Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Oxford / 2023 / Prelims / Mathematics II / 2 / c / iii / Solution

Let $u(x)=(\log x)x^{-2/3}$. Its derivative iswhich is negative for $x>e^{3/2}$. Also $u(x)\to 0$, since a positive power eventually dominates the natural logarithm. Thus the alternating series test proves convergence of $\sum (-1{)}^{n}u(n)$.

For $n\ge 3$, $u(n)\ge n^{-2/3}$, whose p-series diverges. The comparison test therefore rules out absolute convergence. The answer is conditional convergence.