GMAT Math

Nury Yeashfi wrote:If y = 1 + 1/x where x >1 , then y could equal to which of the following?
a. 1/5
b. 5/8
c. 9/7
d. 15.11
e. 8/7

Take: y = 1 + 1/x
Rewrite as: y = x/x + 1/x
Simplify: y = (x + 1)/x

So, we're looking for an answer choice that can be expressed as a fraction in which the numerator is 1 greater than the denominator.
Answer: E

Cheers,
Brent

If x > 1, then 1/x is between 0 and 1. So 1 + (1/x) will be between 1 and 2, and answers C and E are both possible (for C, x = 7/2, and for E, x = 7). If there's a typo in D, and instead it's meant to read "15/11", then D is also possible (x = 11/4). It's only if the question tells you x is an integer that E becomes the lone correct answer among the choices, but the question doesn't tell us that.

So the question has two or three right answers, which can't happen on the GMAT - where is it from?