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The cost of a certain phone call was $0.75 for the first 3 minutes and $0.20 for each additional minute after the first 3 minutes. Did the phone call last longer than 15 minutes?
(1) The cost of the phone call was less than $4.16
(2) The cost of the phone call was greater than $3.35
  • a)
    Statement (1) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (2) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;
  • b)
    Statement (2) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (1) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;
  • c)
    BOTH statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are sufficient to answer the question asked,but NEITHER statement ALONE is sufficient;
  • d)
    EACH statement ALONE is sufficient to answer the question asked;
  • e)
    Statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are NOT sufficient to answer the question asked, and additional data are needed. 
Correct answer is option 'B'. Can you explain this answer?
Most Upvoted Answer
The cost of a certain phone call was $0.75 for the first 3 minutes and...
Statement 1:
The cost of the phone call was less than $4.16.

This statement alone is not sufficient to determine if the phone call lasted longer than 15 minutes. While we know the cost is less than $4.16, we don't have any information about the specific duration of the call.

Statement 2:
The cost of the phone call was greater than $3.35.

This statement alone is not sufficient to determine if the phone call lasted longer than 15 minutes. Similar to statement 1, we only have information about the cost of the call, not the duration.

Statements 1 and 2 together:
Combining the information from both statements, we know that the cost of the call is between $3.35 and $4.16.

Let's analyze the different scenarios:

- If the call lasted exactly 3 minutes, the cost would be $0.75, which is less than $3.35. Therefore, the call lasted longer than 3 minutes.
- If the call lasted exactly 4 minutes, the cost would be $0.75 + $0.20 = $0.95, which is between $3.35 and $4.16. Therefore, the call could have lasted longer than 4 minutes.
- If the call lasted exactly 15 minutes, the cost would be $0.75 + $0.20 * 12 = $3.15, which is between $3.35 and $4.16. Therefore, the call could have lasted longer than 15 minutes.

In all of these scenarios, we cannot determine for certain if the call lasted longer than 15 minutes. Therefore, even when combining both statements, we still do not have sufficient information to answer the question.

Hence, the correct answer is option B: Statement (2) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (1) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked.
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Community Answer
The cost of a certain phone call was $0.75 for the first 3 minutes and...
This problem highlights how important it is to read carefully and to look for potential interpretation errors in GMAT math questions. It also shows how it is often easier to manipulate the question stems to match the statements in data sufficiency questions than to change the statements to match the questions (what you naturally want to do). Here is the incredibly well-made “con” in this question:
 A majority of high performing students do not properly interpret how to determine the cost—the instructions say $0.75 for the first 3 minutes NOT $0.75 per minute for the first three minutes. However, most people carelessly calculate the charge as if it were per minute. If you do that improper interpretation, then the question stem seems to be asking this in terms of cost: a 15-minute call would be 3 x ($0.75) + 12 ($0.20) or $2.25 + $2.40 = $4.65, so the question would be “Did the phone call cost more than $4.65?” Statement (1) would give you a definitive “No” to the question (cost would always be less than $4.65) and thus be sufficient. Statement (2) would allow for the cost to be both below and above $4.65, so the “Maybe” answer would make it insufficient. With the improper interpretation, you seem to have done everything correct when picking (A). But the correct answer is (B)!
The proper interpretation:
 The first three minutes in total cost $0.75 and each minute after the first three costs $0.20 per minute. A 15-minute call would cost $0.75 + 12 ($0.20) or $3.15. So, after changing the question to ask about cost (in order to match the statements) it becomes: Did the call cost more than $3.15?
 Now you see that statement (1) gives a maybe answer since it allows for both a yes and a no answer to the question. Statement (2), however, guarantees that the cost will always be greater than $3.15, so it is sufficient, yielding the correct answer of (B).
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The cost of a certain phone call was $0.75 for the first 3 minutes and $0.20 for each additional minute after the first 3 minutes. Did the phone call last longer than 15 minutes?(1) The cost of the phone call was less than $4.16(2) The cost of the phone call was greater than $3.35a)Statement (1) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (2) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;b)Statement (2) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (1) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;c)BOTH statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are sufficient to answer the question asked,but NEITHER statement ALONE is sufficient;d)EACH statement ALONE is sufficient to answer the question asked;e)Statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are NOT sufficient to answer the question asked, and additional data are needed.Correct answer is option 'B'. Can you explain this answer?
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The cost of a certain phone call was $0.75 for the first 3 minutes and $0.20 for each additional minute after the first 3 minutes. Did the phone call last longer than 15 minutes?(1) The cost of the phone call was less than $4.16(2) The cost of the phone call was greater than $3.35a)Statement (1) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (2) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;b)Statement (2) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (1) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;c)BOTH statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are sufficient to answer the question asked,but NEITHER statement ALONE is sufficient;d)EACH statement ALONE is sufficient to answer the question asked;e)Statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are NOT sufficient to answer the question asked, and additional data are needed.Correct answer is option 'B'. Can you explain this answer? for GMAT 2024 is part of GMAT preparation. The Question and answers have been prepared according to the GMAT exam syllabus. Information about The cost of a certain phone call was $0.75 for the first 3 minutes and $0.20 for each additional minute after the first 3 minutes. Did the phone call last longer than 15 minutes?(1) The cost of the phone call was less than $4.16(2) The cost of the phone call was greater than $3.35a)Statement (1) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (2) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;b)Statement (2) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (1) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;c)BOTH statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are sufficient to answer the question asked,but NEITHER statement ALONE is sufficient;d)EACH statement ALONE is sufficient to answer the question asked;e)Statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are NOT sufficient to answer the question asked, and additional data are needed.Correct answer is option 'B'. Can you explain this answer? covers all topics & solutions for GMAT 2024 Exam. Find important definitions, questions, meanings, examples, exercises and tests below for The cost of a certain phone call was $0.75 for the first 3 minutes and $0.20 for each additional minute after the first 3 minutes. Did the phone call last longer than 15 minutes?(1) The cost of the phone call was less than $4.16(2) The cost of the phone call was greater than $3.35a)Statement (1) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (2) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;b)Statement (2) ALONE is sufficient, but statement (1) alone is not sufficient to answer the question asked;c)BOTH statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are sufficient to answer the question asked,but NEITHER statement ALONE is sufficient;d)EACH statement ALONE is sufficient to answer the question asked;e)Statements (1) and (2) TOGETHER are NOT sufficient to answer the question asked, and additional data are needed.Correct answer is option 'B'. Can you explain this answer?.
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