wilson4mba wrote:A bag holds 3 gold rings, 7 silver rings and 9 bronze rings. If John picked rings from the bag did he pick more bronze rings than silver rings.
(1) John picked 15 rings from the bag.
(2) John picked 3 gold rings

Straightforward question, so let's dive into the statements. As always, let's start with the simpler one.

(2) fits the bill - no information about either silver or bronze rings chosen, so clear insufficient: eliminate B and D.

(1) Let's pick numbers to see if we can get both a "yes" and a "no" answer.

John could have picked 7 silver and 8 bronze. Is 8 more than 7? YES
John could have picked 7 silver, 5 bronze and 3 gold. Is 5 more than 7? NO

YES and a NO - insufficient, eliminate A.

Since neither statement was sufficient alone, we now combine them into one long statement:

John picked 15 rings, 3 of which were gold.

Or:

John picked a total of 12 silver and bronze rings.

Picking numbers:

John could have picked 8 bronze and 4 silver. Is 8 more than 4? YES
John could have picked 5 bronze and 7 silver. Is 5 more than 7? NO

Still a YES and a NO: insufficient, choose E.