How to finally crack CAT this year?

If you know how to solve complex problems quickly and improve your weak sections, your CAT score will outperform others this CAT.

Is it possible?

It sure is. It's possible because there are smart ways to solve problems to help you improve your CAT score. In the quest of solving a question algorithmically, we, more often than not, overlook logic and common sense. Logic and common sense are intangibles that produce great tangible results in CAT and every other MBA entrance exam. Almost every CAT problem has a smarter solution. How well you score in CAT is completely based on how well you can apply your mind to utilize common sense and not get lost in the cesspool of mathematical solution.

Let's take you through an example to explain the same.

The most obvious and instinctive method to solve this question would be to substitute every thing from the third under root onwards as x

This follows from the fact that everything from the third under root onwards is basically equal to what x has been given in the question. Now, a time consuming drill of squaring both sides of the equation twice followed by rearranging and solving the equation for x can give you the answer.

However, this question doesn't require any great mathematical effort. What one must realize is that x will essentially be something slightly less than because:

is roughly equal to 2.4 and our correct answer option should be slightly less than this. This straight away rules out options (a) and (d). Since is roughly equal to 3.6, option (b) becomes extremely less than 2.4 leaving with us option (c), which is the correct answer.

Hope you enjoyed the above example. This was one problem solved in a smarter way.
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