GMAT Question of the Day - Daily to your Mailbox; hard ones only

 It is currently 19 Aug 2018, 23:59

### GMAT Club Daily Prep

#### Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

# What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20?

Author Message
TAGS:

### Hide Tags

Math Revolution GMAT Instructor
Joined: 16 Aug 2015
Posts: 6038
GMAT 1: 760 Q51 V42
GPA: 3.82
What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20?  [#permalink]

### Show Tags

11 May 2018, 01:26
00:00

Difficulty:

25% (medium)

Question Stats:

79% (00:40) correct 21% (00:43) wrong based on 52 sessions

### HideShow timer Statistics

[GMAT math practice question]

What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20?

1) x and y lie between 10 and 20, inclusive.
2) The average (arithmetic mean) of the five numbers is 15

_________________

MathRevolution: Finish GMAT Quant Section with 10 minutes to spare
The one-and-only World’s First Variable Approach for DS and IVY Approach for PS with ease, speed and accuracy.
"Only $99 for 3 month Online Course" "Free Resources-30 day online access & Diagnostic Test" "Unlimited Access to over 120 free video lessons - try it yourself" Intern Joined: 27 Feb 2018 Posts: 35 Location: India WE: Engineering (Real Estate) Re: What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20? [#permalink] ### Show Tags 11 May 2018, 02:23 MathRevolution wrote: [GMAT math practice question] What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20? 1) x and y lie between 10 and 20, inclusive. 2) The average (arithmetic mean) of the five numbers is 15 Can anyone explain why answer is A? If x and y lie between 10 and 20 inclusive i.e. 10<=x & y<=20. It can be anything 10,11,12. ok i get it now, dumb me. if the numbers lie between 10 and 20, then the lowest possible value 10 is already there so irrespective of x and y the answer will always be 10. Thanks Math Revolution Team Director Joined: 21 May 2013 Posts: 649 Re: What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20? [#permalink] ### Show Tags 11 May 2018, 03:36 praveenkuragodi wrote: MathRevolution wrote: [GMAT math practice question] What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20? 1) x and y lie between 10 and 20, inclusive. 2) The average (arithmetic mean) of the five numbers is 15 Can anyone explain why answer is A? If x and y lie between 10 and 20 inclusive i.e. 10<=x & y<=20. It can be anything 10,11,12. ok i get it now, dumb me. if the numbers lie between 10 and 20, then the lowest possible value 10 is already there so irrespective of x and y the answer will always be 10. Thanks Math Revolution Team Let me explain why the answer is A Statement 1:x and y lie between 10 and 20, inclusive. This means minimum and maximum value of x and y can be between 10 and 20 inclusive. Therefore range will have to be 10. Sufficient Statement 2: The average (arithmetic mean) of the five numbers is 15[/quote]. Total of 5 numbers is 75. Therefore x+y=30. Now, x and y can be 10, 20 or 9, 21. So range is not only 10 but can take other values Answer A Manager Joined: 28 Nov 2017 Posts: 145 Location: Uzbekistan Re: What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20? [#permalink] ### Show Tags 11 May 2018, 03:57 MathRevolution wrote: [GMAT math practice question] What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20? 1) x and y lie between 10 and 20, inclusive. 2) The average (arithmetic mean) of the five numbers is 15 (1) If $$x$$ and $$y$$ lie between $$10$$ and $$20$$, inclusive, then Maximum element $$= 20$$ Minimum element $$= 10$$, So, range is $$20-10=10$$. Hence, sufficient. (2) $$x+y+10+15+20=5*15$$ $$x+y=30$$ If $$x=1$$, $$y=29$$, then $$range=29-1=28$$ If $$x=2$$, $$y=28$$, then $$range=28-2=26$$. Hence, not sufficient. Answer: A _________________ Kindest Regards! Tulkin. Math Revolution GMAT Instructor Joined: 16 Aug 2015 Posts: 6038 GMAT 1: 760 Q51 V42 GPA: 3.82 Re: What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20? [#permalink] ### Show Tags 13 May 2018, 18:41 => Forget conventional ways of solving math questions. For DS problems, the VA (Variable Approach) method is the quickest and easiest way to find the answer without actually solving the problem. Remember that equal numbers of variables and independent equations ensure a solution. Since we have 2 variables (x and y) and 0 equations, C is most likely to be the answer. So, we should consider conditions 1) & 2) together first. After comparing the number of variables and the number of equations, we can save time by considering conditions 1) & 2) together first. Conditions 1) & 2): Since we have 10 ≤ x ≤ 20 and 10 ≤ y ≤ 20 by condition 1), the maximum of the numbers is 20 and the minimum of the numbers is 10. The range is the difference between the maximum and the minimum, which is 20 – 10 = 10. Both conditions together are sufficient. Since this question is a statistics question (one of the key question areas), CMT (Common Mistake Type) 4 (A) of the VA (Variable Approach) method tells us that we should also check answers A and B. Condition 1) Since 10 ≤ x ≤ 20 and 10 ≤ y ≤ 20 by condition 1), the maximum of the numbers is 20 and the minimum of the numbers is 10. The range is the difference between the maximum and the minimum, which is 20 – 10 = 10. Thus, condition 1) is sufficient. Condition 2) If x = 10 and y = 20, the range is 10. If x = 9 and y = 21, the range is 12. Since we don’t have a unique solution, condition 2) is not sufficient. Therefore, A is the answer. Answer: A Normally, in problems which require 2 equations, such as those in which the original conditions include 2 variables, or 3 variables and 1 equation, or 4 variables and 2 equations, each of conditions 1) and 2) provide an additional equation. In these problems, the two key possibilities are that C is the answer (with probability 70%), and E is the answer (with probability 25%). Thus, there is only a 5% chance that A, B or D is the answer. This occurs in common mistake types 3 and 4. Since C (both conditions together are sufficient) is the most likely answer, we save time by first checking whether conditions 1) and 2) are sufficient, when taken together. Obviously, there may be cases in which the answer is A, B, D or E, but if conditions 1) and 2) are NOT sufficient when taken together, the answer must be E. _________________ MathRevolution: Finish GMAT Quant Section with 10 minutes to spare The one-and-only World’s First Variable Approach for DS and IVY Approach for PS with ease, speed and accuracy. "Only$99 for 3 month Online Course"
"Free Resources-30 day online access & Diagnostic Test"
"Unlimited Access to over 120 free video lessons - try it yourself"

Target Test Prep Representative
Status: Founder & CEO
Affiliations: Target Test Prep
Joined: 14 Oct 2015
Posts: 3182
Location: United States (CA)
Re: What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20?  [#permalink]

### Show Tags

14 May 2018, 16:59
MathRevolution wrote:
[GMAT math practice question]

What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20?

1) x and y lie between 10 and 20, inclusive.
2) The average (arithmetic mean) of the five numbers is 15

We need to determine the range of x, y, 10, 15, and 20. Recall that range of a set = the greatest value in the set - the least value in the set.

Statement One Alone:

x and y lie between 10 and 20, inclusive.

Since the smallest value of x and y can be are 10, and the largest they can be are 20, and since we already see that the least number in the list is 10 and the greatest is 20, the range is 10. Statement one alone is sufficient to answer the question.

Statement Two Alone:

The average (arithmetic mean) of the five numbers is 15

Although we know that the average of the numbers is 15, its possible to have a number less than 10 or greater than 20. Thus, we cannot determine the range.

_________________

Scott Woodbury-Stewart
Founder and CEO

GMAT Quant Self-Study Course
500+ lessons 3000+ practice problems 800+ HD solutions

Re: What is the range of the 5 numbers x, y, 10, 15, and 20? &nbs [#permalink] 14 May 2018, 16:59
Display posts from previous: Sort by

# Events & Promotions

 Powered by phpBB © phpBB Group | Emoji artwork provided by EmojiOne Kindly note that the GMAT® test is a registered trademark of the Graduate Management Admission Council®, and this site has neither been reviewed nor endorsed by GMAC®.