Is integer x odd?
(1) 2x + 1 is odd $$\left(2\right)\ \ \frac{x}{2}\ is\ even.$$ [spoiler]OA=B[/spoiler].
Could anyone explain why is B the correct answer to me? Thanks in advance.
Is integer x odd?
This topic has expert replies
-
- Legendary Member
- Posts: 1622
- Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2018 7:22 am
- Followed by:2 members
GMAT/MBA Expert
- Brent@GMATPrepNow
- GMAT Instructor
- Posts: 16207
- Joined: Mon Dec 08, 2008 6:26 pm
- Location: Vancouver, BC
- Thanked: 5254 times
- Followed by:1268 members
- GMAT Score:770
Timer
00:00
Your Answer
A
B
C
D
E
Global Stats
Target question: Is integer x odd?Gmat_mission wrote:Is integer x odd?
(1) 2x + 1 is odd $$\left(2\right)\ \ \frac{x}{2}\ is\ even.$$ [spoiler]OA=B[/spoiler].
Statement 1: 2x + 1 is odd
Since 2x + 1 is ODD for any integer value, this statement doesn't tell us anything.
To understand what I mean, consider these two cases that satisfy statement 1:
Case a: x = 1. Here, 2x + 1 = 2(1) + 1 = 3, which is odd. In this case, x = 1, so the answer to the target question is YES, x IS odd
Case b: x = 2. Here, 2x + 1 = 2(2) + 1 = 5, which is odd. In this case, x = 2, so the answer to the target question is NO, x is NOT odd
Since we cannot answer the target question with certainty, statement 1 is NOT SUFFICIENT
Statement 2: x/2 is even
If x/2 is even, we can write: x/2 = 2k for some integer k.
----ASIDE----------------
That last step applies to ALL even numbers.
For example, we know that 14 is even, because we can write 14 = 2(something), where that something is an integer
Likewise, we know that 16 is even, because we can write 16 = 2(something), where that something is an integer
--------------------------
If x/2 = 2k for some integer k, we can take x/2 = 2k and multiply both sides by 2 to get: x = 4k (where k is an integer)
This means x must be a multiple 4, which means x is DEFINITELY EVEN
So the answer to the target question is NO, x is NOT odd
Since we can answer the target question with certainty, statement 2 is SUFFICIENT
Answer: B
Cheers,
Brent
-
- Legendary Member
- Posts: 2214
- Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 2:22 pm
- Followed by:5 members
Timer
00:00
Your Answer
A
B
C
D
E
Global Stats
Statement 1 = $$2x+1\ is\ odd$$
The statement 1, 2 and 3.
$$if\ x=1;\ 2x+1=2\left(1\right)+1=3$$ x is odd
$$if\ x=2;\ 2x+1=2\left(2\right)+1=5$$ x is not odd (even)
$$if\ x=3;\ 2x+1=2\left(3\right)+1=7$$ x is odd .It doesnt answer the target question
set statement 2= $$\frac{x}{2\ }$$ is even, if you multiply 2 with any number, it will give us an even number . Therefore $$\frac{x}{2\ }=even\ number$$
$$Let\ the\ even\ number\ be\ 2\cdot y=2y$$
$$Therefore,\ \frac{x}{2}=2y$$
$$x=4y$$
$$This\ means\ x\ is\ a\ multiple\ of\ 4\ which\ is\ an\ even\ number$$
Therefore statement 2 is SUFFICIENT answer is Option B
The statement 1, 2 and 3.
$$if\ x=1;\ 2x+1=2\left(1\right)+1=3$$ x is odd
$$if\ x=2;\ 2x+1=2\left(2\right)+1=5$$ x is not odd (even)
$$if\ x=3;\ 2x+1=2\left(3\right)+1=7$$ x is odd .It doesnt answer the target question
set statement 2= $$\frac{x}{2\ }$$ is even, if you multiply 2 with any number, it will give us an even number . Therefore $$\frac{x}{2\ }=even\ number$$
$$Let\ the\ even\ number\ be\ 2\cdot y=2y$$
$$Therefore,\ \frac{x}{2}=2y$$
$$x=4y$$
$$This\ means\ x\ is\ a\ multiple\ of\ 4\ which\ is\ an\ even\ number$$
Therefore statement 2 is SUFFICIENT answer is Option B