BREAKING: Target Test Prep releases Brand New 2026 On Demand GMAT prep course

Redeem
TTP OnDemand GMAT Video Course
Featured Course

Target Test Prep GMAT OnDemand

Scott Woodbury-Stewart’s private virtual classroom — 400 hours of master-class video lessons for the GMAT Focus Edition.

  • 715+ score guarantee — highest in the industry (99th percentile)
  • 52 chapters · 1,500+ lessons · 4,000+ practice questions
  • 400 hours of video · 1,500+ instructor-led HD smartboard lessons
  • 300,000+ students accepted to Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Booth & Sloan & more
  • 24/7 live support + weekly Zoom office hours with GMAT instructors
  • TTP AI Assist — 24/7 AI-powered virtual tutor for instant help
  • 1,200+ flashcards + AI-powered study assistant & daily calendar
  • OnDemand, LiveTeach & GMAT Bootcamp formats available
  • Also: GRE, SAT Math & Executive Assessment courses
  • MBA Admissions Consulting now available
  • 🏆 2025 EdTech Breakthrough Award: Test Prep Solution Provider of the Year
  • 200,000+ students served
  • 5-day free trial — $0 to start, no auto-billing, cancel anytime
★★★★★ 5.0 (559 reviews)
130-pt guarantee
$0 to start then $127/mo
Start Free 5-Day Trial Read 559 Reviews →

Operation F means “take the square root,� operation G me

Expert replies
Post new topic Post Reply
Previous Topic Next Topic
Moderator
Posts: 2544
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2017 1:50 pmFollowed by: 6 members
by BTGmoderatorLU » Thu May 31, 2018 1:53 pm

Timer

00:00

Answers

A

B

C

D

E

Stats

Difficulty—

Operation F means "take the square root," operation G means "multiply by constant c," and operation H means "take the reciprocal." For which value of c is the result of applying the three operations to any positive x the same for all of the possible orders in which the operations are applied?

A. -1
B. -1/2
C. 0
D. 1/2
E. 1

The OA is E.

Please, can anyone assist me with this PS question? I don't have it clear. Thanks in advance.
Top
Join the discussion
Log in to postLogin with Googleuse password
QUOTE IN REPLY
Source: — Problem Solving |

GMAT/MBA Expert

User avatar
GMAT Instructor
Posts: 3008
Joined: Mon Aug 22, 2016 6:19 amFollowed by: 34 members
Location: Grand Central / New York
Thanked: 470 times

by Jay@ManhattanReview » Thu May 31, 2018 9:45 pm
BTGmoderatorLU wrote:Operation F means "take the square root," operation G means "multiply by constant c," and operation H means "take the reciprocal." For which value of c is the result of applying the three operations to any positive x the same for all of the possible orders in which the operations are applied?

A. -1
B. -1/2
C. 0
D. 1/2
E. 1

The OA is E.

Please, can anyone assist me with this PS question? I don't have it clear. Thanks in advance.
-1 and -2 cannot be correct since the square root of negative numbers is not real.

0 cannot be correct since the reciprocal of 0 is indeterminable.

1/2 cannot be correct since √(1/2) ≠ 1/2 x 2 ≠ 1/(1/2).

1 is correct since √1 = 1 x 1 = 1/1.

The correct answer: E

Hope this helps!

-Jay
_________________
Manhattan Review GMAT Prep

Locations: Jayanagar | Dilsukhnagar | Himayatnagar | Visakhapatnam | and many more...

Schedule your free consultation with an experienced GMAT Prep Advisor! Click here.
Top
Join the discussion
Log in to postLogin with Googleuse password
QUOTE IN REPLY
User avatar
GMAT Instructor
Posts: 1462
Joined: Thu Apr 09, 2015 9:34 amFollowed by: 22 members
Location: New York, NY
Thanked: 39 times

by Jeff@TargetTestPrep » Sun Jun 03, 2018 5:35 pm
BTGmoderatorLU wrote:Operation F means "take the square root," operation G means "multiply by constant c," and operation H means "take the reciprocal." For which value of c is the result of applying the three operations to any positive x the same for all of the possible orders in which the operations are applied?

A. -1
B. -1/2
C. 0
D. 1/2
E. 1
Let x be a positive constant. Let's apply the operations F, G and H to x in various orders:

F(G(H(x))) = F(G(1/x)) = F(c/x) = √(c/x)

H(G(F(x))) = H(G(√x)) = H(c√x) = 1/(c√x)

Since we are looking for a value of c which produces the same result when the operations are applied in any order, let's equate these two values:

√(c/x) = 1/(c√x)

(√c)/(√x) = 1/(c√x)

Since x is positive, we can multiply each side of this equation by √x:

√c = 1/c

c√c = 1

Let's square each side:

c^3 = 1

c = 1

Answer: E

Jeffrey Miller
Head of GMAT Instruction
[email protected]

Image

See why Target Test Prep is rated 5 out of 5 stars on BEAT the GMAT. Read our reviews
Top
Join the discussion
Log in to postLogin with Googleuse password
QUOTE IN REPLY
Post new topic Post Reply
• Page 1 of 1