Problem Solving

Hi All,

We're told that a set of 6 flower pots of DIFFERENT sizes cost a total cost of $8.25 and that each pot cost 0.25 more than the next one below it in size. We're asked for the cost, in dollars, of the largest pot. Although it's not specifically stated, we're meant to assume that we're dealing with 6 pot sizes "in a row." This question can be solved by TESTing VALUES.

To start, since the TOTAL cost ends in 25 cents - and the difference in prices is also 25 cents - the price of each type of pot is almost certainly some multiple of 25 cents (so it's unlikely that the correct answer is B or D). Let's TEST Answer C first...

Answer C: $2.00

IF... the largest post = $2, then the prices of the other pots are...
$1.75, $1.50, $1.25, $1.00 and $0.75

While adding up those 6 prices might seem tedious, we can 'bunch' the values into groups of 2.... $2 + $0.75 = $2.75, $1.75 + $1.00 = $2.75 and $1.50 + $1.25 = $2.75
Thus, the total = (3)($2.75) = $8.25
This is an exact match for what we were told, so this must be the answer.

Final Answer: C

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

BTGmoderatorLU wrote:Mark bought a set of 6 flower pots of different sizes at a total cost of $8.25. Each pot cost 0.25 more than the next one below it in size. What was the cost, in dollars, of the largest pot?

A. $1.75
B. $1.85
C. $2.00
D. $2.15
E. $2.30

We can let the cost of the largest (or most expensive) pot be n and create the equation:

n + (n - 0.25) + (n - 0.5) + (n - 0.75) + (n - 1) + (n - 1.25) = 8.25

6n - 3.75 = 8.25

6n = 12

n = 2

Answer: C