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Challenge Problem: town meeting: left-handed and tall

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imtrying
 Post subject: Challenge Problem: town meeting: left-handed and tall
 Post Posted: Tue Nov 18, 2008 9:34 pm 
I wonder whether this challenge problem was phrased correctly?

"If the total number of people in Town X is four times greater than the total number of people in Town Y"

When a problem states that X is 'four times greater' than Y, shouldn't be written as X - Y = 4Y, namely X = 5Y?

There's no choice that accommodates X = 5Y, so I had to go with X = 4Y to reach the official answer I remember seeing this type of phrasing of a word problem somewhere during a MG CAT.

Was this an oversight? Because if you say X is 100% greater than Y, X is not equal to Y, instead X = 2Y.

Please clarify. Thank you.
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UPA
 Post subject: Re: Challenge Problem: town meeting: left-handed and tall
 Post Posted: Sun Nov 23, 2008 2:25 am 
imtrying wrote:
I wonder whether this challenge problem was phrased correctly?

"If the total number of people in Town X is four times greater than the total number of people in Town Y"

When a problem states that X is 'four times greater' than Y, shouldn't be written as X - Y = 4Y, namely X = 5Y?

There's no choice that accommodates X = 5Y, so I had to go with X = 4Y to reach the official answer I remember seeing this type of phrasing of a word problem somewhere during a MG CAT.

Was this an oversight? Because if you say X is 100% greater than Y, X is not equal to Y, instead X = 2Y.

Please clarify. Thank you.


I think in GMAT ""x is four times greater than y" is never mentioned. It should be "x is four times of y".

in that case x = 4y.
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esledge
 Post subject:
 Post Posted: Sun Dec 07, 2008 6:05 pm 
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ManhattanGMAT Staff


Posts: 901
Location: St. Louis, MO
500 is 4 times greater than 100, because the difference is 400 = 4*100.

400 is 4 times 100, because 400 = 4*100.

The phrases "times" and "times greater than" are incorrectly used interchangeably (outside of the GMAT). They ARE mathematically different, as you noted. I'll forward this Challenge Problem to our office for review. Thanks.

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Emily Sledge
Instructor
ManhattanGMAT
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