<p>Ugg I Keep missing 3 on the math section and I really want to get it up to -1 or -0. Can someone please help explain #43 and #50 on the Math section of practice test 1 in Red Book? The explanation at end didn't help, also on number 52 is there any shortcut to doing those type of questions? There's always a question like that and they take me forever to do, for example on last math test i took it was like a Hexagon with 6 screws and how many unique pairs of rubber bands could be stretched across the nails.</p>
<p>I would have definitely winged number 43.</p>
<p>Factors of x^2y^2=
x<em>x</em>y*y</p>
<p>Factors of x<em>y^3=
x</em>y<em>y</em>y</p>
<p>Factor: x*y^2 (used greatest number of x’s and y’s each had, and I guess if it’s a factor it’s a factor of the GCF. I doubt I would have gotten this question because I never spent much time on GCFs.)
Using this variable format of the factor, find numbers that would be equal to 45. So find what x times what y^2 would equal 45.</p>
<p>Once you find that, you now know what y would work.</p>
<p>I think breaking the variables down definitely would help, although this seems like one of those questions that is randomly thrown in and you just have to hope you can guess right.</p>
<p>Question 50 is more of a logic problem.</p>
<p>If there are 8 that play guitar, and 9 that play piano, that is only 17/20 students accounted, meaning that these students could only play these instruments and nothing else and the class total would still equal 20. If there had been like 12 that played guitar and 9 that played piano, there would definitely be an overlap because there is only 20 students, and 12+9 equals 21.</p>
<p>Basically, the answer is just 0 because you could say 8 ONLY play guitar, 9 ONLY play piano and there would still be room left. The whole class could get away with playing only one instrument since the total is 17.</p>
<p>I hope something there makes sense.</p>
<p>I’d also like to know about the hexagon type problem. I got a 32 in the math and I’m worried that will go down because I lucked out and didn’t get one of those questions.</p>
<p>Edit: Googled it, I guess there’s a formula for diagonals.</p>
<p>(n² - 3n)/2.</p>
<p>So it would be 20. </p>
<p>I’d program that into your calculator. 
Being able to use a graphing calculator is the best.</p>