If a theater has 10 seats in the front row and adds 2 seats to each subsequent row, how many seats does the sixteenth row have?

To determine the number of seats in the sixteenth row, it's important to first understand how the seating arrangement works. The theater starts with 10 seats in the front row, and each subsequent row adds 2 additional seats.

This means we can express the number of seats in any given row with the following formula:

Number of seats in row n = 10 + (n - 1) * 2

In this formula:

• The term "10" represents the number of seats in the first row.

• The term "(n - 1) * 2" represents the additional seats added for each subsequent row.

Now, for the sixteenth row (where n = 16):

Number of seats in row 16 = 10 + (16 - 1) * 2

Calculating this:

Number of seats in row 16 = 10 + (15) * 2

Number of seats in row 16 = 10 + 30

Number of seats in row 16 = 40

Thus, the sixteenth row has 40 seats. This consistent pattern where each sequential row increases by 2 seats from the previous row confirms that the theater's seating arrangement is systematic and linear.