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Updated on: 03 Mar 2011, 21:31
Originally posted by spacelandprep on 03 Mar 2011, 12:27.
Last edited by spacelandprep on 03 Mar 2011, 21:31, edited 2 times in total.
Last edited by spacelandprep on 03 Mar 2011, 21:31, edited 2 times in total.
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E
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
45%
(medium)
Question Stats:
58% (01:15) correct
42%
(00:56)
wrong
based on 105
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Does abcd = 1?
(1) abc = 1
(2) bcd = 1
Solution:
(1) abc = 1
(2) bcd = 1
Solution:
The question asks whether the product of four variables will be 1. The variables are completely unqualified, so to answer this question something must be known about each variable.
Statement (1) provides a relationship between three of the variables so it is insufficient.
Statement (2) provides a relationship between three of the variables so it is insufficient.
This eliminates three answers choices.
Taken together the Statements do provide information about all four variables, but is that information enough? Let's use the Schrute test.
Dwight Schrute once said, "Whenever I'm about to do something, I think, "Would an idiot do that?" And if they would, I do not do that thing."
Let's modify this for the GMAT: "Whenever I'm about to pick an answer, I think, "Would a typical GMAT taker pick that answer?"And if they would, I do not pick that answer."
Would a typical GMAT taker think that Statements (1) and (2) were sufficient? Yes, he would. Therefore we must pick TOGETHER NOT sufficient.
Statement (1) provides a relationship between three of the variables so it is insufficient.
Statement (2) provides a relationship between three of the variables so it is insufficient.
This eliminates three answers choices.
Taken together the Statements do provide information about all four variables, but is that information enough? Let's use the Schrute test.
Dwight Schrute once said, "Whenever I'm about to do something, I think, "Would an idiot do that?" And if they would, I do not do that thing."
Let's modify this for the GMAT: "Whenever I'm about to pick an answer, I think, "Would a typical GMAT taker pick that answer?"And if they would, I do not pick that answer."
Would a typical GMAT taker think that Statements (1) and (2) were sufficient? Yes, he would. Therefore we must pick TOGETHER NOT sufficient.
03 Mar 2011, 12:33
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We want to find out is abcd = 1
Statement 1 says abc = 1. It doesn't say anything about d, so insufficient
Statement 2 says bcd = 1. It doesn't say anything about a, so insufficient
Combining 1 and 2, we get a(bc)(bc)d=1
or abcd*bc = 1
Now abcd would be 1 only if bc = 1, but neither 1 nor 2 nor them combined can definitely tell us that bc = 1. Fore.g., bc can be 1/2 and a=2 and d = 2 and both statements can be satisfied.
So, answer should be E
Statement 1 says abc = 1. It doesn't say anything about d, so insufficient
Statement 2 says bcd = 1. It doesn't say anything about a, so insufficient
Combining 1 and 2, we get a(bc)(bc)d=1
or abcd*bc = 1
Now abcd would be 1 only if bc = 1, but neither 1 nor 2 nor them combined can definitely tell us that bc = 1. Fore.g., bc can be 1/2 and a=2 and d = 2 and both statements can be satisfied.
So, answer should be E
03 Mar 2011, 20:05
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spacelandprep
I've seen prep company representatives repeat this idea in many places, and it's mathematical nonsense. If you change your question to:
Does abcd = 0?
(1) abc = 0
(2) bcd = 0
then you certainly do not need to know 'about each variable' to answer the question; the answer is D even though we don't know the value of any of the variables. There are many official DS questions with multiple unknowns which follow a similar pattern - the question asks for the value of some combination of unknowns, and while you cannot determine the value of the unknowns themselves, you can still answer the question. Q168 in the DS section of OG12 is one of many examples.
spacelandprep
There are many GMAT questions which are genuinely simple. Applying this test to real GMAT questions could easily lead a test taker to 'outsmart' him or herself, and pick the wrong answer rather than the correct one. While I agree one should be suspicious of 'obvious' answers in DS, the safest thing for the test taker to do is to understand the math involved, rather than apply gimmicky 'tricks' which will only give you the right answer some of the time.
