BTGmoderatorLU wrote:
In the rectangular coordinate system shown above, does the line k (not shown) intersect quadrant II?
1) The slope of k is -1/6
2) The y-intercept of k is -6
Target question: Does line k intersect quadrant II?
Statement 1: The slope of k is -1/6
Here are a few lines with slope -1/6
KEY CONCEPT: As we travel from right to left along a line with slope -1/6, we keep moving up.
So, at some point, the line will surely pass through quadrant II
So, the answer to the target question is
YES, line k DOES intersect quadrant II
Since we can answer the
target question with certainty, statement 1 is SUFFICIENT
Statement 2: The y-intercept of k is -6
There are several possible cases that satisfy statement 2. Here are two:
Case a: The line is horizontal (i.e., has slope zero)
In this case, the answer to the target question is
NO, line k does NOT intersect quadrant II
Case b: The line looks like this
In this case, the answer to the target question is
YES, line k DOES intersect quadrant II
Since we cannot answer the
target question with certainty, statement 2 is NOT SUFFICIENT
Answer: A
Cheers,
Brent
Brent Hanneson - Creator of GMATPrepNow.com
