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09 Jan 2012, 08:13
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Hi,
I am facing this problem with plugging numbers on the DS section. this i realised happens when I miss plugging in some specific numbers that just turn around the answer of the question.
for eg testing with 1 points that the statement is sufficient but if I test say a fraction the value is insufficient.. Please help me identify what is the best way to plug numbers ..is there a specific set of numbers i should test ? Many thanks in advance
I am facing this problem with plugging numbers on the DS section. this i realised happens when I miss plugging in some specific numbers that just turn around the answer of the question.
for eg testing with 1 points that the statement is sufficient but if I test say a fraction the value is insufficient.. Please help me identify what is the best way to plug numbers ..is there a specific set of numbers i should test ? Many thanks in advance
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09 Jan 2012, 14:46
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Hi, I'm happy to help with this. 
In some ways, this is a very hard question to answer in the abstract, because often the nature of the GMAT question itself will dictate something about the choices we make. Given that, here's the best I can suggest for a rough-and-ready guide for what numbers to plug in.
a) First of all, it's usually good to try 1, 0, and -1, if for no other reason than: they are usually very easy to plug in.
b) You almost always have to consider: a positive number greater than 1, a positive decimal less than 1, a negative number less than -1, and a negative decimal between zero and -1.
c) Notice that the quartet outlined in (b) is centered around zero. If there's some prominent algebraic factor that has a obvious root --- e.g. the factor (x - 5) has a root at x = 5 ---- then it might be pertinent to test both that root and a quartet analogous to the one in (b) centered around that root. For example, if the factor (x - 5) were prominent, in the problem, then I would test the root x = 5 as well as x = 7, x = 5.1, x = 4.9, x = 3.
Now, that is a hyper-thorough list, and it would be very time-consuming to go through that entire procedure each and every time. The nature of the problem often will allow you to streamline things. For example, for any value that only appears in squared form, you don't have to consider both positive & negative values, since both square to positive.
That's a very very rough answer to your question. If you provide a few example questions, I would be happy to outline my "number-picking" strategy in those specific problems.
Mike
In some ways, this is a very hard question to answer in the abstract, because often the nature of the GMAT question itself will dictate something about the choices we make. Given that, here's the best I can suggest for a rough-and-ready guide for what numbers to plug in.
a) First of all, it's usually good to try 1, 0, and -1, if for no other reason than: they are usually very easy to plug in.
b) You almost always have to consider: a positive number greater than 1, a positive decimal less than 1, a negative number less than -1, and a negative decimal between zero and -1.
c) Notice that the quartet outlined in (b) is centered around zero. If there's some prominent algebraic factor that has a obvious root --- e.g. the factor (x - 5) has a root at x = 5 ---- then it might be pertinent to test both that root and a quartet analogous to the one in (b) centered around that root. For example, if the factor (x - 5) were prominent, in the problem, then I would test the root x = 5 as well as x = 7, x = 5.1, x = 4.9, x = 3.
Now, that is a hyper-thorough list, and it would be very time-consuming to go through that entire procedure each and every time. The nature of the problem often will allow you to streamline things. For example, for any value that only appears in squared form, you don't have to consider both positive & negative values, since both square to positive.
That's a very very rough answer to your question. If you provide a few example questions, I would be happy to outline my "number-picking" strategy in those specific problems.
Mike
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!
