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Sub 505 Level|   Algebra|                     
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Bunuel
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Bunuel
Is x = 1/y?

(1) xy = 1
(2) 1/(xy) = 1

Kudos for a correct solution.

1) Rewrite to get x = 1/y --> sufficient
2) Multiply by x to get x = 1/y --> sufficient

Answer D
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Is x = 1/y?

(1) xy = 1
(2) 1/(xy) = 1

From st 1
(1) xy = 1
there fore
x = 1/y

sufficient

From st 2
(2) 1/(xy) = 1

1/y = x ( simply rearranging the statement )

sufficient
hence D ans
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1 rewrite to get x=1/y sufficient
2 rewrite or multiply by x on both the sides you get x=1/y sufficient
D
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Bunuel
Is x = 1/y?

(1) xy = 1
(2) 1/(xy) = 1

Kudos for a correct solution.

Target question: Is x = 1/y?

Statement 1: xy = 1
This tells us that y does NOT equal 0 (and x does NOT equal 0 too)
So, if we take xy = 1 and divide both sides by y, we get x = 1/y
PERFECT, this is exactly what we are looking for.
Since we can answer the target question with certainty, statement 1 is SUFFICIENT

Statement 2: 1/(xy) = 1
This tells us that x and y do NOT equal 0
So, we can take 1/(xy) and multiply both sides by x to get 1/y = x
Also PERFECT!
Since we can answer the target question with certainty, statement 2 is SUFFICIENT

Answer:
Cheers,
Brent
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Cross multiply the question and it becomes xy = 1
Now check the options
So both separately prove xy=1
Hence D

Kudos please
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Is there any problem for multiplying or dividing any variables without knowing the sign?? I found it in the inequality problem and now get confused. Please suggest me when to consider this principle?
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Bunuel
Is x = 1/y?

(1) xy = 1
(2) 1/(xy) = 1

Kudos for a correct solution.

Is x = 1/y?

(1) xy = 1
x = 1/y
SUFFICIENT

(2) 1/(xy) = 1
x = 1/y
SUFFICIENT

IMO D
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sajon
Is there any problem for multiplying or dividing any variables without knowing the sign?? I found it in the inequality problem and now get confused. Please suggest me when to consider this principle?

no - you just have to make sure you multiply both sides by the same thing.
There is a problem in inequalities - not in equations.
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BrentGMATPrepNow
Bunuel
Is x = 1/y?

(1) xy = 1
(2) 1/(xy) = 1

Kudos for a correct solution.

Target question: Is x = 1/y?

Statement 1: xy = 1
This tells us that y does NOT equal 0 (and x does NOT equal 0 too)
So, if we take xy = 1 and divide both sides by y, we get x = 1/y
PERFECT, this is exactly what we are looking for.
Since we can answer the target question with certainty, statement 1 is SUFFICIENT

Statement 2: 1/(xy) = 1
This tells us that x and y do NOT equal 0
So, we can take 1/(xy) and multiply both sides by x to get 1/y = x
Also PERFECT!
Since we can answer the target question with certainty, statement 2 is SUFFICIENT

Answer:
Cheers,
Brent

Thank you Brent! Why does it matter than neither x nor y equal 0?
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Bunuel
Is x = 1/y ?

(1) xy = 1
(2) 1/(xy) = 1

As per me, OA should be E as both statement are tautological (simply restating what is asked)

Posted from my mobile device
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Bunuel
Is x = 1/y ?

(1) xy = 1
(2) 1/(xy) = 1

As per me, OA should be E as both statement are tautological (simply restating what is asked)

Posted from my mobile device

Yes, the statements are basically saying the same thing, but since each statement gives an YES answer to the question the answer is D, not E.
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Bunuel
Is x = 1/y ?

(1) xy = 1
(2) 1/(xy) = 1
Answer: Option D

Video solution by GMATinsight

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Bunuel
Is x = 1/y ?

(1) xy = 1
(2) 1/(xy) = 1
Solution:

Question Stem Analysis:

We need to determine whether x = 1/y.

Statement One Alone:

Dividing both sides by y (since y can’t be 0), we have x = 1/y. Statement one alone is sufficient.

Statement Two Alone:

Multiplying both sides by xy (since xy can’t be 0), we have xy = 1. Since this is the same as statement one and statement one is sufficient, statement two is also sufficient.

Answer: D
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