are u sure about the question?..
I think stmt 2 should be x^3>x^2....for 'C' to be answer...
BREAKING: Target Test Prep releases Brand New 2026 On Demand GMAT prep course
Redeem
Featured Course
Target Test Prep GMAT OnDemand
Scott Woodbury-Stewart’s private virtual classroom — 400 hours of master-class video lessons for the GMAT Focus Edition.
- 715+ score guarantee — highest in the industry (99th percentile)
- 52 chapters · 1,500+ lessons · 4,000+ practice questions
- 400 hours of video · 1,500+ instructor-led HD smartboard lessons
- 300,000+ students accepted to Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Booth & Sloan & more
- 24/7 live support + weekly Zoom office hours with GMAT instructors
- TTP AI Assist — 24/7 AI-powered virtual tutor for instant help
- 1,200+ flashcards + AI-powered study assistant & daily calendar
- OnDemand, LiveTeach & GMAT Bootcamp formats available
- Also: GRE, SAT Math & Executive Assessment courses
- MBA Admissions Consulting now available
- 🏆 2025 EdTech Breakthrough Award: Test Prep Solution Provider of the Year
- 200,000+ students served
- 5-day free trial — $0 to start, no auto-billing, cancel anytime
★★★★★
5.0
(559 reviews)
130-pt guarantee
$0 to start
then $127/mo
Tough DS question. Can anyone explain this?
Source: Beat The GMAT — Data Sufficiency |
Thanks bha! I made the correction right away. The actual question states x^3 < x^2. I initally thought the question creators stated the expression incorrectly, but wanted the Beatthegmat community to take a crack at it before dismissing the problem
-
Stuart@KaplanGMAT
- GMAT Instructor
- Posts: 3225
- Location: Toronto
- Thanked: 1710 times
- GMAT Score:800
It actually makes no difference which way the inequality points in statement (2) - in either case, the answer would be (C).madsport wrote:What is the value of x?
1) x^4 = 625
2) x^3 < x^2
The answer is C (Data Sufficiency)
(1) is insufficient because we don't know if x is positive or negative.
(2) is insufficient because we have no clue what the actual value of x is, there are many possibilities.
Together, however, we can narrow it down to just 1 value.
From (1), we know that x = +/- 5
If x^3 < x^2, we know that x can no longer be +5, so it must be -5.
If x^3 > x^2, we know that x can no longer be -5, so it must be +5.
Either way, we get one exact value: together the statements are sufficient, choose (C).
Stuart Kovinsky | Kaplan GMAT Faculty | Toronto
Kaplan Exclusive: The Official Test Day Experience | Ready to Take a Free Practice Test? | Kaplan/Beat the GMAT Member Discount
BTG100 for $100 off a full course
