How many books will fit into a drawer? (1) Each book has a volume of

Question

How many books will fit into a drawer?

(1) Each book has a volume of 10 cubic centimeters.
(2) The drawer is 300 centimeters by 30 centimeters by 20 centimeters and has the shape of a rectangular solid.

DS21213

BrentGMATPrepNow · Accepted Answer

Target question :    How many books will fit into a drawer?

Statement 1 : Each book has a volume of 10 cubic centimeters.  
Since we have no information about the size of the drawer, statement 1 is NOT SUFFICIENT

Statement 2 : The drawer is 300 centimeters by 30 centimeters by 20 centimeters and has the shape of a rectangular solid. 
Since we have no information about the size of the books, statement 2 is NOT SUFFICIENT

Statements 1 and 2 combined    
It's very tempting to think that, since the volume of the drawer = (300)(30)(20) = 180,000 cubic centimeters, we need only divide that this volume by the volume of one book to determine the number of books that will fit in the drawer. To better understand why this reasoning is faulty, let's examine two possible cases:
 Case a : The measurements of the book are 1000 cm by 0.1 cm by 0.1 cm (notice that the volume of this book is 10 cubic centimeters). Since this book is far too long to fit into the drawer, the answer to the target question is  ZERO books will fit into the drawer 
 Case b : The measurements of the book are 10 cm by 1 cm by 1 cm (the volume of this book is still 10 cubic centimeters). In this case, the answer to the target question is  more than zero books will fit into the drawer 
Since we can’t answer the  target question  with certainty, the combined statements are NOT SUFFICIENT

Answer: E

Cheers,
Brent

nick1816 · Answer

Since we don't know the exact shape of the books and how we will put them in the drawer even after combining both statements, we can't tell how many books will fit in the drawer.

E

bM22 · Answer

Statement 1: Each book has a volume of 10 cubic centimeters.
 Insufficient  as we know nothing about the shape of the books or the drawer its to be put in.

Statement 2: The drawer is 300 centimeters by 30 centimeters by 20 centimeters and has the shape of a rectangular solid.
 Insufficient , as we know nothing about the size of books

Statement 1 + Statement 2:
We have the volume of books and the drawer.
We know that the drawer is a cuboid, but we cannot say for sure what is the shape of the books, it could be a cube or a cuboid.
Thus  Insufficient .

Answer E.

NitishJain · Answer

We need to find the # of books.

# of books = Volume of shelf/ volume of one book

Lets analyze statements now:

I:: Each book volume = 10; Since shelf volume is not given, # of books cannot be found.  NOT SUFFICIENT 
II: Volume of Shelf = 300* 30*20; Books volume not available; hence  NOT SUFFICIENT

Lest combine both statements:
From the statement I: we get volume for book
From statement II: we get volume of shelf
# of book = 300*30*30/10

Sufficient

IMO:  C

Rocknrolla21 · Answer

BrentGMATPrepNow , can you please explain how does it make a difference if the books are in the shape of a cube or a cuboid.

Can't we treat the volume holistically? Volume is basically the space that's available.

Thank you.

BrentGMATPrepNow · Answer

I'm not sure what is meant by the cuboid comment made by the earlier poster. 
How about I just solve the question instead...see below

Rocknrolla21 · Answer

Sure.  BrentGMATPrepNow .

Thank you.

danthegmatmannyc · Answer

Knowing just the volume of the book makes the whole problem insufficient- you always have to know the specific dimensions for both a container and the items fitting in the container

bumpbot · Answer

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How many books will fit into a drawer? (1) Each book has a volume of

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