Arithmetic question

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by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Wed Oct 10, 2012 7:53 am
[email protected] wrote:on question 65 of the 13th edition of the official guide how exactly does 2/4 * 10 to power 10 result in 5.9 *10 ^9
Let's first use a few brackets to avoid ambiguity.

The OG13 isn't saying that (2/4)(10^10) equals 5.9 x (10^9)
The solution for question #65 uses approximation to avoid lengthy calculations. This is okay, because the answer choices are sufficiently spread apart.

So, (2/4)(10^10) = (0.5)(10^10) = (0.5)(10^1)(10^9) = (5)(10^9)

When we check the answer choices, answer choice E, 5.9 x (10^9), is the only one close to (5)(10^9), so E must be the correct answer.

Aside: If you're interested, we have a free video on when it's safe to estimate on the GMAT: https://www.gmatprepnow.com/module/gener ... es?id=1111

Cheers,
Brent
Last edited by Brent@GMATPrepNow on Wed Oct 10, 2012 7:56 am, edited 1 time in total.
Brent Hanneson - Creator of GMATPrepNow.com
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GMAT/MBA Expert

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GMAT Instructor
Posts: 16207
Joined: Mon Dec 08, 2008 6:26 pm
Location: Vancouver, BC
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by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Wed Oct 10, 2012 7:55 am
I'm moving this to the Problem Solving forum.

Cheers,
Brent
Brent Hanneson - Creator of GMATPrepNow.com
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