What is X

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What is X

by sandipgumtya » Thu Aug 27, 2015 10:21 am
Whis the value of X?

1-P^2=Y
2-X is median of (-4,4,2,2,P)

OA is B..Cant figure it out why.

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by DavidG@VeritasPrep » Thu Aug 27, 2015 10:28 am
What is the value of X?

1-P^2=Y
2-X is median of (-4,4,2,2,P)

OA is B..Cant figure it out why.
Try some simple values for p when testing statement 2.

- Say p = 0. Your set would be {-4, 0, 2, 2, 4.} The median here is 2, so x = 2.
- Say p = 5. The set becomes {-4, 2, 2, 4, 5.} The median here is 2, so x = 2.

No matter what we pick for p, the median ends up being the same. Therefore, we know that x = 2 and statement 2 alone is sufficient.
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by sandipgumtya » Thu Aug 27, 2015 10:49 am
Thanks David,
For quick reply.Its my silly mistake.Got this easiest of easy one wrong.

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by DavidG@VeritasPrep » Thu Aug 27, 2015 10:58 am
Thanks David,
For quick reply.Its my silly mistake.Got this easiest of easy one wrong.
You're not alone. The GMAT is sneaky that way :)
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by [email protected] » Thu Aug 27, 2015 12:09 pm
Hi sandipgumtya,

It's okay to make silly/little mistakes during your practice; making those mistakes is one of the factors in helping you to hone your skills. Your overall improvement will come once you make it a point to do the necessary work ON THE PAD so that you can keep the silly mistakes from happening. You're likely going to find that just about every silly mistake that you make will be because you just didn't take enough notes. Thankfully, note-taking is relatively easy, the actual 'work' involved in answering most questions doesn't take long and you can quickly pick up most (if not all) of the 'missing points' that you're looking for.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich
Contact Rich at [email protected]
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by Max@Math Revolution » Fri Aug 28, 2015 7:31 am
Forget conventional ways of solving math questions. In DS, Variable approach is the easiest and quickest way to find the answer without actually solving the problem. Remember equal number of variables and equations ensures a solution.


From the original condition there is 1 variable and thus we need 1 equation. since there is 1 each in 1) and 2), the answer is likely D.

In case of 1), since the info regarding x is not enough, it is not sufficient.
In case of 2), since from a, -4, b, 2, c, 2, d, 4, e, the position of the P is decided from a,b,c,d,e. Any case would make the median = 2, and since x =2 it is sufficient. Therefore the answer is b.


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