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BTGmoderatorLU: Moderator; Posts: 2505; Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2017 1:50 pm; Followed by:6 members

A rectangular tabletop consists of a piece of laminated...

by BTGmoderatorLU » Wed Dec 13, 2017 11:43 am

A rectangular tabletop consists of a piece of laminated wood bordered by a thin metal strip along its four edges. The surface area of the tabletop is x square feet, and the total lenght of the strip before it was attached was x feet. If the tabletop is 3 feet wide, what is its approximate lenght, in feet?

(A) 12
(B) 10
(C) 9
(D) 8
(E) 6

The OA is E.

I'm really confused with this PS question. Please, can any expert assist me with it? Thanks in advanced.

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Source: Beat The GMAT — Problem Solving | Wed Dec 13, 2017 11:43 am

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Jay@ManhattanReview: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 3008; Joined: Mon Aug 22, 2016 6:19 am; Location: Grand Central / New York; Thanked: 470 times; Followed by:34 members

by Jay@ManhattanReview » Fri Dec 15, 2017 4:40 am

LUANDATO wrote:A rectangular tabletop consists of a piece of laminated wood bordered by a thin metal strip along its four edges. The surface area of the tabletop is x square feet, and the total lenght of the strip before it was attached was x feet. If the tabletop is 3 feet wide, what is its approximate lenght, in feet?

(A) 12
(B) 10
(C) 9
(D) 8
(E) 6

The OA is E.

I'm really confused with this PS question. Please, can any expert assist me with it? Thanks in advanced.

Say the length and width of the tabletop are l and w, respectively.

Thus, we have l*w = x (given)

=> 3l = x ---(1); we are given that width w = 3 ft

Total length of the metal strip = 2l + 2w = x (given); assuming that the thickness of the strip is negligible. We can do so as the question an approximate answer. In reality, it would have been 2l + 2w - 4*thickness of the strip = x

2l + 2w = x => 2l + 2*3 = x => 2l + 6 = x ---(2)

From (1) and (2), we get 3l = 2l + 6 => l = 6 ft.

The correct answer: E

Hope this helps!

-Jay
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GMATWisdom: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 100; Joined: Wed Nov 29, 2017 4:38 pm; Thanked: 14 times

by GMATWisdom » Fri Dec 15, 2017 5:41 am

Jay@ManhattanReview wrote:
LUANDATO wrote:A rectangular tabletop consists of a piece of laminated wood bordered by a thin metal strip along its four edges. The surface area of the tabletop is x square feet, and the total lenght of the strip before it was attached was x feet. If the tabletop is 3 feet wide, what is its approximate lenght, in feet?

(A) 12
(B) 10
(C) 9
(D) 8
(E) 6

The OA is E.

I'm really confused with this PS question. Please, can any expert assist me with it? Thanks in advanced.
Say the length and width of the tabletop are l and w, respectively.

given the area and perimeter are equal with given width=3
In case length =L then
3L=2(L+3)
or L=6
enjoy

Thus, we have l*w = x (given)

=> 3l = x ---(1); we are given that width w = 3 ft

Total length of the metal strip = 2l + 2w = x (given); assuming that the thickness of the strip is negligible. We can do so as the question an approximate answer. In reality, it would have been 2l + 2w - 4*thickness of the strip = x

2l + 2w = x => 2l + 2*3 = x => 2l + 6 = x ---(2)

From (1) and (2), we get 3l = 2l + 6 => l = 6 ft.

The correct answer: E

Hope this helps!

-Jay
_________________
Manhattan Review GMAT Prep

Locations: Pasadena | Warsaw | Cairo | Kuala Lumpur | and many more...

Schedule your free consultation with an experienced GMAT Prep Advisor! Click here.

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Scott@TargetTestPrep: GMAT Instructor; Posts: 8086; Joined: Sat Apr 25, 2015 10:56 am; Location: Los Angeles, CA; Thanked: 43 times; Followed by:29 members

by Scott@TargetTestPrep » Mon Sep 23, 2019 5:09 pm

BTGmoderatorLU wrote:A rectangular tabletop consists of a piece of laminated wood bordered by a thin metal strip along its four edges. The surface area of the tabletop is x square feet, and the total lenght of the strip before it was attached was x feet. If the tabletop is 3 feet wide, what is its approximate lenght, in feet?

(A) 12
(B) 10
(C) 9
(D) 8
(E) 6