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MGMT Guide 1 DS question???

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by gxj007 » Sat Sep 12, 2009 4:16 am
Page 136 of Guide 1 gives the following DS example but I don't understand how statement 2 is sufficient???

If x is a positive integer, is x^3-3x^2+2x divisible by 4?

When factored this equation becomes 3 consecutive integers x(x-1)(x-2).

statement 2) x=2z+2, where z is an integer.

The answer explains that this statement is sufficient because x will always be even. But if z=0, then x=2 which is even but when you plug it into the equation you get 2(1)(0)=0. So is zero considered a multiple of 4???? I would think the product we have to be 4,8,12,etc.

thanks!
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Source: — Data Sufficiency |

Re: MGMT Guide 1 DS question???

by Ian Stewart » Sat Sep 12, 2009 12:15 pm
gxj007 wrote:Page 136 of Guide 1 gives the following DS example but I don't understand how statement 2 is sufficient???

If x is a positive integer, is x^3-3x^2+2x divisible by 4?

When factored this equation becomes 3 consecutive integers x(x-1)(x-2).

statement 2) x=2z+2, where z is an integer.

The answer explains that this statement is sufficient because x will always be even. But if z=0, then x=2 which is even but when you plug it into the equation you get 2(1)(0)=0. So is zero considered a multiple of 4???? I would think the product we have to be 4,8,12,etc.

thanks!
Yes, zero is a multiple of 4, since we can get zero by multiplying 4 by an integer - namely by zero. For this reason, zero is a multiple of every positive integer (and is divisible by every positive integer).
For online GMAT math tutoring, or to buy my higher-level Quant books and problem sets, contact me at ianstewartgmat at gmail.com

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