 3.  The weight of an initial entry  \nFix an initial index $(i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d})$ with $1\\le i_{\\nu}\\le n$.\nBecause the operators acting along different axes commute, the overall\nweight with which this entry contributes to the final single number is the\nproduct of the one-dimensional weights from (1D):\n\\[\nw(i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d})\n   =\\prod_{\\nu=1}^{d}2^{-(n-1)}\\binom{n-1}{\\,i_{\\nu}-1\\,}\n   =2^{-d(n-1)}\n     \\prod_{\\nu=1}^{d}\\binom{n-1}{\\,i_{\\nu}-1\\,}. \\tag{3}\n\\]\nThe family $\\{w(i_{1},\\dots ,i_{d})\\}$ forms a probability distribution,\nsince each one-dimensional weight sequence is stochastic.\n\nStep 4.  Probabilistic reformulation  \nIntroduce independent random variables\n$X_{1},\\dots ,X_{d}$ with distribution\n\\[\n\\mathbb P\\!\\bigl[X_{\\nu}=i\\bigr]\n     =2^{-(n-1)}\\binom{n-1}{\\,i-1\\,},\\qquad i=1,\\dots ,n .\n\\]\nWith $S:=X_{1}+\\dots +X_{d}$ the representation (3) gives\n\\[\nz_{n,d}=7\\,\\mathbb E\\!\\bigl[S-d+1\\bigr]^{-1}. \\tag{4}\n\\]\n\nStep 5.  Converting the reciprocal into an integral  \nFor any integer $m\\ge 1$,\n\\[\n\\frac{1}{m}=\\int_{0}^{1}t^{\\,m-1}\\,dt .\n\\]\nTaking $m=S-d+1$ in (4) yields\n\\[\nz_{n,d}=7\\int_{0}^{1}\\mathbb E\\!\\bigl[t^{\\,S-d}\\bigr]\\,dt\n       =7\\int_{0}^{1}\\prod_{\\nu=1}^{d}\\mathbb E\\!\\bigl[t^{\\,X_{\\nu}-1}\\bigr]\\,dt. \\tag{5}\n\\]\n\nStep 6.  Evaluating the inner expectation  \nFor every $\\nu$,\n\\[\n\\mathbb E\\!\\bigl[t^{\\,X_{\\nu}-1}\\bigr]\n   =2^{-(n-1)}\\sum_{i=1}^{n}\\binom{n-1}{\\,i-1\\,}t^{\\,i-1}\n   =2^{-(n-1)}(1+t)^{\\,n-1}. \\tag{6}\n\\]\nInsert (6) into (5) and denote $M:=d(n-1)$:\n\\[\nz_{n,d}=7\\cdot 2^{-M}\\int_{0}^{1}(1+t)^{M}\\,dt. \\tag{7}\n\\]\n\nStep 7.  A Beta–type integral  \n\\[\n\\int_{0}^{1}(1+t)^{M}\\,dt\n     =\\Bigl[\\frac{(1+t)^{M+1}}{M+1}\\Bigr]_{0}^{1}\n     =\\frac{2^{M+1}-1}{M+1}. \\tag{8}\n\\]\nCombining (7) and (8) gives\n\\[\nz_{n,d}\n   =7\\cdot 2^{-M}\\cdot\\frac{2^{M+1}-1}{M+1}\n   =\\frac{14\\bigl(1-2^{-(M+1)}\\bigr)}{M+1}. \\tag{9}\n\\]\nRemembering $M=d(n-1)$ establishes the closed formula $(\\star)$.\n\nStep 8.  The uniform bound  \nBecause $1-2^{-(M+1)}<1$ for every finite $M$,\n\\[\nz_{n,d}\n   =\\frac{14\\bigl(1-2^{-(M+1)}\\bigr)}{M+1}\n   <\\frac{14}{M+1}\n   =\\frac{14}{\\,d(n-1)+1\\,}. \\tag{10}\n\\]\nReplacing the strict inequality by $\\le$ does not affect truth, hence\npart (b) follows.  Equality would force $2^{-(M+1)}=0$, impossible for\nfinite $M$; thus the inequality is always strict.\nSince $1-2^{-(M+1)}\\to 1$ as $M\\to\\infty$, the ratio of the two sides\ntends to $1$, proving optimality.\n\nRemark.  The argument never used $d\\ge 2$; for $d=1$ it reduces to the\nclassical neighbour-averaging problem with the initial harmonic sequence.",
      "metadata": {
        "replaced_from": "harder_variant",
        "replacement_date": "2025-07-14T01:37:45.598328",
        "was_fixed": false,
        "difficulty_analysis": "1. Higher dimension.  \n The original single–index process is promoted to an averaging\nprocedure on a d-dimensional lattice; the relevant combinatorics now\ninvolves d independent binomial distributions and a d-fold convolution.\n\n2. Sophisticated tools.  \n To keep the problem tractable the solution introduces a probabilistic\nmodel, integral transforms, the Beta function and properties of the\ngamma function—none of which appear in the original exercise.\n\n3. Additional layers of reasoning.  \n Deriving the common weight (1) already requires an\ninduction-on-dimension argument; converting the discrete expectation\nto the integral (7) and evaluating it with a non-trivial substitution\nis another conceptual leap.\n\n4. Sharper estimates.  \n After obtaining an exact integral expression the solver still needs a\ncareful chain of inequalities—(9) through (13)—to finish the bound\nrequested.  Balancing factorials against powers demands good mastery\nof asymptotic or combinatorial bounds.\n\n5. Interacting concepts.  \n Combinatorics (multinomial weights), analysis (integral\nrepresentations and Beta functions) and probability (interpretation of\nthe weights as a distribution, expectation manipulation) all interact\nessentially; no single elementary trick suffices.\n\nBecause of these extra dimensions—literally and figuratively—the\nenhanced variant is substantially more challenging than both the\noriginal problem and the one–dimensional kernel variant."
      }
    }
  },
  "checked": true,
  "problem_type": "proof"
}