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While driving on the expressway, did Robin ever exceed . . .

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by VJesus12 » Thu Dec 21, 2017 11:51 am
While driving on the expressway, did Robin ever exceed the 55-miles-per-hour speed limit?

(1) Robin drove 100 miles on the expressway.
(2) Robin drove for 2 hours on the expressway.

The OA is E.

If we use both statements together we can conclude that Robin drove at 50 miles per hour. So, the answer should be C. Am I wrong? I need some help here experts.
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Source: — Data Sufficiency |

by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Fri Dec 22, 2017 8:31 am
VJesus12 wrote:While driving on the expressway, did Robin ever exceed the 55-miles-per-hour speed limit?

(1) Robin drove 100 miles on the expressway.
(2) Robin drove for 2 hours on the expressway.
NOTE: There's nothing here to suggest that Robin's speed was constant. Sure, she MIGHT have traveled at a constant speed, or her speed may have varied throughout the trip.

Target question: Did Robin's speed ever exceed 55 miles per hour?

Statement 1: Robin drove 100 miles
No information about Robin's travel TIME so statement 1 is NOT SUFFICIENT
Consider these two possible scenarios that yield conflicting answers to the target question:
Case a: driving at a constant speed, Robin spent 1 hour driving 100 miles, in which case her speed was 100 miles per hour. So, Robin's speed DID exceed 55 miles per hour
Case b: driving at a constant speed, Robin spent 10 hours driving 100 miles, in which case her speed was 10 miles per hour. So, Robin's speed did NOT exceed 55 miles per hour
Since we cannot answer the target question with certainty, statement 1 is NOT SUFFICIENT

Statement 2: Robin drove for 2 hours
No information about the DISTANCE Robin traveled. So, statement 2 is NOT SUFFICIENT
Consider these two possible scenarios that yield conflicting answers to the target question:
Case a: driving at a constant speed, Robin spent 2 hours driving 1000 miles, in which case her speed was 500 miles per hour. So, Robin's speed DID exceed 55 miles per hour
Case b: driving at a constant speed, Robin spent 2 hours driving 2 miles, in which case her speed was 1 mile per hour. So, Robin's speed did NOT exceed 55 miles per hour
Since we cannot answer the target question with certainty, statement 2 is NOT SUFFICIENT

Statements 1 and 2 combined
Consider these two possible scenarios that yield conflicting answers to the target question:
Case a: driving at a constant speed, Robin spent 2 hours driving 100 miles, in which case her speed was 50 miles per hour. So, Robin's speed did NOT exceed 55 miles per hour
Case b: Robin drove 99 miles (at a constant speed) for 1 hour, and then spent 1 hour driving the remaining 1 mile. So, Robin's speed DID exceed 55 miles per hour (during the 1st hour)
Since we cannot answer the target question with certainty, the combined statements are NOT SUFFICIENT

Answer: E

Cheers,
Brent
Brent Hanneson - Creator of GMATPrepNow.com
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