A non empty set S has less than four elements. How many

Question

A non empty set S has less than four elements. How many elements does the set S have?

(1) Median of set S is the lowest element in the set S.

(2) Number of subsets of set S is less than eight.

nt2010 · Answer

For Statement 1) since the median of the set is lowest element, the set can be either an 1, 2, or 3 element set. 
Here are few examples {1}, {2,2}, {3,3,3} - Not Sufficient

For Statement 2) The number of subsets are less than 8, which means the sets can be {}, {1}, {1,2,3}, {1,2} - Not sufficient

Taking Statement 1 and 2 together would be Not Sufficient since the sets can be {1}, {2,2}, {3,3,3}

Hence the answer is  E

Consider kudos if this helps

MzJavert · Answer

I eliminated Statement 2 as Not Sufficient for basically the same reason you stated. I interpreted Statement 1 as meaning it only had one element and picked A. I totally failed to consider that the set could have multiples of the same element.

nt2010 · Answer

Don't be hard on yourself... One thing that helped me on this is to take couple of minutes to think through (like - what is given and what is asked to find) on the stimulus prior to evaluating the given statements. I would equate this to pre-thinking for CRs or re-phrasing the stimulus strategies.. Happy preparation :-)

Observer · Answer

Unfortunately the GMAC doesn't use the strict mathematical definition of a set. Under the strict definition, every element of a set is unique. According to this question, the GMAT considers sets only in the colloquial sense.

A non empty set S has less than four elements. How many

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards