How to improve at "algebraic" questions?

Question

Hi everyone!

I'm two weeks away from the exam, so maybe its too late now, but anyways,

I have discovered one of my greatest weaknesses, the algebraic questions! By that I mean the questions from any section, so word probs, algebra, geometry, you name it, that basically use these topics as an "excuse" to give you an algebra problem. So on top of solving the problem itself you have to think in a very abstract way and think fast! The answer may be to write the equation without actually solving, so the choices are equations, or for example a ratio problem that asks you for an abstract relation between the A of circle and A of a square. Yes, you can assume values and solve, but it always takes more than 2 minutes and that is if you understand what is being asked in first place!

examples of such questions (just to give you an idea):
in-the-figures-above-if-the-area-of-the-triangle-on-the-right-is-twic-91197.html
if-the-perimeter-of-square-region-s-and-the-perimeter-of-cir-26871.html

Plus, as far as I understand, these questions become more and more popular when you climb up the difficulty ladder.

So how can one get better at this "abstract" way of thinking? When I see a question like this I go straight to assume values approach, but its very time consuming. On the other hand when I see the algebraic solution the only thing that comes to my mind is "never in my life I would have solved this in less than 5 minutes" So I just select the best of worst scenarios here.

Any suggestions on how to improve at such questions?

Thank you!

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SamirAbrahao · Answer

First of all, if you think you're in a bad situation by having only 2 weeks left to study, what should I make of the fact that I've only had little more than 2 weeks to study altogether? :D Secondly, read this: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2013/how-to-do- ... th-faster/

iliavko · Answer

Hey, Samira,

Thanks for the reply, its funny 'cause I read this article yesterday lol. So what, the solution is to simply practice-practice? Ok, fine, but practice on what? Any specific book?.. A website or something? I don't really know any resources for this and stuff like khanacademy is basics only, so not what I need here.

Any resources you can recommend?

SamirAbrahao · Answer

I think preparation should be a combination of practice, reading about the test (its patterns, methods, tips, shortcuts, time management, etc), and discussions with other test takers and experienced people. I ruled out trying to learn theories and formulas, but thats just me. The best resources I've found are the ones from The economist, but its priced at over 800 Trumplandian dollars. Edit: I'd say how and what you should practice with depends on a lot of factors. I like to avoid giving generic answers but I think this is the best I have to offer at this time. This is a very good question, one that I'm also trying to find an answer for. Edit2: You mentioned your main weakness is abstracting things, such as, dimensional analysis. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dimensional_analysis The article I sent you associates this kind of skill with the right part of the brain, and provides some very specific examples of how you should proceed in order to develop it. "How does an extreme left-brain person develop right-brain skills? Well, not surprisingly, entering that non-linear world is a non-linear process. Here are some suggestions. Notice visual patterns, looking for symmetries (wall paper, tile patterns, etc.). Read poetry. Study song lyrics, including the lyrics of highly associative and evocative songs (e.g. “A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall“, “I am the Walrus“, “Stairway to Heaven“, “Mysterious Ways“, “Losing My Religion“, etc.) Play with visual & spatial puzzles — one of my favorites is the SOMA cube. Start keeping a journal of your dreams." I don't know if this is helpful considering the given time frame, but I'd say its a start. Att, Samir

iliavko · Answer

Thank you for the reply!

I think my brain is all-Right actually.. I am constantly mind-wondering, I have almost no problems with Verbal section, I speak 4 languages, so it all just makes sense on its own. Of course I have to study a lot, but I see constant evolution. Regarding quant, I have difficulties to express abstract thought with exact numbers if I make myself clear..

SamirAbrahao · Answer

I wouldn't say the skills measured in each section overlap that much, but then again, it's just me.

About your difficulties, can you give me examples of the sorts of questions you have difficulty with?

(BTW, it goes without mentioning that the author of that article lists those resources as examples which would help you develop these abstraction skills specifically for the math part, not verbal)

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How to improve at "algebraic" questions?

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