What made you go for a A?
(1) gives is 7x > 2y
Consider these x = 1, = 2. Yes y > 0
x = 2, y = -1. No y < 0

So A is not the right answer.

We can easily prove that (2) alone is not sufficient.

Combining the two:

7x -2y > 0
x + y > 0

Multiply second one by 2 and add. This gives.
9 x > 0
So all we know is x is positive. This still is not enough to say if y > 0. Hence E.

We are being asked if y is positive - given the parameters that x is positive and 7x-2y>0 this is an algebra inequality so we have to be careful about signs and may need to solve for actual values.

1 says 7x>2y - which means that 7/2(x)>y = so we know that some positive number is greater than y - this doesn't tell us whether y is positive or negative so it is insufficient. BCE

2. Says that -y<x - we know here that x is positive so we know that -y is less than a positive number. This still leaves both positive and negative options open - either y is negative so basically the positive value of y is less than another positive - or y is positive and teh negative value of y is less thana positive number - this isn't enough information.

if you put them together both statements allow for positive and negative values for y -and together they offer no new information - so the answer is E.

asamaverick wrote: Combining the two:

7x -2y > 0
x + y > 0

Multiply second one by 2 and add. This gives.
9 x > 0
So all we know is x is positive. This still is not enough to say if y > 0. Hence E.

So why can't you multiply the 2nd equation by 7 which will give you:

7x - 2y > 0
7x + 7y > 0

and then subtract the 2 eqns which will give you -9y > 0 i.e. y HAS to be < 0 in which case the answer has to be C.

I'm guessing there's something I'm missing out when solving the 2 inequalities simultaneously. Can someone help me understand what it is? Should you NOT solve inequalities simultaneously? Thanks.

jube wrote:
So why can't you multiply the 2nd equation by 7 which will give you:

7x - 2y > 0
7x + 7y > 0

and then subtract the 2 eqns which will give you -9y > 0

As a general rule, you can add inequalities but not subtract them.
For example, consider:

6 > 4 and
4 > 1

we can add them and know that:

10 > 5

but we can't subtract them and get:

2 > 3

A cann't be sufficient ,simply because even if x>y then,we can't not say that y>0 . check it out x=2 , y = 1 and x=2 , y=-1