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n2739178
Joined: 12 May 2010
Last visit: 05 Jul 2013
Posts: 233
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 12
Location: United Kingdom
Concentration: Entrepreneurship, Technology
Schools: LBS '14 Oxford '14 Judge Sloan '14 INSEAD '14
GMAT Date: 10-22-2011
GPA: 3
WE:Information Technology (Internet and New Media)
15 Jul 2011, 10:02
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Hi everyone,
I've realised recently that DS Inequalities are my number one area of weakness.
So I thought I'd start up a thread to discuss them.
What I'm hoping for is that people can post the different strategies and methods they use to attack these questions (with examples) - that way I can start to get a feel for how to approach these horrible, nasty questions.
I've bought Jeff Sackmann's Total GMAT Math and in that he says it is best to conceptualise these questions in your head, however I'm not so sure - isn't picking numbers better?
thanks
I've realised recently that DS Inequalities are my number one area of weakness.
So I thought I'd start up a thread to discuss them.
What I'm hoping for is that people can post the different strategies and methods they use to attack these questions (with examples) - that way I can start to get a feel for how to approach these horrible, nasty questions.
I've bought Jeff Sackmann's Total GMAT Math and in that he says it is best to conceptualise these questions in your head, however I'm not so sure - isn't picking numbers better?
thanks
Archived Topic
Hi there,
This topic has been closed and archived due to inactivity or violation of community quality standards. No more replies are possible here.
Where to now? Join ongoing discussions on thousands of quality questions in our Quantitative Questions Forum
Still interested in this question? Check out the "Best Topics" block below for a better discussion on this exact question, as well as several more related questions.
Thank you for understanding, and happy exploring!
15 Jul 2011, 22:56
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n2739178
For me the best way to solve inequalities is via substitution with boundary conditions.
30 Jul 2011, 02:58
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I don't think there is one universal way of solving every DS inequalities question.
For some questions, assuming values and testing the conditions may be a good strategy. However, this is prone to some risk - you may forget to substitute a critical value (say, negatives) and check for it and therefore miss the correct answer choice.
On the other hand, solving an inequality algebraically can often give you the exact ranges you need to work with, besides the confidence that you haven't left anything out. On the other hand, this may be time consuming for some people, besides being very difficult to do on some questions.
I would suggest going over the rules for inequalities thoroughly so you are well equipped to handle a problem algebraically. If you can do the problem algebraically, and in a short amount of time, go for it. Else the number substitution approach is always possible.
For some questions, assuming values and testing the conditions may be a good strategy. However, this is prone to some risk - you may forget to substitute a critical value (say, negatives) and check for it and therefore miss the correct answer choice.
On the other hand, solving an inequality algebraically can often give you the exact ranges you need to work with, besides the confidence that you haven't left anything out. On the other hand, this may be time consuming for some people, besides being very difficult to do on some questions.
I would suggest going over the rules for inequalities thoroughly so you are well equipped to handle a problem algebraically. If you can do the problem algebraically, and in a short amount of time, go for it. Else the number substitution approach is always possible.
Archived Topic
Hi there,
This topic has been closed and archived due to inactivity or violation of community quality standards. No more replies are possible here.
Where to now? Join ongoing discussions on thousands of quality questions in our Quantitative Questions Forum
Still interested in this question? Check out the "Best Topics" block above for a better discussion on this exact question, as well as several more related questions.
Thank you for understanding, and happy exploring!
