Analyzing GMAT math problems using the Science of Thinking(ScoT) approach

The first step in the problem solving process is problem analysis. Problem analysis comprises

• Problem Definition
• Solution length
• Problem length
• Constraints and conditions

Let me explain the process of classification of problem based on their definition now.

Problems can be classified as a poorly defined or a well defined problem.

A well defined problem everything relevant and required is clearly specified, without any ambiguity or uncertainty, such that a solution, even if it involves complex calculations can be arrived at with accuracy. You can predict the path to take or steps required to solve the problem.

A poorly defined problem much of the data & relationships are hidden or not clear.

Lets take a poorly defined problem.

A says to B: I will be three times as old as you were when I was five years older than you are. I am 5/4th as old as you will be and then you will realize that you will be double the age you were. If the sum of the future ages of A and B is 50, what are their present ages?

The data present in the above question is cryptic. The interpretation of this problem lies in your ability to attach meaning to the verb tense.

To analyze the above problem you have to represent the problem diagrammatically to understand the relationship between the variables.

Try creating a table with the past ages, present ages and future ages as the columns. Given below is a simplified version of the table.

More ScoT approaches follow this link..
http://www.semanticslearning.com/gmat-l3-method.asp



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5 crucial points to keep in mind while attempting a Data sufficiency problem

of the equation don’t match. Hence x only has to be 0.

4. Do not make any assumptions of the figure drawn. If a four sided figure is drawn with straight line, do not assume it’s a square or if a point is marked in the middle of a circular region, don’t assume it’s the centre of the circle.

5. Although Data sufficiency tests your decision making skills (choosing which statement is sufficient) it is advisable to spend some time arriving at an answer and checking whether the answer derived is always true or always false.



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5 crucial points to keep in mind while attempting a Data sufficiency problem

of the equation don’t match. Hence x only has to be 0.

4. Do not make any assumptions of the figure drawn. If a four sided figure is drawn with straight line, do not assume it’s a square or if a point is marked in the middle of a circular region, don’t assume it’s the centre of the circle.

5. Although Data sufficiency tests your decision making skills (choosing which statement is sufficient) it is advisable to spend some time arriving at an answer and checking whether the answer derived is always true or always false.



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5 crucial points to keep in mind while attempting a Data sufficiency problem

of the equation don’t match. Hence x only has to be 0.

4. Do not make any assumptions of the figure drawn. If a four sided figure is drawn with straight line, do not assume it’s a square or if a point is marked in the middle of a circular region, don’t assume it’s the centre of the circle.

5. Although Data sufficiency tests your decision making skills (choosing which statement is sufficient) it is advisable to spend some time arriving at an answer and checking whether the answer derived is always true or always false.



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For our friends in India

Wish you a happy diwali..... May god make your dreams come true.....

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5 crucial points to be kept in mind while solving a probability based problem in GMAT

1.    Calculate the numerator {Number of favourable terms} and the denominator {Total number of terms}     separately using the concepts of arrangement, permutation and combination.

2.    Be part of the problem : Imagine you are arranging / selecting the items. The action of taking     the object and placing it in the relevant position is the key.

If you have to arrange 10 rings in 4 fingers, you have to imagine yourself picking a ring and placing it on a finger instead of computing the number of rings each finger has.

3.    When two or more items are picked it is easier to compute the probability of picking one     element at a time than computing the probability of picking many items at a time.

4.    When A and B are selected relate the respective probabilities with multiplication. When either     A or B is selected relate the respective probabilities with addition.

5.    When there are multiple outcomes possible the probability of at-least one of them happening is     computed by calculating the reverse probability
 = 1 – probability of event not happening.


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5 crucial points to keep in mind while solving a permutation combination problem

1.ARRANGMENT N terms can be arranged in N! ways, if each position can be occupied by one term. N terms can be arranged in NM ways if each position can be occupied by 1 term or 2 terms or …… N terms.  M stands for the number of positions to be filled.

2.COMBINATION M terms can be selected from P terms in [ (P)combination(m) ] ways.

3.In certain situations it is required to first choose the terms and then arrange the terms. i.e.     PERMUTATION.     Permutation = combination x arrangement.

4.When N objects are distributed among P positions such that each position can get any number     of objects (zero, one, two ……N) then the number of ways of arranging the items is [ (N+P-1) combination (P-1) ]

5.When N objects are distributed among P positions such that each position can get atleast one     objet (one, two ……N) then the number of ways of arranging the items is [ (N-1) combination (P+1) ]

5 most overlooked points while solving GMAT triangle based problems (under Geometry)

1. Similar triangles are triangles whose sides are proportional. If ABC and PQR are two similar triangles then AB/PQ = BC/QR =AC/PR. The angles opposite to the sides(which are in a ratio) are also proportional  
   
2.   Area of a triangle(sides are a,b,c) is based on the hero’s formula 

           

          s= (a+b+c)/2 , R = circum radius and r= inradius

  3.   The sum of two sides of a triangle is greater than or equal to the third side and the difference of any    

      two sides is lesser than or equal to the third side. This property is used extensively in GMAT higher

           difficult problems

    4.    For the equilateral and the isosceles triangle the altitude bisects the base and hence the triangle into
           two equal parts

    5.    The largest triangle (with the maximum area) which can be inscribed in a circle is the equilateral
           triangle.

Bschools in India taking GMAT scores

For our INDIAN friends............

MBA aspirants in India with reasonably good scores in the GMAT can use the score for admissions to select B. Schools within the country.
Here’s a list of those B.Schools
1.    Indian School of Business, Hyderabad
2.    IIM Ahmedabad’s PGPX
3.    IIM Lucknow’s IPMX
4.    MICA Ahmedabad
5.    Great  Lakes Inst of Management, Chennai
6.    NMIMS Mumbai
7.    IIMs for PGPX programs
8.    MDI Gurgaon for fellow programs
9.    Select IIMs for fellow programs

Increase in Female graduates in MBA programs

As per director of MBA admission Wharton school, the number of women in their MBA class has increased from 36% to 40%.
Similar trend has been noticed in other Business schools.  Harvard Business School’s
class of 2011 is 37% female, while the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business is 35%
and Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management is 33%.

Stanford’s new admission policy

Most sources say that while applying for a Bschool,it does not matter when you send your application(1 year earlier or 1 day before the deadline), because they will read your application until the application deadline passes.

But Stanford it seems have articulated a policy that they will review the admission application and inviting applications for interviews before its first round deadline passes. This has been designed in order to balance the work load of the admission committee.

Although it is advisable to rush your application procedure, it is better to apply when you think you are ready.

Executive MBA

Transform the manger in you to a business leader

Gone are the days when a 30 plus executive, resigns his job, packs his bags and set out for a 2 year full time MBA, with a 700 plus GMAT score neatly tucked away in his laptop bag.
During recession, if you are not given a pink slip you are plain lucky. You hold  tightly on  to your present job. For you got to pay your EMIs, credit card bills and the like. Can you afford the luxury of a 2 yr study abroad? The answer is No.

The X factor
Called the executive program ( for work ex guys), the PGPX is the new hope. ‘Learn while you earn’ literally works.  There are wide variety of executive programs to choose from- Indian and international.
The program duration ranges from a few weeks to one year.
ISB Hyderabad to MDI Gurgaon to INSEAD France offers such courses. Some are full time campus programs, others partly distance, partly on campus. Courses designed, delivered and certified by prestigious B.Schools. Platforms are offered by HughesNet and NIIT for videoconference lessons. The advantage aspirants can attend live lessons delivered from real campuses and interact with faculty. They can network with fellow learners form across cities.
Both public sector and private sector executives take up executive programs.

What they teach
A sense of direction,  business strategies and personal effectiveness; ability to manage conflict; clarity in decision making and the skill to manage people of all dispositions and temperaments.
Course variations: I year fulltime executive program/ 1 yr certificate program(satellite), 6 month campus programs/ 5 week campus program/ online MBA
Sought after specializations

• HRM
• Finance
• Operations
• IT
• General management
• International business
• Public management and policy

A partial list of prestigious programs
ISB’s executive MBA , IIMA’s PGPX, IIM L’s IMPX, IIM Indore’s PGCBM, XLRI’s Executive MBA, MDP(a few weeks to 6 month) of many top B Schools
NIIT Imperia, HughesNet programs, U21, e-MBA , 5 week Advanced Management program INSEAD France…

Guided composition for GMAT issue topic

Presented below is an issue topic. I have given preliminary notes around which you can write your issue essay. Try it out...

Present your perspective on the issue below using relevant reasons and/or examples to support your views

“Only through mistakes can there be discovery or progress”

Preliminary notes:

• Do I agree completely with the statement?
• Can’t there be progress without mistake? - Yes, there can be
• Does mistake lead to progress – Yes – but is it only through mistakes that we make progress- no – does this mean serendipity?
• What about man’s intellectual curiosity that motivates him to discover new knowledge? – it is true
• Let me qualify the statement examples
• Scientist purposefully searches fro new knowledge with out having made mistakes – a nation can learn from its past mistakes.

US Visa - Non imigrant visa simplified

The application and interview process for non immigrant visa to US is a simple procedure.
Follow this
1.Log on to www.(ur city name).usconsulate.gov – click visas to the US.
2.Find the nearest HDFC bank and get a DD for the visa fee and the courier fee
Log on to the website with the receipt
3.Click link to ‘how to apply’. Then ‘get the forms’. Fill the DS 156 and DS 157
completely.
4.Click link to ‘schedule an appointment’.
5.Click the link to VFS (this will direct you to VFS website)before going to this
site you should have all necessary info and the fee receipt with barcode stickers.
6.Schedule your appointment after 48 hrs
7.At the VFS site click ‘apply for nonimmigrant visa’; go through every page
carefully filling in all information.
8.Your appointment letter is sent to your email address.
9.Printout your application and appointment letter. Carry these to the interview.
10.A successful visa interview would mean in three to four days you get your visa
in courier. You can check the status of your visa in the website.
Source: The Hindu

5 most overlooked points while solving GMAT number based problems (Arithmetic based problems)

The 5 series!!!!

5 most overlooked points while solving GMAT number based problems (Arithmetic based problems)

1.Study the factors of a number. Factors of a numbers are numbers which can divide that number. The factors for 28 are1, 2, 4, 7, 14, 28. Factors are always smaller than a number. The number of factors for a square is always odd.

2.Study the multiples of a number. Multiples of a number are numbers which are obtained by multiplying a given number by a constant. When you want to combine two numbers use LCM. For example : What is the smallest 4 digit number which can be divided by 2,5,6,8 and 9. To solve this sum first: you would have to combine these numbers to arrive at a common number i.e.the LCM of 2,5,6,8 and 9 and then proceed to obtain the smallest 4 digit number.

3.Any number raised to the power of 4 will lead to a number (say k)whose last digit remains the same irrespective of the number of time the number is multiplied with itself.(k x k x k…..n times where n can be any integer)

4.Let a × b = c. The remainder obtained when you divide c by d is equal to the product of the remainders obtained when you divide a by d and b by d. Instead of finding the remainder of 625 when divided by 7 it would make sense find the remainder of 25 when divided by 7 and multiplying the remainder twice to get the overall remainder( 625 =25 x 25)

5.While solving number based data sufficiency problems substitution of all possible numbers (positive integers, negative integers, positive fractions, negative fractions, zero) is necessary before arriving at an answer.

For example: Is (a/b) > (c/d)
1. a > c
2. b >d

Each statement individually will not yield an answer. When the statements are taken together substitute positive numbers, negative numbers to check the consistency of the answer. Also substitute numbers which are near each other as per the number line (a=2,c=1) and numbers which are far away (a =1000, c=1)