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Bunuel
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Bunuel
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I think this is a high-quality question and I agree with explanation.
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I have edited the question and the solution by adding more details to enhance its clarity. I hope it is now easier to understand.
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Bunuel
Is \(a^7*b^2*c^3 \gt 0\)?



(1) \(bc \lt 0\)

(2) \(ac \gt 0\)


The conditions that should be satisfied
a) None should be 0
b) ac >0

Thus, we are looking for:
a) If any of the three are 0, then answer is NO.
b) If none are 0, then we look for whether ac >0.

(1) \(bc \lt 0\)
Just tells us that b and c are of opposite sign and are not 0.
Nothing about a.
Insufficient

(2) \(ac \gt 0\)
This tells us that ac >0, but we do not know whether b is 0 or otherwise.
Insufficient


Combined
Both conditions met and answer is YES.


C
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To solve this Data Sufficiency question we need to show that 1) a, b and c are all different from 0, 2) a and c have opposite signs

Let's evaluate each statement separately:
Statement (1) is insufficient to answer but tells us that b is not equal to zero.
Statement (2) is also insufficient alone, but enables us to determine that a and c have opposite signs

You need the combination of these 2 statements to answer this question. The right answer is (C)
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a7 ∗ b2 ∗ c3 = (ac)3 ∗ a4 * b2
Since ac > 0
and a4 * b2 will be > 0 (product of square of a2 and b)
Statement B is sufficient by itself.
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sarakuma
a7 ∗ b2 ∗ c3 = (ac)3 ∗ a4 * b2
Since ac > 0
and a4 * b2 will be > 0 (product of square of a2 and b)
Statement B is sufficient by itself.

You should read solutions more carefully:
    (2) \(ac \gt 0\).

    This implies that \(a\) and \(c\) are either both positive or both negative. But, we don't know about \(b\): if \(b=0\), then the expression will be equal to 0. Thus, this is also not sufficient.
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