Question ID 2d1e5eff

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 2d1e5eff

In the given system of equations, is a constant. The graphs of the equations in the given system
intersect at exactly one point, , in the xy-plane. What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 2d1e5eff Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It's given that the graphs of the equations in the given system intersect at exactly one point, , in
the xy-plane. Therefore, is the only solution to the given system of equations. The given system of equations can
be solved by subtracting the second equation, , from the first equation, . This yields
, or . Since the given system has only one solution,
this equation has only one solution. A quadratic equation in the form , where , , and are constants,
has one solution if and only if the discriminant, , is equal to zero. Substituting for , for , and
for in the expression yields . Setting this expression equal to zero yields
, or . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields .
Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Substituting for in the equation
yields , or . Factoring from the right-hand
side of this equation yields . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields
, which is equivalent to , or . Taking the square root of both
sides of this equation yields . Adding to both sides of this equation yields .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of , not .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 005e9982
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 005e9982

The given function models the number of advertisements a company sent to its clients each year, where
represents the number of years since , and . If is graphed in the xy-plane,
which of the following is the best interpretation of the y-intercept of the graph in this context?
A. The minimum estimated number of advertisements the company sent to its clients during the years
was .

B. The minimum estimated number of advertisements the company sent to its clients during the years
was .

C. The estimated number of advertisements the company sent to its clients in was .

D. The estimated number of advertisements the company sent to its clients in was .

ID: 005e9982 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The y-intercept of a graph in the xy-plane is the point where . For the given function , the y-
intercept of the graph of in the xy-plane can be found by substituting for in the equation
, which gives . This is equivalent to , or . Therefore, the y-
intercept of the graph of is . It’s given that the function models the number of advertisements a
company sent to its clients each year. Therefore, represents the estimated number of advertisements the company
sent to its clients each year. It's also given that represents the number of years since . Therefore,
represents years since , or . Thus, the best interpretation of the y-intercept of the graph of is that
the estimated number of advertisements the company sent to its clients in was .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 65244c8d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 65244c8d

What is the smallest solution to the given equation?

ID: 65244c8d Answer

Correct Answer: -3

Rationale

The correct answer is . Squaring both sides of the given equation yields , which can be rewritten
as . Subtracting and from both sides of this equation yields . This
quadratic equation can be rewritten as . According to the zero product property,
equals zero when either or . Solving each of these equations for yields or .
Therefore, the given equation has two solutions, and . Of these two solutions, is the smallest solution to the
given equation.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 5822c232
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: 5822c232

Which expression is equivalent to ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 5822c232 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. Factoring the denominator in the second term of the given expression gives . This
expression can be rewritten with common denominators by multiplying the first term by , giving .
Adding these two terms yields . Using the distributive property to rewrite this expression gives
. Combining the like terms in the numerator of this expression gives .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 4782fd69
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 4782fd69

The function models the value, in dollars, of a certain bank account by the end of
each year from through , where is the number of years after . Which of the following is
the best interpretation of “ is approximately equal to ” in this context?

A. The value of the bank account is estimated to be approximately dollars greater in than in .

B. The value of the bank account is estimated to be approximately dollars in .

C. The value, in dollars, of the bank account is estimated to be approximately times greater in
than in .

D. The value of the bank account is estimated to increase by approximately dollars every years
between and .

ID: 4782fd69 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It’s given that the function models the value, in dollars, of a certain bank
account by the end of each year from through , where is the number of years after . It follows that
represents the estimated value, in dollars, of the bank account years after . Since the value of is the
value of when , it follows that “ is approximately equal to ” means that is approximately equal
to when . In the given context, this means that the value of the bank account is estimated to be approximately
dollars years after . Therefore, the best interpretation of the statement “ is approximately equal to ”
in this context is the value of the bank account is estimated to be approximately dollars in .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID c9f2f07d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: c9f2f07d

The function is given. Which table of values represents ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: c9f2f07d Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It’s given that and . Substituting

for in the equation yields . Substituting
for in this equation yields , or . Substituting for in the
equation yields , or . Substituting
for in the equation yields , or . Therefore,
when then , when then , and when then . Thus, the table of values in
choice B represents .
Choice A is incorrect. This table represents rather than .

Choice C is incorrect. This table represents rather than .

Choice D is incorrect. This table represents rather than .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 6fbfbe0d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 6fbfbe0d

The given equation relates the positive numbers , , and . Which equation correctly expresses in
terms of and ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 6fbfbe0d Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. To express in terms of and , the given equation can be rewritten such that is isolated on one
side of the equation. Since it’s given that is a positive number, is not equal to zero. Therefore, dividing both sides
of the given equation by yields the equivalent equation , or .

Choice A is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to .

Choice C is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to .

Choice D is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID fe81a236
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: fe81a236

The function is defined by . The value of is , where is a

constant. What is the sum of all possible values of ?

ID: fe81a236 Answer

Correct Answer: 25

Rationale

The correct answer is . The value of is the value of when , where is a constant.
Substituting for in the given equation yields , which is
equivalent to . It’s given that the value of is . Substituting for
in the equation yields . Since the
product of the three factors on the right-hand side of this equation is equal to , at least one of these three factors must
be equal to . Therefore, the possible values of can be found by setting each factor equal to . Setting the first factor
equal to yields . Adding to both sides of this equation yields . Therefore, is one possible value of
. Setting the second factor equal to yields . Adding to both sides of this equation yields .
Therefore, is a second possible value of . Setting the third factor equal to yields . Taking the square
root of both sides of this equation yields . Adding to both sides of this equation yields . Therefore,
is a third possible value of . Adding the three possible values of yields , or . Therefore, the sum of
all possible values of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 54bf74ea
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 54bf74ea

The given function models the population of Lowell years after a census. Which of the following
functions best models the population of Lowell months after the census?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 54bf74ea Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It’s given that the function models the population of Lowell years after a census. Since there are
months in a year, months after the census is equivalent to years after the census. Substituting for in the
equation yields . Therefore, the function that best models the
population of Lowell months after the census is .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 5bfaf155
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 5bfaf155

The given equation relates the numbers and , where is not equal to and . Which equation
correctly expresses in terms of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 5bfaf155 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. To express in terms of , the given equation must be solved for . Subtracting from both sides of
the given equation yields . Since is not equal to , multiplying both sides of this equation by yields
. It's given that , which means is not equal to . Therefore, dividing both sides of
by yields , or .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 8217606b
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 8217606b

In the given equation, and are positive constants. The sum of the solutions to the given equation is
, where is a constant. What is the value of ?

ID: 8217606b Answer

Correct Answer: .0625, 1/16

Rationale

The correct answer is . Let and represent the solutions to the given equation. Then, the given equation can be
rewritten as , or . Since this equation is equivalent to the given
equation, it follows that . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields
, or . Therefore, the sum of the solutions to the given equation, , is equal to
. Since it's given that the sum of the solutions to the given equation is , where is a constant, it
follows that . Note that 1/16, .0625, 0.062, and 0.063 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Alternate approach: The given equation can be rewritten as , where and are positive
constants. Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . The solutions for a quadratic
equation in the form , where , , and are constants, can be calculated using the quadratic
formula, and . It follows that the sum of the solutions to a quadratic equation in
the form is , which can be rewritten as
, which is equivalent to , or . In the equation ,
, , and . Substituting for and for in yields , which
can be rewritten as . Thus, the sum of the solutions to the given equation is . Since it's given that
the sum of the solutions to the given equation is , where is a constant, it follows that .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID a51ff0d6
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: a51ff0d6

The function is defined by the given equation. For what value of does reach its minimum?

ID: a51ff0d6 Answer

Correct Answer: -7

Rationale

The correct answer is . For a quadratic function defined by an equation of the form , where ,
, and are constants and , the function reaches its minimum when . In the given function, , ,
and . Therefore, the value of for which reaches its minimum is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 0e4cd7da
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 0e4cd7da

Which quadratic equation has no real solutions?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 0e4cd7da Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The number of solutions to a quadratic equation in the form , where , , and
are constants, can be determined by the value of the discriminant, . If the value of the discriminant is greater
than zero, then the quadratic equation has two distinct real solutions. If the value of the discriminant is equal to zero,
then the quadratic equation has exactly one real solution. If the value of the discriminant is less than zero, then the
quadratic equation has no real solutions. For the quadratic equation in choice D, , ,
, and . Substituting for , for , and for in yields , or . Since
is less than zero, it follows that the quadratic equation has no real solutions.

Choice A is incorrect. The value of the discriminant for this quadratic equation is . Since is greater than zero, it
follows that this quadratic equation has two real solutions.

Choice B is incorrect. The value of the discriminant for this quadratic equation is . Since zero is equal to zero, it follows
that this quadratic equation has exactly one real solution.

Choice C is incorrect. The value of the discriminant for this quadratic equation is . Since is greater than zero,
it follows that this quadratic equation has two real solutions.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 4443355f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: 4443355f

The expression , where is a constant, can be rewritten as , where , ,

and are integer constants. Which of the following must be an integer?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 4443355f Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that can be rewritten as . The expression

can be rewritten as , or . Therefore,
is equivalent to . It follows that . Dividing each side of this equation
by yields . Since is an integer, must be an integer. Therefore, must also be an integer.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID a1397504
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: a1397504

The given expression can be rewritten as , where is a constant. What is the value of
?

ID: a1397504 Answer

Correct Answer: .09, 9/100

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that the expression can be rewritten as
. Applying the distributive property to the expression yields .
Therefore, can be rewritten as . It follows that in the expressions
and , the coefficients of are equivalent, the coefficients of are
equivalent, and the constant terms are equivalent. Therefore, , , and . Solving any of
these equations for yields the value of . Dividing both sides of the equation by yields .
Therefore, the value of is . Note that .09 and 9/100 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 536832c0
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 536832c0

In the -plane, a line with equation intersects a parabola at exactly one point. If the parabola
has equation , where is a positive constant, what is the value of ?

ID: 536832c0 Answer

Correct Answer: 6

Rationale

The correct answer is . It’s given that a line with equation intersects a parabola with equation
, where is a positive constant, at exactly one point in the xy-plane. It follows that the system of
equations consisting of and has exactly one solution. Dividing both sides of the equation of
the line by yields . Substituting for in the equation of the parabola yields . Adding
and subtracting from both sides of this equation yields . A quadratic equation in the form
of , where , , and are constants, has exactly one solution when the discriminant, , is
equal to zero. Substituting for and for in the expression and setting this expression equal to yields
, or . Adding to each side of this equation yields . Taking the square root
of each side of this equation yields . It’s given that is positive, so the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 72bf9318
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 72bf9318

The function is defined by . In the xy-plane, the graph of is the result of shifting
the graph of down units. Which equation defines function ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 72bf9318 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. If the graph of is the result of shifting the graph of down units in the xy-plane,
the function can be defined by an equation of the form . It’s given that and the graph of
is the result of shifting the graph of down units. Substituting for and for in the
equation yields .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice C is incorrect. This equation defines a function for which the graph of is the result of shifting the
graph of up, not down, units.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 32dc74a4
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 32dc74a4

A right rectangular prism has a height of inches. The length of the prism's base is inches, which is
inches more than the width of the prism's base. Which function gives the volume of the prism, in cubic
inches, in terms of the length of the prism's base?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 32dc74a4 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The volume of a right rectangular prism can be represented by a function that gives the volume of
the prism, in cubic inches, in terms of the length of the prism's base. The volume of a right rectangular prism is equal to
the area of its base times its height. It's given that the length of the prism's base is inches, which is inches more than
the width of the prism's base. This means that the width of the prism's base is inches. It follows that the area of
the prism's base, in square inches, is and the volume, in cubic inches, of the prism is . Thus, the
function that gives the volume of this right rectangular prism, in cubic inches, in terms of the length of the prism's
base, , is .

Choice A is incorrect. This function would give the volume of the prism if the height were inches more than the length
of its base and the width of the base were inches more than its length.

Choice B is incorrect. This function would give the volume of the prism if the height were inches more than the length
of its base.

Choice C is incorrect. This function would give the volume of the prism if the width of the base were inches more than
its length, rather than the length of the base being inches more than its width.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 1d670e5f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 1d670e5f

What is the minimum value of the given function?

ID: 1d670e5f Answer

Correct Answer: 1728

Rationale

The correct answer is . The given function can be rewritten in the form , where is a
positive constant and the minimum value, , of the function occurs when the value of is . By completing the square,
can be written as , or
. This equation is in the form , where , , and
. Therefore, the minimum value of the given function is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID f0b332e0
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: f0b332e0

A sample of a certain isotope takes years to decay to half its original mass. The function
gives the approximate mass of this isotope, in grams, that remains years after a
-gram sample starts to decay. Which statement is the best interpretation of in this
context?
A. Approximately grams of the sample remains years after the sample starts to decay.

B. The mass of the sample has decreased by approximately grams years after the sample starts to
decay.

C. The mass of the sample has decreased by approximately grams years after the sample starts to
decay.

D. Approximately grams of the sample remains years after the sample starts to decay.

ID: f0b332e0 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. In the given function, represents the approximate mass, in grams, of the sample that remains
years after the sample starts to decay. It follows that the best interpretation of is that approximately
grams of the sample remains years after the sample starts to decay.

Choice B is incorrect. The mass of the sample has decreased by approximately , or , grams, not grams,
years after the sample starts to decay.

Choice C is incorrect. The mass of the sample has decreased by approximately grams, not grams, years after
the sample starts to decay.

Choice D is incorrect. This would be the best interpretation of , not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 1c7b6b0a
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 1c7b6b0a

The given equation relates the distinct positive numbers , , and . Which equation correctly expresses
in terms of and ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 1c7b6b0a Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. To express in terms of and , the given equation must be solved for . Since it's given
that is a positive number, is not equal to zero. Therefore, multiplying both sides of the given equation by
yields the equivalent equation . Since it's given that is a positive number, is not equal to zero.
Therefore, dividing each side of the equation by yields the equivalent equation .

Choice B is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to .

Choice C is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to .

Choice D is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 6c28bdc9
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 6c28bdc9

What is the sum of the solutions to the given equation?

ID: 6c28bdc9 Answer

Correct Answer: 29/3, 9.666, 9.667

Rationale

The correct answer is . Applying the distributive property to the left-hand side of the given equation, ,
yields . Applying the distributive property to the right-hand side of the given equation, , yields
. Thus, the equation becomes . Combining like terms on the left- and right-hand
sides of this equation yields , or . For a quadratic equation
in the form , where , , and are constants, the quadratic formula gives the solutions to the equation

in the form . Substituting for , for , and for from the equation

into the quadratic formula yields , or . It follows that the solutions to the given
equation are and . Adding these two solutions gives the sum of the solutions: ,
which is equivalent to , or . Note that 29/3, 9.666, and 9.667 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID ed5b7c61
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: ed5b7c61

Which table gives three values of and their corresponding values of for function ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: ed5b7c61 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Substituting for in the given function yields , which is equivalent to
, or . Therefore, when , the corresponding value of for function is .
Substituting for in the given function yields , which is equivalent to , or .
Therefore, when , the corresponding value of for function is . Substituting for in the given function
yields , which is equivalent to , or . Therefore, when , the corresponding
value of for function is . Of the choices given, only the table in choice D gives these three values of and their
corresponding values of for function .

Choice A is incorrect. This table gives three values of and their corresponding values of for the function
.

Choice B is incorrect. This table gives three values of and their corresponding values of for the function
.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 7f4b32e1
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: 7f4b32e1

The functions and are defined by the equations shown. Which expression is equivalent to
?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 7f4b32e1 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It’s given that and . Substituting for and for
in the expression yields . This expression can be rewritten as
, or , which is equivalent to .

Choice A is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to , not .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to , not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID c9d2651d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: c9d2651d

If , what is the value of ?

ID: c9d2651d Answer

Correct Answer: 5

Rationale

The correct answer is . Dividing each side of the given equation by yields . Adding to each side of
this equation yields . Therefore, if , the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID eafd61d3
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: eafd61d3

The expression is equivalent to the expression , where , , and are

constants. What is the value of ?

ID: eafd61d3 Answer

Correct Answer: -419

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that the expression is equivalent to the expression
, where , , and are constants. Applying the distributive property to the given expression,
, yields , which can be rewritten as
. Combining like terms yields . Since this expression is equivalent to
, it follows that the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 80803aed
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 80803aed

The function is defined by , where is a constant. In the xy-plane, the graph of

passes through the point . What is the value of ?

ID: 80803aed Answer

Correct Answer: 336

Rationale

The correct answer is . By the zero product property, if , then , which gives
, or , which gives . Therefore, when and when . Since the graph of
passes through the point , it follows that , so . Substituting for in the equation
yields . The value of can be calculated by substituting for
in this equation, which yields , or .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID b40b491b
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: b40b491b

The given equation relates the distinct positive real numbers , , and . Which equation correctly
expresses in terms of and ?

A.

B.

C. msup

D. msup

ID: b40b491b Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. Dividing each side of the given equation by yields , or . Because it's
given that each of the variables is positive, squaring each side of this equation yields the equivalent equation

. Subtracting from each side of this equation yields , or .

Choice A is incorrect. This equation isn't equivalent to the given equation.

Choice B is incorrect. This equation isn't equivalent to the given equation.

Choice D is incorrect. This equation isn't equivalent to the given equation.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 753ebb31
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 753ebb31

What is the positive solution to the given equation?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 753ebb31 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. The left-hand side of the given equation can be factored as . Therefore, the given
equation, , can be written as . Applying the zero product property to this
equation yields and . Subtracting from both sides of the equation yields
. Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Adding to both sides of the equation yields
. Therefore, the two solutions to the given equation, , are and . It follows that is the
positive solution to the given equation.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID d9799723
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: d9799723

What is the sum of the solutions to the given equation?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: d9799723 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Adding to each side of the given equation yields . To complete the square,
adding , or , to each side of this equation yields , or . Taking
the square root of each side of this equation yields . Adding to each side of this equation yields
. Therefore, the solutions to the given equation are and . The sum of
these solutions is , or .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 6075b3e6
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 6075b3e6

A scientist initially measures bacteria in a growth medium. hours later, the scientist measures
bacteria. Assuming exponential growth, the formula gives the number of bacteria in
the growth medium, where and are constants and is the number of bacteria hours after the initial
measurement. What is the value of ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 6075b3e6 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It’s given that the formula gives the number of bacteria in a growth medium, where
and are constants and is the number of bacteria hours after the initial measurement. It’s also given that a scientist
initially measures bacteria in the growth medium. Since the initial measurement is hours after the initial
measurement, it follows that when , . Substituting for and for in the given equation
yields , or , which is equivalent to . It’s given that hours later, the
scientist measures bacteria, or when , . Substituting for , for , and for
in the given equation yields . Dividing each side of this equation by yields , or
, which is equivalent to . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Therefore, the value of
is .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of the reciprocal of .

Choice C is incorrect. This is the value of the reciprocal of .

Choice D is incorrect. This is the value of .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID f1e48337
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: f1e48337

The graph models the number of active projects a company was working on months after the end of
November , where . According to the model, what is the predicted number of active
projects the company was working on at the end of November ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: f1e48337 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It's given that the graph models the number of active projects a company was working on months
after the end of November . Therefore, the value of that corresponds to the end of November is . The point
at which is the y-intercept of the graph. It follows that the y-intercept of the graph shown is the point .
Therefore, according to the model, the predicted number of active projects the company was working on at the end of
November is .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of that corresponds to the end of November , not the predicted number of
active projects the company was working on at the end of November .
Choice C is incorrect. This is the predicted number of active projects the company was working on months after the
end of November .

Choice D is incorrect. This is the predicted number of active projects the company was working on months after the
end of November .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID e9e5f5d5
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: e9e5f5d5

What is the positive solution to the given equation?

ID: e9e5f5d5 Answer

Correct Answer: 4

Rationale

The correct answer is . The left-hand side of the given equation can be factored as . Therefore, the
given equation, , can be written as . Applying the zero product property to
this equation yields and . Subtracting from both sides of the equation yields
. Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Adding to both sides of the equation
yields . Therefore, the two solutions to the given equation, , are and . It follows that
is the positive solution to the given equation.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 68fb4847
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: 68fb4847

Which expression is equivalent to , where ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 68fb4847 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Two fractions can be added together when they have a common denominator. Since ,
multiplying the second term in the given expression by yields , which is equivalent to . Therefore, the
expression can be written as which is equivalent to . Since each term in the
numerator of this expression has a factor of , the expression can be rewritten as , or
, which is equivalent to .

Choice A is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 9298a52e
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 9298a52e

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

ID: 9298a52e Answer

Correct Answer: -10

Rationale

The correct answer is . Adding to both sides of the second equation in the given system yields .
Substituting for in the first equation in the given system yields . Subtracting
from both sides of this equation yields . Factoring the left-hand side of this equation yields
, or . Taking the square root of both sides of this equation yields .
Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields . Therefore, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID e24f00be
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: e24f00be

The product of two positive integers is . If the first integer is greater than twice the second integer,
what is the smaller of the two integers?

ID: e24f00be Answer

Correct Answer: 14

Rationale

The correct answer is . Let represent the first integer and represent the second integer. If the first integer is
greater than twice the second integer, then . It's given that the product of the two integers is ; therefore
. Substituting for in this equation yields , which can be written as
. Subtracting from each side of this equation yields . The left-hand side of
this equation can be factored by finding two values whose product is , or , and whose sum is . The two
values whose product is and whose sum is are and . Thus, the equation can be
rewritten as , which is equivalent to , or
. By the zero product property, it follows that or . Subtracting from
both sides of the equation yields . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields .
Since is a positive integer, the value of isn't . Adding to both sides of the equation yields .
Substituting for in the equation yields . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields
. Therefore, the two integers are and , so the smaller of the two integers is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 172e8982
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 172e8982

The graph gives the estimated number of catalogs , in thousands, a company sent to its customers at
the end of each year, where represents the number of years since the end of , where .
Which statement is the best interpretation of the y-intercept in this context?
A. The estimated total number of catalogs the company sent to its customers during the first years
was .

B. The estimated total number of catalogs the company sent to its customers from the end of to
the end of was .

C. The estimated number of catalogs the company sent to its customers at the end of was .

D. The estimated number of catalogs the company sent to its customers at the end of was .

ID: 172e8982 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The y-intercept of the graph is the point at which the graph crosses the y-axis, or the point for which
the value of is . Therefore, the y-intercept of the given graph is the point . It's given that represents the number
of years since the end of . Therefore, represents years since the end of , which is the same as the end
of . It's also given that represents the estimated number of catalogs, in thousands, that the company sent to its
customers at the end of the year. Therefore, represents catalogs. It follows that the y-intercept
means that the estimated number of catalogs the company sent to its customers at the end of was .
Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID bc68d9f9
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: bc68d9f9

Which expression is equivalent to ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: bc68d9f9 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. Since each term of the given expression has a common factor of , it may be rewritten as
, or .

Choice A is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to , not .

Choice B is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to , not .

Choice D is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to , not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID ec3981ea
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: ec3981ea

If is a factor of the expression , where and are constants and , what is the
value of ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: ec3981ea Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. If is a factor of the expression , then the expression can be written as
, where and are constants. This expression can be rewritten as , or
. Since this expression is equivalent to , it follows that ,
, and . Dividing each side of the equation by yields . Substituting for
in the equation yields . Adding to each side of this equation yields . Substituting for in
the equation yields . Since is positive, dividing each side of this equation by yields
. Multiplying each side of this equation by yields .

Alternate approach: The expression can be written as , which is a difference of two squares. It

follows that is equivalent to . It’s given that is a factor

of , so the factor is equal to . Adding to both sides of the equation

yields . Since is positive, dividing both sides of this equation by yields

. Squaring both sides of this equation yields . Multiplying both sides of this equation by yields
.

Choice A is incorrect. This value of gives the expression , or . This expression

doesn't have as a factor.

Choice B is incorrect. This value of gives the expression , or . This

expression doesn't have as a factor.

Choice C is incorrect. This value of gives the expression , or . This expression

doesn't have as a factor.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 247b1034
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 247b1034

A solution to the given system of equations is , where . What is the value of ?

ID: 247b1034 Answer

Correct Answer: 6

Rationale

The correct answer is . It’s given that and . Since , substituting for in the second
equation of the given system yields . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields
. This equation can be rewritten as . By the zero product property, or
. Adding to both sides of the equation yields . Subtracting from both sides of the
equation yields . Therefore, solutions to the given system of equations occur when and when
. It’s given that a solution to the given system of equations is , where . Since is greater than , it
follows that the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 8df65561
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 8df65561

If the given function is graphed in the xy-plane, where , what is an x-intercept of the graph?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 8df65561 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that . The x-intercepts of a graph in the xy-plane are the points where .
Thus, for an x-intercept of the graph of function , . Substituting for in the equation
yields . Factoring the right-hand side of this equation yields
. By the zero product property, and . Subtracting from both sides of
the equation yields . Adding to both sides of the equation yields .
Therefore, the x-intercepts of the graph of are and . Of these two x-intercepts, only
is given as a choice.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID a2d5ec41
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: a2d5ec41

Two variables, and , are related such that for each increase of in the value of , the value of
increases by a factor of . When , . Which equation represents this relationship?
A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: a2d5ec41 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Since the value of increases by a constant factor, , for each increase of in the value of , the
relationship between and is exponential. An exponential relationship between and can be represented by an
equation of the form , where is the value of when and increases by a factor of for each increase
of in the value of . Since when , . Since increases by a factor of for each increase of in
the value of , . Substituting for and for in the equation yields . Thus, the
equation represents the relationship between and .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice B is incorrect. This equation represents a relationship where for each increase of in the value of , the value of
increases by a factor of , not , and when , is equal to , not .

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID f929d680
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: f929d680

The number of bacteria in a liquid medium doubles every day. There are bacteria in the liquid
medium at the start of an observation. Which represents the number of bacteria, , in the liquid medium
days after the start of the observation?
A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: f929d680 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Since the number of bacteria doubles every day, the relationship between and can be represented
by an exponential equation of the form , where is the number of bacteria at the start of the observation and
the number of bacteria increases by a factor of every day. It’s given that there are bacteria at the start of the
observation. Therefore, . It’s also given that the number of bacteria doubles, or increases by a factor of ,
every day. Therefore, . Substituting for and for in the equation yields .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect. This equation represents a situation where the number of bacteria is decreasing by half, not
doubling, every day.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 5ec80061
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 5ec80061

The given function models the number of coupons a company sent to their customers at the end of
each year, where represents the number of years since the end of , and . If is
graphed in the ty-plane, which of the following is the best interpretation of the y-intercept of the graph in
this context?
A. The minimum estimated number of coupons the company sent to their customers during the years
was .

B. The minimum estimated number of coupons the company sent to their customers during the years
was .

C. The estimated number of coupons the company sent to their customers at the end of was
.

D. The estimated number of coupons the company sent to their customers at the end of was
.

ID: 5ec80061 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The y-intercept of a graph in the ty-plane is the point where . For the given function , the y-
intercept of the graph of in the ty-plane can be found by substituting for in the equation ,
which gives . This is equivalent to , or . Therefore, the y-intercept of the
graph of is . It’s given that the function models the number of coupons a company sent to their
customers at the end of each year. Therefore, represents the estimated number of coupons the company sent to
their customers at the end of each year. It's also given that represents the number of years since the end of .
Therefore, represents years since the end of , or the end of . Thus, the best interpretation of the y-
intercept of the graph of is that the estimated number of coupons the company sent to their customers at the
end of was .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 7b2d91a2
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 7b2d91a2

What is the solution to the given equation?

ID: 7b2d91a2 Answer

Correct Answer: -9

Rationale

The correct answer is . Since is in the denominator of a fraction in the given equation, can't be equal to . Since
isn't equal to , multiplying both sides of the given equation by yields an equivalent equation, . Dividing
both sides of this equation by yields . Therefore, is the solution to the given equation.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID a6c47b9c
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: a6c47b9c

The function is defined by . What is the y-intercept of the graph of in

the xy-plane?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: a6c47b9c Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. The y-intercept of the graph of in the xy-plane occurs at the point on the graph where
. In other words, when , the corresponding value of is the y-coordinate of the y-intercept. Substituting
for in the given equation yields , which is equivalent to , or .
Thus, when , the corresponding value of is . Therefore, the y-intercept of the graph of in the xy-
plane is .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect. This could be the y-intercept for , not .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID d1b142ac
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: d1b142ac

The area , in square centimeters, of a rectangular cutting board can be represented by the expression
, where is the width, in centimeters, of the cutting board. Which expression represents the
length, in centimeters, of the cutting board?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: d1b142ac Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that the expression represents the area, in square centimeters, of a rectangular
cutting board, where is the width, in centimeters, of the cutting board. The area of a rectangle can be calculated by
multiplying its length by its width. It follows that the length, in centimeters, of the cutting board is represented by the
expression .

Choice A is incorrect. This expression represents the area, in square centimeters, of the cutting board, not its length, in
centimeters.

Choice B is incorrect. This expression represents the width, in centimeters, of the cutting board, not its length.

Choice C is incorrect. This is the difference between the length, in centimeters, and the width, in centimeters, of the
cutting board, not its length, in centimeters.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID bc0575e7
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: bc0575e7

Which of the following is a solution to the given equation?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: bc0575e7 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Adding to both sides of the given equation yields . To complete the square,
adding , or , to both sides of this equation yields , or . Taking the
square root of both sides of this equation yields , or . Subtracting from both sides
of this equation yields . Therefore, the solutions to the given equation are and
. Of these two solutions, only is given as a choice.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 1145bfcc
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 1145bfcc

The given equation relates the variables and . For what value of does the value of reach its
minimum?

ID: 1145bfcc Answer

Correct Answer: 7

Rationale

The correct answer is . When an equation is of the form , where , , and are constants, the value
of reaches its minimum when . Since the given equation is of the form , it follows that
, , and . Therefore, the value of reaches its minimum when , or .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID c7f7ccdd
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: c7f7ccdd

The rational function is defined by an equation in the form , where and are constants.
The partial graph of is shown. If , which equation could define function ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: c7f7ccdd Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It's given that and that the graph shown is a partial graph of . Substituting
for in the equation yields . The graph passes through the point . Substituting
for and for in the equation yields . Multiplying each side of this equation by yields
, or . The graph also passes through the point . Substituting for and
for in the equation yields . Multiplying each side of this equation by yields
, or . Substituting for in this equation yields . Adding to
each side of this equation yields . Subtracting from each side of this equation yields . Dividing
each side of this equation by yields . Substituting for in the equation yields , or
. Substituting for and for in the equation yields . It's given that
 . Substituting for in the equation yields , which is equivalent
to . It follows that .

Choice A is incorrect. This could define function if .

Choice B is incorrect. This could define function if .

Choice D is incorrect. This could define function if .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 2833ad7d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 2833ad7d

A model estimates that at the end of each year from to , the number of squirrels in a
population was more than the number of squirrels in the population at the end of the previous year.
The model estimates that at the end of , there were squirrels in the population. Which of the
following equations represents this model, where is the estimated number of squirrels in the population
years after the end of and ?
A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: 2833ad7d Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Since the model estimates that the number of squirrels in the population increased by a fixed
percentage, , each year, the model can be represented by an exponential equation of the form ,
where is the estimated number of squirrels in the population at the end of , and the model estimates that at the
end of each year, the number is more than the number at the end of the previous year. Since the model estimates
that at the end of each year, the number was more than the number at the end of the previous year, .
Substituting for in the equation yields , which is equivalent to
, or . It’s given that the estimated number of squirrels at the end of was . This
means that when , . Substituting for and for in the equation yields ,
or . Dividing each side of this equation by yields . Substituting for in the equation
yields .

Choice A is incorrect. This equation represents a model where at the end of each year, the estimated number of squirrels
was of, not more than, the estimated number at the end of the previous year.

Choice C is incorrect. This equation represents a model where at the end of each year, the estimated number of squirrels
was of, not more than, the estimated number at the end of the previous year, and the estimated number of
squirrels at the end of , not the end of , was .

Choice D is incorrect. This equation represents a model where the estimated number of squirrels at the end of , not
the end of , was .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID eb385faa
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: eb385faa

Which expression is equivalent to ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: eb385faa Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. Applying the distributive property, the given expression can be written as .
Grouping like terms in this expression yields . Combining like terms in this expression yields
.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID ddcbf768
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: ddcbf768

A model predicts that the population of Springfield was in . The model also predicts that
each year for the next years, the population increased by of the previous year's population. Which
equation best represents this model, where is the number of years after , for ?
A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: ddcbf768 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that a model predicts the population of Springfield in was . The model also
predicts that each year for the next years, the population increased by of the previous year's population. The
predicted population in one of these years can be found by multiplying the predicted population from the previous year by
. Since the predicted population in was , the predicted population year later is . The
predicted population years later is this value times , which is , or . The
predicted population years later is this value times , or . More generally, the predicted population, ,
years after is represented by the equation .

Choice A is incorrect. Substituting for in this equation indicates the predicted population in was rather
than .

Choice B is incorrect. Substituting for in this equation indicates the predicted population in was rather
than .

Choice C is incorrect. This equation indicates the predicted population is decreasing, rather than increasing, by each
year.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 317d165b
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 317d165b

The function is defined by the given equation. If , which of the following equations
defines the function ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 317d165b Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It’s given that and . Substituting for in gives

. Rewriting this equation using properties of exponents gives , which is
equivalent to . Multiplying and in this equation gives . Since
, .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 2a093c45
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 2a093c45

The function is defined by the given equation. For what value of does reach its minimum?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 2a093c45 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that , which can be rewritten as .

Since the coefficient of the -term is positive, the graph of in the xy-plane opens upward and reaches its
minimum value at its vertex. The x-coordinate of the vertex is the value of such that reaches its minimum. For an
equation in the form , where , , and are constants, the x-coordinate of the vertex is . For
the equation , , , and . It follows that the x-coordinate of the vertex is
, or . Therefore, reaches its minimum when the value of is .

Alternate approach: The value of for the vertex of a parabola is the x-value of the midpoint between the two x-
intercepts of the parabola. Since it’s given that , it follows that the two x-intercepts of the
graph of in the xy-plane occur when and , or at the points and . The
midpoint between two points, and , is . Therefore, the midpoint between and
is , or . It follows that reaches its minimum when the value of is .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the y-coordinate of the y-intercept of the graph of in the xy-plane.

Choice B is incorrect. This is one of the x-coordinates of the x-intercepts of the graph of in the xy-plane.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID a4a86ebb
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: a4a86ebb

In the xy-plane, a parabola has vertex and intersects the x-axis at two points. If the equation of
the parabola is written in the form , where , , and are constants, which of the
following could be the value of ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: a4a86ebb Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The equation of a parabola in the xy-plane can be written in the form , where is
a constant and is the vertex of the parabola. If is positive, the parabola will open upward, and if is negative, the
parabola will open downward. It’s given that the parabola has vertex . Substituting for and for in the
equation gives , which can be rewritten as , or
. Distributing the factor of on the right-hand side of this equation yields
. Therefore, the equation of the parabola, , can be written
in the form , where , , and . Substituting for and for
in the expression yields , or . Since the vertex of the parabola,
, is below the x-axis, and it’s given that the parabola intersects the x-axis at two points, the parabola must open
upward. Therefore, the constant must have a positive value. Setting the expression equal to the value in
choice D yields . Adding to both sides of this equation yields . Dividing both sides of this
equation by yields , which is a positive value. Therefore, if the equation of the parabola is written in the form
, where , , and are constants, the value of could be .

Choice A is incorrect. If the equation of a parabola with a vertex at is written in the form ,
where , , and are constants and , then the value of will be negative, which means the parabola
will open downward, not upward, and will intersect the x-axis at zero points, not two points.

Choice B is incorrect. If the equation of a parabola with a vertex at is written in the form ,
where , , and are constants and , then the value of will be negative, which means the parabola
will open downward, not upward, and will intersect the x-axis at zero points, not two points.

Choice C is incorrect. If the equation of a parabola with a vertex at is written in the form ,
where , , and are constants and , then the value of will be , which is inconsistent with the
equation of a parabola.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 05cec180
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: 05cec180

Which expression is equivalent to ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 05cec180 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The expression can be rewritten as . To add the two terms of this
expression, the terms can be rewritten with a common denominator. Since , the expression can be
rewritten as . Since , the expression can be rewritten as . Therefore, the
expression can be rewritten as , which is equivalent to
. Applying the distributive property to each term of the numerator yields , or . Adding
like terms in the numerator yields .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID b91b2899
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: b91b2899

The function is defined by the given equation. The equation can be rewritten as ,
where is a constant. Which of the following is closest to the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: b91b2899 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. The equation can be rewritten as , which is equivalent to

, or approximately . Since it's given that can be rewritten as
, where is a constant, it follows that is approximately equal to . Therefore, is
approximately equal to . It follows that the value of is approximately equal to . Of the given choices,
is closest to the value of .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID f5f840a0
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: f5f840a0

For the function , , and for each increase in by , the value of decreases by .
What is the value of ?

ID: f5f840a0 Answer

Correct Answer: 3.44, 86/25

Rationale

The correct answer is . It’s given that and that for each increase in by , the value of decreases
by . Because the output of the function decreases by a constant percentage for each -unit increase in the value of
, this relationship can be represented by an exponential function of the form , where represents the
initial value of the function and represents the rate of decay,
expressed as a decimal. Because , the value of must be . Because the value of decreases by
for each -unit increase in , the value of must be , or . Therefore, the function can be defined by
. Substituting for in this function yields , which is equivalent to
, or . Either or may be entered as the correct answer.

Alternate approach: It’s given that and that for each increase in by , the value of decreases by .
Therefore, when , the value of is , or , of , which can be expressed as .
Since , the value of is . Similarly, when , the value of is of , which
can be expressed as . Since , the value of is . Either or may
be entered as the correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 00efe3dc
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 00efe3dc

A company has a newsletter. In January , there were customers subscribed to the newsletter.
For the next months after January , the total number of customers subscribed to the newsletter
each month was greater than the total number subscribed the previous month. Which equation gives
the total number of customers, , subscribed to the company's newsletter months after January ,
where ?

A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: 00efe3dc Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It's given that in January , there were customers subscribed to a company's newsletter
and for the next months after January , the total number of customers subscribed to the newsletter each month
was greater than the total number subscribed the previous month. It follows that this situation can be represented by
the equation , where is the total number of customers subscribed to the company's newsletter
months after January , is the number of customers subscribed to the newsletter in January , and the total
number of customers subscribed to the newsletter each month was greater than the total number subscribed the
previous month. Substituting for and for in this equation yields , or
.

Choice A is incorrect. This equation represents a situation where the total number of customers subscribed each month
was less, not greater, than the total number subscribed the previous month.

Choice C is incorrect. This equation represents a situation where the total number of customers subscribed each month
was , not , greater than the total number subscribed the previous month.

Choice D is incorrect. This equation represents a situation where the total number of customers subscribed each month
was , not , greater than the total number subscribed the previous month.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID f5bdbb2d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: f5bdbb2d

A function estimates that there were animals in a population in . Each year from to
, the function estimates that the number of animals in this population increased by of the
number of animals in the population the previous year. Which equation defines this function, where
is the estimated number of animals in the population years after ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: f5bdbb2d Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It's given that a function estimates that there were animals in a population in and that
each year from to , the number of animals in this population increased by of the number of animals in the
population the previous year. It follows that this situation can be represented by the function ,
where is the estimated number of animals in the population years after , is the estimated number of
animals in the population in , and each year the estimated number of animals increased by . Substituting
for and for in this function yields , or .

Choice A is incorrect. This function represents a population in which each year the number of animals increased by
, not , of the number of animals in the population the previous year.

Choice B is incorrect. This function represents a population in which each year the number of animals increased by ,
not , of the number of animals in the population the previous year.

Choice D is incorrect. This function represents a population in which each year the number of animals decreased, rather
than increased, by of the number of animals in the population the previous year.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 03d0309b
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 03d0309b

In the xy-plane, when the graph of the function , where , is shifted up units, the resulting
graph is defined by the function . If the graph of crosses through the point , where is a
constant, what is the value of ?

ID: 03d0309b Answer

Correct Answer: 48

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that in the xy-plane, when the graph of the function , where , is shifted up
units, the resulting graph is defined by the function . Therefore, function can be defined by the equation
. It's given that . Substituting for in the
equation yields . For the point , the value of is .
Substituting for in the equation yields ,
or . It follows that the graph of crosses through the point . Therefore, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 8e46ba71
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 8e46ba71

In the given equation, is a constant. The equation has exactly one real solution. What is the minimum
possible value of ?

ID: 8e46ba71 Answer

Correct Answer: 231

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that . Squaring both sides of this equation yields
, which is equivalent to the given equation if . It follows that if a solution to the equation
satisfies , then it's also a solution to the given equation; if not, it's extraneous. The
equation can be rewritten as . Adding to both sides of this
equation yields . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields
. The number of solutions to a quadratic equation in the form ,
where , , and are constants, can be determined by the value of the discriminant, . Substituting for ,
for , and for in yields , or . The equation
has exactly one real solution if the discriminant is equal to zero, or .
Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields
. Therefore, if , then the equation has exactly one real solution.
Substituting for in this equation yields , or ,
which is equivalent to . Taking the square root of both sides of this equation yields .
Adding to both sides of this equation yields . To check whether this solution satisfies , the
solution, , can be substituted for in , which yields , or . Since is greater
than , it follows that if , or , then the given equation has exactly one real solution. If ,
then the discriminant, , is negative and the given equation has no solutions. Therefore, the minimum possible
value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID bef1b84d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: bef1b84d

The exponential function is defined by , where is a positive constant. If ,

what is the value of ?

ID: bef1b84d Answer

Correct Answer: 11875

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that the exponential function is defined by , where is a
positive constant, and . It follows that when , . Substituting for and for
in the given equation yields . Dividing each side of this equation by yields . Taking the
cube root of both sides of this equation gives . Substituting for and for in the equation
yields , or . Therefore, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID fead0fc7
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: fead0fc7

The expression is equivalent to , where and are positive constants and .

What is the value of ?

ID: fead0fc7 Answer

Correct Answer: 361/8, 45.12, 45.13

Rationale

The correct answer is . The rational exponent property is , where , and are integers, and
. This property can be applied to rewrite the given expression as , or

. This expression can be rewritten by multiplying the constants, which gives . The
multiplication exponent property is , where . This property can be applied to rewrite the
expression as , or . Therefore, . It's given that
is equivalent to ; therefore, and . It follows that . Finding a
common denominator on the right-hand side of this equation gives , or . Note that
361/8, 45.12, and 45.13 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID cb03e399
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: cb03e399

Which ordered pair is the solution to the given system of equations?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: cb03e399 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. The second equation in the given system of equations is . Substituting for in
the first equation of the given system yields . Factoring out of the left-hand side of this
equation yields . An expression with a factor of the form is equal to zero when
. Each side of this equation has a factor of , so each side of the equation is equal to zero when .
Substituting for into the equation yields , or , which
is true. Substituting for into the second equation in the given system of equations yields , or .
Therefore, the solution to the system of equations is the ordered pair .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from switching the order of the solutions for and .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 1caa83ee
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 1caa83ee

For the function , the value of decreases by for every increase in the value of by . If
, which equation defines ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 1caa83ee Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. Since the value of decreases by a fixed percentage, , for every increase in the value of by
, the function is a decreasing exponential function. A decreasing exponential function can be written in the form
, where is the value of and the value of decreases by for every increase in the
value of by . If , then . Since the value of decreases by for every increase in the value of
by , . Substituting for and for in the equation yields ,
which is equivalent to , or .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect. For this function, the value of increases, rather than decreases, by for every increase in
the value of by .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 219a57aa
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: 219a57aa

Which expression represents the product of and ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 219a57aa Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The product of and can be represented by the expression

. Applying the distributive property to this expression yields
, or . This expression is equivalent to
, or .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 4f36c8ca
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 4f36c8ca

If , what is the positive value of ?

ID: 4f36c8ca Answer

Correct Answer: 28

Rationale

The correct answer is . The given absolute value equation can be rewritten as two linear equations:
and , or . Adding to both sides of the equation results in
. Dividing both sides of this equation by results in . Adding to both sides of the equation
results in . Dividing both sides of this equation by results in . Therefore, the two values of
are , or , and , or . Thus, the positive value of is .

Alternate approach: The given equation can be rewritten as , which is equivalent to .

Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . This equation can be rewritten as two linear equations:
and , or . Therefore, the positive value of is .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 5ee494b6
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 5ee494b6

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 5ee494b6 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Adding to each side of the second equation in the given system of equations yields .
Substituting for in the first equation yields . Subtracting from each side of this
equation yields . This equation can be rewritten as . Taking the square root of each
side of this equation yields . Subtracting from each side of this equation yields . Therefore, the
value of is .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of , not .

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 3138e379
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: 3138e379

For what value of is the given expression equivalent to , where ?

ID: 3138e379 Answer

Correct Answer: .0177, .0178, 4/225

Rationale

The correct answer is . An expression of the form , where is an integer greater than and , is equivalent

to . Therefore, the given expression, where , is equivalent to . Applying properties of

exponents, this expression can be rewritten as , or , which can be rewritten as

, or . It's given that the expression is equivalent to , where . It

follows that is equivalent to . Therefore, . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields
, or . Thus, the value of for which the given expression is equivalent to , where , is
. Note that 4/225, .0177, .0178, 0.017, and 0.018 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 36f0ebb0
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 36f0ebb0

The graph of the rational function is shown, where and . Which of the following is the
graph of , where ?

A.
B.

C.

D.
 ID: 36f0ebb0 Answer
Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that the graph of the rational function is shown, where and . The graph
shown passes through the point . It follows that when the value of is , the value of is . When the value of
is , the value of is , or . Therefore, the graph of passes through the point . Of
the given choices, choice D is the only graph that passes through the point and is therefore the graph of
.

Choice A is incorrect. This is the graph of , rather than .

Choice B is incorrect. This is the graph of , rather than .

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 89da1199
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 89da1199

In the given function , is a constant. The graph of function in the xy-plane, where , is
translated units down and units to the right to produce the graph of . Which equation defines
function ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 89da1199 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It's given that the graph of is produced by translating the graph of units down
and units to the right in the xy-plane. Therefore, function can be defined by an equation in the form
. Function is defined by the equation , where is a constant. Substituting
for in the equation yields . Substituting for in
the equation yields , or . Therefore, the equation that
defines function is .

Choice A is incorrect. This equation defines a function whose graph is produced by translating the graph of
units down and units to the left, not units down and units to the right.

Choice C is incorrect. This equation defines a function whose graph is produced by translating the graph of
units to the left, not units down and units to the right.

Choice D is incorrect. This equation defines a function whose graph is produced by translating the graph of
units to the right, not units down and units to the right.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 22a0e553
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 22a0e553

The given equation relates the distinct positive numbers , , and . Which equation correctly expresses
in terms of and ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 22a0e553 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It’s given that is positive. Therefore, multiplying each side of the given equation by yields
, which is equivalent to . Thus, the equation correctly expresses in terms of
and .

Choice B is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to .

Choice C is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to .

Choice D is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 6a8a7fbd
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 6a8a7fbd

The function is defined by , where and are constants. In the xy-plane, the graph of
passes through the point , and . Which of the following must be true?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 6a8a7fbd Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that . Substituting for in the equation yields
. Therefore, . Since can't be negative, it follows that . It's also given
that the graph of passes through the point . It follows that when , . Substituting
for and for in the equation yields . By the zero product property, either
or . Since , it follows that . Squaring both sides of this equation yields
. Adding to both sides of this equation yields . Since and is , it follows that
must be true.

Choice A is incorrect. The value of is , which must be negative.

Choice B is incorrect. The value of is , which could be , but doesn't have to be.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID dbb64b2b
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: dbb64b2b

Immanuel purchased a certain rare coin on January 1. The function , where

, gives the predicted value, in dollars, of the rare coin years after Immanuel purchased it.
What is the best interpretation of the statement “ is approximately equal to ” in this context?
A. When the rare coin's predicted value is approximately dollars, it is greater than the predicted
value, in dollars, on January 1 of the previous year.

B. When the rare coin’s predicted value is approximately dollars, it is times the predicted value, in
dollars, on January 1 of the previous year.

C. From the day Immanuel purchased the rare coin to years after Immanuel purchased the coin, its
predicted value increased by a total of approximately dollars.

D. years after Immanuel purchased the rare coin, its predicted value is approximately dollars.

ID: dbb64b2b Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It’s given that the function gives the predicted value, in dollars, of a certain rare
coin years after Immanuel purchased it. It follows that represents the predicted value, in dollars, of the coin
years after Immanuel purchased it. Since the value of is the value of when , it follows that “ is
approximately equal to ” means that is approximately equal to when . Therefore, the best interpretation
of the statement “ is approximately equal to ” in this context is years after Immanuel purchased the rare coin, its
predicted value is approximately dollars.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 81aa6aa9
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 81aa6aa9

When the quadratic function is graphed in the xy-plane, where , its vertex is . One of
the x-intercepts of this graph is . What is the other x-intercept of the graph?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 81aa6aa9 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Since the line of symmetry for the graph of a quadratic function contains the vertex of the graph, the
x-coordinate of the vertex of the graph of is the x-coordinate of the midpoint of its two x-intercepts. The
midpoint of two points with x-coordinates and has x-coordinate , where . It′s given that the vertex
is and one of the x-intercepts is . Substituting for and for in the equation
yields . Multiplying each side of this equation by yields . Adding to
each side of this equation yields . Therefore, the other x-intercept is .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 430e5f54
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 430e5f54

The given equation relates the positive numbers , , and . Which equation correctly expresses in
terms of and ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 430e5f54 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. Multiplying each side of the given equation by yields the equivalent equation . Dividing
each side of this equation by yields , or .

Choice A is incorrect. This equation is not equivalent to the given equation.

Choice B is incorrect. This equation is not equivalent to the given equation.

Choice D is incorrect. This equation is not equivalent to the given equation.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID cde831b3
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: cde831b3

One solution to the given equation can be written as , where is a constant. What is the value of
?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: cde831b3 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Adding to each side of the given equation yields . To complete the square, adding
to each side of this equation yields , or . Taking the square root of each side of
this equation yields . Adding to each side of this equation yields . Since it's given that
one of the solutions to the equation can be written as , the value of must be .

Alternate approach: It's given that is a solution to the given equation. It follows that . Substituting

for in the given equation yields , or

. Expanding the products on the left-hand side of this equation yields

, or . Adding to each side of this equation yields .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 3e4e3220
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 3e4e3220

The table shows three values of and their corresponding values of , where and is a
quadratic function. What is the y-coordinate of the y-intercept of the graph of in the xy-plane?

ID: 3e4e3220 Answer

Correct Answer: -2112

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that is a quadratic function. It follows that can be defined by an equation of
the form , where , , and are constants. It's also given that the table shows three values of
and their corresponding values of , where . Substituting for in this equation yields
. This equation represents a quadratic relationship between and , where is either the
maximum or the minimum value of , which occurs when . For quadratic relationships between and , the
maximum or minimum value of occurs at the value of halfway between any two values of that have the same
corresponding value of . The table shows that x-values of and correspond to the same y-value, . Since is
halfway between and , the maximum or minimum value of occurs at an x-value of . The table shows that when
, . It follows that and . Subtracting from both sides of the equation yields
. Substituting for and for in the equation yields , or
. The value of can be found by substituting any x-value and its corresponding y-value for and ,
respectively, in this equation. Substituting for and for in this equation yields , or
. Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields , or . Dividing both
sides of this equation by yields . Substituting for , for , and for in the equation
yields . The y-intercept of the graph of in the xy-plane is
the point on the graph where . Substituting for in the equation yields
, or . This is equivalent to , so the y-intercept of the
graph of in the xy-plane is . Thus, the y-coordinate of the y-intercept of the graph of in
the xy-plane is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 95b69a20
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 95b69a20

In the given equation, is a positive constant. Which of the following is one of the solutions to the given
equation?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 95b69a20 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. If , then neither side of the given equation is defined and there can be no solution.
Therefore, . Subtracting from both sides of the given equation yields , or

. Squaring both sides of this equation yields , or . Since

is positive and, therefore, nonzero, the expression is defined and equivalent to . It follows that the equation
can be rewritten as , or , which is equivalent to
. Adding to both sides of this equation yields . Taking the square root of both sides of
this equation yields two solutions: and . Therefore, of the given choices,
is one of the solutions to the given equation.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 5e61ba73
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: 5e61ba73

The expression is equivalent to , where is a constant. What is the value of

?

ID: 5e61ba73 Answer

Correct Answer: 6

Rationale

The correct answer is . Applying the distributive property to the expression yields . Since
is equivalent to , it follows that is also equivalent to . Since
these expressions are equivalent, it follows that corresponding coefficients are equivalent. Therefore, and
. Solving either of these equations for will yield the value of . Dividing both sides of by
yields . Therefore, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 20d5ffc9
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 20d5ffc9

The graph of is shown, where the function is defined by and ,

, , and are constants. For how many values of does ?

A. One

B. Two

C. Three

D. Four

ID: 20d5ffc9 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. If a value of satisfies , the graph of will contain a point and thus touch
the x-axis. Since there are points at which this graph touches the x-axis, there are values of for which .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 9658700e
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 9658700e

What is a solution to the given equation?

ID: 9658700e Answer

Correct Answer: 30, -30

Rationale

The correct answer is either or . Adding to each side of the given equation yields .
Since a product of two factors is equal to if and only if at least one of the factors is , either or
. Adding to each side of the equation yields . Subtracting from each side of the
equation yields . Therefore, the solutions to the given equation are and . Note that -30 and
30 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID b939a904
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: b939a904

In the given equation, is a constant. For which of the following values of will the equation have more
than one real solution?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: b939a904 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. A quadratic equation of the form , where , , and are constants, has either no
real solutions, exactly one real solution, or exactly two real solutions. That is, for the given equation to have more than
one real solution, it must have exactly two real solutions. When the value of the discriminant, or , is greater than
0, the given equation has exactly two real solutions. In the given equation, , and .
Therefore, the given equation has exactly two real solutions when , or . Adding
to both sides of this inequality yields . Taking the square root of both sides of yields two
possible inequalities: or . Of the choices, only choice A satisfies or .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 9955f37a
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 9955f37a

If the given function is graphed in the xy-plane, where , what is the x-coordinate of an x-
intercept of the graph?

ID: 9955f37a Answer

Correct Answer: -6, 4

Rationale

The correct answer is either or . The x-intercepts of a graph in the xy-plane are the points where . Thus, for an
x-intercept of the graph of , . Substituting for in the equation yields
. By the zero product property, and . Subtracting from both sides of the
equation yields . Adding to both sides of the equation yields . Therefore, the x-
coordinates of the x-intercepts of the graph of are and . Note that -6 and 4 are examples of ways to enter
a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID a44eb7d8
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: a44eb7d8

The graph of is shown, where and are constants. What is the value of ?

ID: a44eb7d8 Answer

Correct Answer: -24

Rationale

The correct answer is . Since the graph passes through the point , it follows that when the value of is ,
the value of is . Substituting for and for in the given equation yields , or .
Therefore, the value of is . Substituting for in the given equation yields . Since the graph
passes through the point , it follows that when the value of is , the value of is . Substituting for
and for in the equation yields , or , which is
equivalent to . Adding to each side of this equation yields . Dividing each side of this equation
by yields . Since the value of is and the value of is , it follows that the value of is , or .

Alternate approach: The given equation represents a parabola in the xy-plane with a vertex at . Therefore, the
given equation, , which is written in standard form, can be written in vertex form, ,
where is the vertex of the parabola and is the value of the coefficient on the term when the equation is
written in standard form. It follows that . Substituting for , for , and for in this equation yields
, or . Squaring the binomial on the right-hand side of this equation yields
. Multiplying each term inside the parentheses on the right-hand side of this equation by
yields , which is equivalent to . From the given equation ,
it follows that the value of is and the value of is . Therefore, the value of is , or .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID f85886ff
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: f85886ff

A machine launches a softball from ground level. The softball reaches a maximum height of
meters above the ground at seconds and hits the ground at seconds. Which equation represents
the height above ground , in meters, of the softball seconds after it is launched?

A.

B.

C. msup

D. msup

ID: f85886ff Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. An equation representing the height above ground , in meters, of a softball seconds after it is
launched by a machine from ground level can be written in the form , where , , and are positive
constants. In this equation, represents the time, in seconds, at which the softball reaches its maximum height of
meters above the ground. It's given that this softball reaches a maximum height of meters above the ground at
seconds; therefore, and . Substituting for and for in the equation
yields . It's also given that this softball hits the ground at seconds; therefore,
when . Substituting for and for in the equation yields
, which is equivalent to , or . Adding
to both sides of this equation yields . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields .
Substituting for in the equation yields . Therefore,
represents the height above ground , in meters, of this softball seconds after it is
launched.

Choice A is incorrect. This equation represents a situation where the maximum height is meters above the ground at
seconds, not meters above the ground at seconds.

Choice B is incorrect. This equation represents a situation where the maximum height is meters above the ground
at seconds, not seconds.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 6b56736a
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: 6b56736a

Which of the following expressions is(are) a factor of ?

I.
II.

A. I only

B. II only

C. I and II

D. Neither I nor II

ID: 6b56736a Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. The given expression can be factored by first finding two values whose sum is and whose product
is , or . Those two values are and . It follows that the given expression can be rewritten as
. Since the first two terms of this expression have a common factor of and the last two terms
of this expression have a common factor of , this expression can be rewritten as . Since the
two terms of this expression have a common factor of , it can be rewritten as . Therefore,
expression II, , is a factor of , but expression I, , is not a factor of .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 92b3b634
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 92b3b634

What is one of the solutions to the given equation?

ID: 92b3b634 Answer

Correct Answer: 2, -12

Rationale

The correct answer is either or . The left-hand side of the given equation can be rewritten by factoring. The two
values that multiply to and add to are and . It follows that the given equation can be rewritten as
. Setting each factor equal to yields two equations: and . Subtracting
from both sides of the equation results in . Adding to both sides of the equation
results in . Note that 2 and -12 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 55326c43
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 55326c43

The equation gives the estimated number of employees at a restaurant, where is the
number of years since the restaurant opened. Which of the following is the best interpretation of the
number in this context?
A. The estimated number of employees when the restaurant opened

B. The increase in the estimated number of employees each year

C. The number of years the restaurant has been open

D. The percent increase in the estimated number of employees each year

ID: 55326c43 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. For an exponential function of the form , where and are constants, the initial value
of the function—that is, the value of the function when —is and the value of the function increases by a factor of
each time increases by . Since the function gives the estimated number of employees at a restaurant
and is the number of years since the restaurant opened, the best interpretation of the number in this context is the
estimated number of employees when , or when the restaurant opened.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 98a35f81
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 98a35f81

In the given equation, is an integer constant. If the equation has no real solution, what is the least
possible value of ?

ID: 98a35f81 Answer

Correct Answer: 50

Rationale

The correct answer is . An equation of the form , where , , and are constants, has no real
solutions if and only if its discriminant, , is negative. Applying the distributive property to the left-hand side of
the equation yields . Adding to each side of this equation yields
. Substituting for , for , and for in yields a discriminant of
, or . If the given equation has no real solution, it follows that the value of
must be negative. Therefore, . Adding to both sides of this inequality yields .
Dividing both sides of this inequality by yields , or . Since it's given that is an integer, the least
possible value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 6095e4fc
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 6095e4fc

A rectangle has a length of units and a width of units. If the rectangle has an area of
square units, what is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 6095e4fc Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. The area of a rectangle is equal to its length multiplied by its width. Multiplying the given length,
units, by the given width, units, yields square units. If the rectangle has an area of square units,
it follows that , or . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields
. Factoring the left-hand side of this equation yields . Applying the zero
product property to this equation yields two solutions: and . Since is the rectangle’s length, in units,
which must be positive, the value of is .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the width, in units, of the rectangle, not the value of .

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect. This is the area, in square units, of the rectangle, not the value of .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID a6b0b2d1
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: a6b0b2d1

The given equation relates the value of and its corresponding value of for the function . What is
the minimum value of the function ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: a6b0b2d1 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. For a quadratic function defined by an equation of the form , where , , and
are constants and , the minimum value of the function is . Subtracting from both sides of the given equation
yields . This function is in the form , where , , and .
Therefore, the minimum value of the function is .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID d5b08036
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: d5b08036

The graph of the given equation in the xy-plane has a y-intercept of . Which of the following
equivalent equations displays the value of as a constant, a coefficient, or the base?
A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: d5b08036 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. The y-intercept of a graph in the xy-plane is the point where . Substituting for in the given
equation, , yields , which is equivalent to , or . Therefore, the graph
of the given equation in the xy-plane has a y-intercept of . It follows that and . Thus, the
equivalent equation displays the value of as the base.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID e669571f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: e669571f

The given equation relates the positive numbers , , and . Which equation correctly expresses in
terms of and ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: e669571f Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that the values of , , and are positive. Therefore, dividing each side of the given
equation by yields . Subtracting from each side of this equation yields . Dividing
each side of this equation by yields , or .

Choice A is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to , not .

Choice B is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to , not .

Choice C is incorrect. This equation is equivalent to , not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 95954b57
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 95954b57

The function is defined by , where and are constants. In the -plane, the graph of
has an -intercept at and a -intercept at . What is the value of ?

ID: 95954b57 Answer

Correct Answer: -324

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that the function is defined by , where and are constants. It's
also given that the graph of has a y-intercept at . It follows that . Substituting for
and for in yields , or . Subtracting from each side of this
equation yields . Therefore, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 2d8f1f6a
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 2d8f1f6a

The graphs of the equations in the given system of equations intersect at the point in the -plane.
What is a possible value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 2d8f1f6a Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that the graphs of the equations in the given system of equations intersect at the point
. Therefore, this intersection point is a solution to the given system. The solution can be found by isolating in
each equation. The given equation can be rewritten to isolate by subtracting from both sides of the
equation, which gives . The given equation can be rewritten to isolate by subtracting
from both sides of the equation, which gives . With each equation solved for , the value of from
one equation can be substituted into the other, which gives . Adding and to both sides of
this equation results in . Dividing both sides of this equation by results in .
This equation can be rewritten by factoring the left-hand side, which yields . By the zero-product
property, if , then , or . It follows that , or . Since
only is given as a choice, a possible value of is .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID ffc85a92
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: ffc85a92

The function is defined by . What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: ffc85a92 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The value of is the value of when . Substituting for in the given function yields
, or , which is equivalent to . Therefore, the value of is .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of , not .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect. This is the value of , not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 1b30fd79
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 1b30fd79

The table shows three values of and their corresponding values of , where and is a
linear function. What is the y-intercept of the graph of in the xy-plane?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 1b30fd79 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that the table shows values of and their corresponding values of , where
. It's also given that is a linear function. It follows that an equation that defines can be written in the
form , where represents the slope and represents the y-coordinate of the y-intercept of the
graph of in the xy-plane. The slope of the graph of can be found using two points, and
, that are on the graph of , and the formula . Since the table shows values of and their
corresponding values of , substituting values of and in the equation can be used to define
function . Using the first pair of values from the table, and , yields , or .
Multiplying each side of this equation by yields , so the point is on the graph of
. Using the second pair of values from the table, and , yields , or .
Multiplying each side of this equation by yields , so the point is on the graph of .
Substituting and for and , respectively, in the formula yields
, or . Substituting for in the equation yields . Since
, substituting for and for in the equation yields , or
. Adding to both sides of this equation yields . It follows that is the y-coordinate of the y-
intercept of the graph of . Therefore, the y-intercept of the graph of is .

Choice B is incorrect. is the y-coordinate of the y-intercept of the graph of .

Choice C is incorrect. is the slope of the graph of .

Choice D is incorrect. is the x-coordinate of the x-intercept of the graph of .

Question Difficulty: Hard
Question ID 60758fea
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 60758fea

The function is defined by . What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 60758fea Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It’s given that function is defined by the equation . The value of is the value of
when . Substituting for in the given equation yields , which is equivalent to
, or .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of when , rather than .

Choice B is incorrect. This is the value of when , rather than .

Choice D is incorrect. This is the value of when , rather than .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 409b7ab8
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 409b7ab8

If the given equations are graphed in the xy-plane, at how many points do the graphs of the equations
intersect?

A. Exactly one

B. Exactly two

C. Infinitely many

D. Zero

ID: 409b7ab8 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. A point is a solution to a system of equations if it lies on the graphs of both equations in the
xy-plane. In other words, a solution to a system of equations is a point at which the graphs intersect. It’s given that
the first equation is . Substituting for in the second equation yields . Subtracting
from each side of this equation yields . Dividing each side of this equation by yields
. Since the square of a real number is at least , this equation can't have any real solutions. Therefore,
the graphs of the equations intersect at zero points.

Alternate approach: The graph of the second equation is a parabola that opens downward and has a vertex at .
Therefore, the maximum value of this parabola occurs when . The graph of the first equation is a horizontal line at
on the y-axis, or . Since is greater than , or the horizontal line is above the vertex of the parabola, the
graphs of these equations intersect at zero points.

Choice A is incorrect. The graph of , not , and the graph of the second equation intersect at exactly one
point.

Choice B is incorrect. The graph of any horizontal line such that the value of is less than , not greater than , and
the graph of the second equation intersect at exactly two points.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID ca44c7ce
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: ca44c7ce

The function is defined by the given equation. For which of the following values of does ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: ca44c7ce Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. The value of for which can be found by substituting for and for in the
given equation, , which yields . For this equation to be true, either or
. Adding to both sides of the equation yields . Dividing both sides of this
equation by yields . To check whether is the value of , substituting for in the equation
yields , which is equivalent to , or , which isn't a
true statement. Therefore, isn't the value of . Adding to both sides of the equation yields
. Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . To check whether is the value of , substituting
for in the equation yields , which is equivalent to , or
, which is a true statement. Therefore, the value of for which is .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 7189ece4
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 7189ece4

For the exponential function , the value of is , where is a constant. Which of the following
equivalent forms of the function shows the value of as the coefficient or the base?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 7189ece4 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. For the form of the function in choice C, , the value of can be found as
, which is equivalent to , or . Therefore, , which is shown in as
the coefficient.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID ebf50998
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: ebf50998

Function is defined by . Function is defined by .

The graph of in the xy-plane has x-intercepts at , , and , where , , and are
distinct constants. What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: ebf50998 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It's given that . Since , it follows that

. Combining like terms yields .
Therefore, . The x-intercepts of a graph in the xy-plane are the points where . The x-
coordinates of the x-intercepts of the graph of in the xy-plane can be found by solving the equation
. Applying the zero product property to this equation yields three equations: , ,
and . Solving each of these equations for yields , , and , respectively. Therefore, the
x-intercepts of the graph of are , , and . It follows that the values of , , and are , ,
and . Thus, the value of is , which is equal to .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of if .

Choice C is incorrect. This is the value of if .

Choice D is incorrect. This is the value of if .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID d93eac68
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: d93eac68

Function is defined by , where and are constants. In the xy-plane, the graph of
has a y-intercept at . The product of and is . What is the value of ?

ID: d93eac68 Answer

Correct Answer: 5

Rationale

The correct answer is . It’s given that . Substituting for in the equation
yields . It’s given that the y-intercept of the graph of is . Substituting for
and for in the equation yields , which is equivalent to
, or . Adding to both sides of this equation yields . It’s given that the
product of and is , or . Substituting for in this equation yields . Dividing both sides
of this equation by yields .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID f42cbe82
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: f42cbe82

The function models the intensity of an X-ray beam, in number of particles in the X-ray beam,
millimeters below the surface of a sample of iron. According to the model, what is the estimated number
of particles in the X-ray beam when it is at the surface of the sample of iron?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: f42cbe82 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that the function models the intensity of an X-ray beam, in number of particles in the X-ray
beam, millimeters below the surface of a sample of iron. When the X-ray beam is at the surface of the sample of iron, it
is millimeters below the surface, so the value of is . Substituting for in the function yields
. Since any positive number raised to the power of is equal to , it follows that , or
. Therefore, the estimated number of particles in the X-ray beam at the surface of the sample of iron is .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 2f88a547
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 2f88a547

At the time that an article was first featured on the home page of a news website, there were
comments on the article. An exponential model estimates that at the end of each hour after the article
was first featured on the home page, the number of comments on the article had increased by of
the number of comments on the article at the end of the previous hour. Which of the following equations
best represents this model, where is the estimated number of comments on the article hours after the
article was first featured on the home page and ?
A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: 2f88a547 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that an exponential model estimates that the number of comments on an article increased
by a fixed percentage at the end of each hour. Therefore, the model can be represented by an exponential equation of the
form , where is the estimated number of comments on the article hours after the article was first featured
on the home page and and are constants. It's also given that when the article was first featured on the home page of
the news website, there were comments on the article. This means that when , . Substituting for and
for in the equation yields , or . It's also given that the number of comments on the
article at the end of an hour had increased by of the number of comments on the article at the end of the previous
hour. Multiplying the percent increase by the number of comments on the article at the end of the previous hour yields
the number of estimated additional comments the article has on its home page: , or comments. Thus, the
estimated number of comments for the following hour is the sum of the comments from the end of the previous hour
and the number of additional comments, which is , or . This means that when , . Substituting
for , for , and for in the equation yields , or . Dividing both sides of this
equation by yields . Substituting for and for in the equation yields .
Thus, the equation that best represents this model is .

Choice A is incorrect. This model represents a situation where the number of comments at the end of each hour
increased by of the number of comments at the end of the previous hour, rather than .

Choice B is incorrect. This model represents a situation where the number of comments at the end of each hour
increased by of the number of comments at the end of the previous hour, rather than .

Choice C is incorrect. This model represents a situation where the number of comments at the end of each hour was
times the number of comments at the end of the previous hour, rather than increasing by of the number of
comments at the end of the previous hour.
Question Difficulty: Hard
Question ID 14787dca
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 14787dca

Which of the following are solutions to the given equation, where is a constant and ?
I.
II.
III.

A. I and II only

B. I and III only

C. II and III only

D. I, II, and III

ID: 14787dca Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. Subtracting the expression from both sides of the given equation yields
, which can be rewritten as . Since the two
terms on the right-hand side of this equation have a common factor of , it can be rewritten as
, or . Since is equivalent to , the
equation can be rewritten as . By the zero product property, it
follows that or . Adding to both sides of the equation yields .
Adding to both sides of the equation yields . Therefore, the two solutions to the given
equation are and . Thus, only and , not , are solutions to the given equation.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID c56a9f57
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: c56a9f57

The first term of a sequence is . Each term after the first is times the preceding term. If represents
the th term of the sequence, which equation gives in terms of ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: c56a9f57 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Since represents the th term of the sequence and is the first term of the sequence, the value of
is when the value of is . Since each term after the first is times the preceding term, the value of is when
the value of is . Therefore, the value of is , or , when the value of is . More generally, the value of
is for a given value of . Therefore, the equation gives in terms of .

Choice A is incorrect. This equation describes a sequence for which the first term is , rather than , and each term
after the first is , rather than , times the preceding term.

Choice B is incorrect. This equation describes a sequence for which the first term is , rather than , and each term after
the first is , rather than , times the preceding term.

Choice C is incorrect. This equation describes a sequence for which the first term is , rather than .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 5e98384e
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 5e98384e

The function is defined by . In the xy-plane, the graph of is

the result of translating the graph of up units. What is the value of ?

ID: 5e98384e Answer

Correct Answer: 76

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that the graph of is the result of translating the graph of up
units in the xy-plane. It follows that the graph of is the same as the graph of . Substituting
for in the equation yields . It's given that .
Substituting for in the equation yields
. Substituting for in this equation yields ,
or . Thus, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 5513928b
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 5513928b

The product of two positive integers is . If the first integer is greater than twice the second integer,
what is the smaller of the two integers?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 5513928b Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Let be the first integer and let be the second integer. If the first integer is greater than twice
the second integer, then . If the product of the two integers is , then . Substituting
for in this equation results in . Distributing the to both terms in the parentheses results in
. Subtracting from both sides of this equation results in . The left-hand
side of this equation can be factored by finding two values whose product is , or , and whose sum is .
The two values whose product is and whose sum is are and . Thus, the equation
can be rewritten as , which is equivalent to
, or . By the zero product property, it follows that
and . Subtracting from both sides of the equation yields . Dividing both sides of
this equation by yields . Since is a positive integer, the value of is not . Adding to both sides of
the equation yields . Substituting for in the equation yields . Dividing
both sides of this equation by results in . Therefore, the two integers are and , so the smaller of the two
integers is .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect. This is the larger of the two integers.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 5883daba
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: 5883daba

Which expression is equivalent to ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 5883daba Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. The given expression is equivalent to , or . Combining like

terms in this expression yields .

Choice A is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to , not .

Choice C is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to , not .

Choice D is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to , not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 49de5e98
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 49de5e98

The given equation defines the function . For what value of does reach its minimum?

ID: 49de5e98 Answer

Correct Answer: 25/4, 6.25

Rationale

The correct answer is . The given equation can be rewritten in the form , where , , and are
constants. When , is the value of for which reaches its minimum. The given equation can be rewritten as
, which is equivalent to . This equation

can be rewritten as , or , which is

equivalent to . Therefore, , so the value of for which reaches its minimum is

. Note that 25/4 and 6.25 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 032caee7
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 032caee7

In the given equation, is a constant. The equation has no real solutions if . What is the least
possible value of ?

ID: 032caee7 Answer

Correct Answer: 289

Rationale

The correct answer is . A quadratic equation of the form , where , , and are constants, has no
real solutions when the value of the discriminant, , is less than . In the given equation, ,
and . Therefore, the discriminant of the given equation can be expressed as , or
. It follows that the given equation has no real solutions when . Adding to both sides of
this inequality yields . Dividing both sides of this inequality by yields , or . It's given that
the equation has no real solutions when . Therefore, the least possible value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID b2e26a55
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: b2e26a55

In the xy-plane, the graph of the equation intersects the line at exactly one
point. What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: b2e26a55 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. In the xy-plane, the graph of the line is a horizontal line that crosses the y-axis at and
the graph of the quadratic equation is a parabola. A parabola can intersect a horizontal line at
exactly one point only at its vertex. Therefore, the value of should be equal to the y-coordinate of the vertex of the graph
of the given equation. For a quadratic equation in vertex form, , the vertex of its graph in the xy-plane
is . The given quadratic equation, , can be rewritten as
, or . Thus, the value of is equal to
.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID a351b98d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: a351b98d

The expression is equivalent to , where b is a constant and . What is the value of b?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: a351b98d Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. Since the given expressions are equivalent and the numerator of the second expression is of the
numerator of the first expression, the denominator of the second expression must also be of the denominator of the
first expression. By the distributive property, is equivalent to , or . Therefore, the
value of is .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 25683f71
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 25683f71

What is the minimum value of the given function?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 25683f71 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. For a quadratic function defined by an equation of the form , where , , and
are constants and , the minimum value of the function is . In the given function, , , and .
Therefore, the minimum value of the given function is .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of for which the given function reaches its minimum value, not the minimum
value of the function.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 9f13fad1
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 9f13fad1

In the given equation, is a constant. The equation has exactly one solution. What is the value of ?

ID: 9f13fad1 Answer

Correct Answer: -1

Rationale

The correct answer is . A quadratic equation in the form , where , , and are constants, has
exactly one solution when its discriminant, , is equal to . In the given equation, ,
and . Substituting for and for in yields , or .
Since the given equation has exactly one solution, . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields
. Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Therefore, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 0f0a515f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 0f0a515f

The function is defined by . What is the value of when is equal to ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 0f0a515f Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that . Substituting for in this equation yields . Dividing each
side of this equation by yields . Taking the cube root of each side of this equation yields . Therefore,
when is equal to , the value of is .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID aefae524
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: aefae524

The function models the population, in thousands, of a certain city years after . According to the
model, the population is predicted to increase by every months. What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: aefae524 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It's given that the function models the population of the city years after . Since there are
months in a year, months is equivalent to years. Therefore, the expression can represent the number of years
in -month periods. Substituting for in the given equation yields , which is
equivalent to . Therefore, for each -month period, the predicted population of the city is
times, or of, the previous population. This means that the population is predicted to increase by every
months.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect. Each year, the predicted population of the city is times the previous year's predicted
population, which is not the same as an increase of .

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 3a7aa34d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: 3a7aa34d

Which expression is equivalent to , where ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 3a7aa34d Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Since , multiplying the exponent of the given expression by yields an equivalent
expression: . Since , the expression can be rewritten as . Applying
properties of exponents, this expression can be rewritten as . An expression of the form , where
and , is equivalent to . Therefore, is equivalent to .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID e7696b61
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: e7696b61

For the quadratic function , the table shows three values of and their corresponding values of .
Which equation defines ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: e7696b61 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The equation of a quadratic function can be written in the form , where , ,
and are constants. It’s given in the table that when , the corresponding value of is . Substituting for
and for in the equation gives , which is equivalent to
, or . It’s given in the table that when , the corresponding
value of is . Substituting for and for in the equation gives
, or . It’s given in the table that when , the corresponding value of is .
Substituting for and for in the equation gives , which is
equivalent to , or . Adding to the
equation gives . Dividing both sides of this equation by gives
. Since , substituting for into the equation gives
. Subtracting from both sides of this equation gives . Substituting for in the equations
and gives and , respectively. Since
, substituting for in the equation gives , or
. Subtracting from both sides of this equation gives . Dividing both sides of this equation by
gives . Substituting for into the equation gives , or .
Subtracting from both sides of this equation gives . Substituting for , for , and for in the
equation gives , which is equivalent to ,
or . Therefore, defines .

Choice A is incorrect. If , then when , the corresponding value of is , not .

Choice B is incorrect. If , then when , the corresponding value of is , not .

Choice C is incorrect. If , then when , the corresponding value of is , not , and

when , the corresponding value of is , not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID a4b12e2f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: a4b12e2f

In the given equation, is a constant. The equation has exactly one solution. What is the value of ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: a4b12e2f Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It's given that the equation has exactly one solution. A quadratic equation of
the form has exactly one solution if and only if its discriminant, , is equal to zero. It
follows that for the given equation, and . Substituting for and for into yields
, or . Since the discriminant must equal zero, . Subtracting from both
sides of this equation yields . Dividing each side of this equation by yields . Therefore, the
value of is .

Choice A is incorrect. If the value of is , this would yield a discriminant that is greater than zero. Therefore, the given
equation would have two solutions, rather than exactly one solution.

Choice B is incorrect. If the value of is , this would yield a discriminant that is greater than zero. Therefore, the given
equation would have two solutions, rather than exactly one solution.

Choice D is incorrect. If the value of is , this would yield a discriminant that is less than zero. Therefore, the given
equation would have no real solutions, rather than exactly one solution.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID baa012ad
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: baa012ad

The given equation relates the positive numbers , , and . Which equation correctly gives in terms of
and ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: baa012ad Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It's given that the equation relates the positive numbers , , and . Dividing both
sides of the given equation by yields . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields ,
or . It follows that the equation correctly gives in terms of and .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 33cc7555
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 33cc7555

What is the positive solution to the given equation?

ID: 33cc7555 Answer

Correct Answer: 9

Rationale

The correct answer is . The given equation can be rewritten as . Dividing each side of this equation by
yields . By the definition of absolute value, if , then or . Subtracting
from each side of the equation yields . Dividing each side of this equation by yields .
Similarly, subtracting from each side of the equation yields . Dividing each side of this equation
by yields . Therefore, since the two solutions to the given equation are and , the positive solution to the
given equation is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 1ba110f2
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 1ba110f2

The function models the population, in thousands, of a certain city years after . According to the
model, the population is predicted to increase by every months. What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 1ba110f2 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It’s given that the function models the population, in thousands, of a certain city years after
. The value of the base of the given exponential function, , corresponds to an increase of for every increase of
in the exponent, . If the exponent is equal to , then . Multiplying both sides of this equation by
yields . If the exponent is equal to , then . Multiplying both sides of this equation by yields ,
or . Therefore, the population is predicted to increase by every of a year. It’s given that the population is
predicted to increase by every months. Since there are months in a year, of a year is equivalent to ,
or , months. Therefore, the value of is .

Choice B is incorrect. This is the number of months in which the population is predicted to increase by according to
the model , not .

Choice C is incorrect. This is the number of months in which the population is predicted to increase by according to
the model , not .

Choice D is incorrect. This is the number of months in which the population is predicted to increase by according to
the model , not .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 59cf1dd3
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 59cf1dd3

How many distinct real solutions does the given equation have?
A. Exactly one

B. Exactly two

C. Infinitely many

D. Zero

ID: 59cf1dd3 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Any quantity that is positive or negative in value has a positive value when squared. Therefore, the
left-hand side of the given equation is either positive or zero for any value of . Since the right-hand side of the given
equation is negative, there is no value of for which the given equation is true. Thus, the number of distinct real
solutions for the given equation is zero.

Choices A, B, and C are incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 2b7d8635
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 2b7d8635

In the given system of equations, is a positive constant. The system has exactly one distinct real
solution. What is the value of ?

ID: 2b7d8635 Answer

Correct Answer: 14.5, 29/2

Rationale

The correct answer is . According to the first equation in the given system, the value of is . Substituting
for in the second equation in the given system yields . Adding to both sides of this equation
yields . If the given system has exactly one distinct real solution, it follows that
has exactly one distinct real solution. A quadratic equation in the form ,
where , , and are constants, has exactly one distinct real solution if and only if the discriminant, , is equal to
. The equation is in this form, where , , and . Therefore, the
discriminant of the equation is , or . Setting the discriminant
equal to to solve for yields . Adding to both sides of this equation yields . Dividing both
sides of this equation by yields , or . Therefore, if the given system of equations has exactly one
distinct real solution, the value of is . Note that 29/2 and 14.5 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 581be4a1
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: 581be4a1

Which of the following expressions is equivalent to ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 581be4a1 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Since is a common factor of each term in the given expression, the expression can be rewritten
as .

Choice A is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to .

Choice B is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to .

Choice C is incorrect. This expression is equivalent to .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 7248d5be
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 7248d5be

A competitive diver dives from a platform into the water. The graph shown gives the height above the
water , in meters, of the diver seconds after diving from the platform. What is the best interpretation of
the x-intercept of the graph?
A. The diver reaches a maximum height above the water at seconds.

B. The diver hits the water at seconds.

C. The diver reaches a maximum height above the water at seconds.

D. The diver hits the water at seconds.

ID: 7248d5be Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It’s given that the graph shows the height above the water , in meters, of a diver seconds after
diving from a platform. The x-intercept of a graph is the point at which the graph intersects the x-axis, or when the value
of is . The graph shown intersects the x-axis between and . In other words, the diver is meters above
the water, or hits the water, between and seconds after diving from the platform. Of the given choices, only choice B
includes an interpretation where the diver hits the water between and seconds. Therefore, the best interpretation of
the x-intercept of the graph is the diver hits the water at seconds.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice C is incorrect. This is the best interpretation of the maximum value, not the x-intercept, of the graph.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID f20cc110
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: f20cc110

What is the positive solution to the given equation?

ID: f20cc110 Answer

Correct Answer: 5

Rationale

The correct answer is . Multiplying both sides of the given equation by results in . Applying the
distributive property of multiplication to the right-hand side of this equation results in . Subtracting
from both sides of this equation results in . The right-hand side of this equation can be rewritten by
factoring. The two values that multiply to and add to are and . It follows that the equation
can be rewritten as . Setting each factor equal to yields two equations:
and . Subtracting from both sides of the equation results in . Adding
to both sides of the equation results in . Therefore, the positive solution to the given equation is .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 28a0ca32
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 28a0ca32

The given equation relates the numbers , , and . Which equation correctly expresses in terms of
and ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 28a0ca32 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. Subtracting from each side of the given equation results in . Dividing each side
of this equation by results in .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID fe5eca98
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: fe5eca98

Which of the following could be the equation of the graph shown in the xy-plane?
A.

B.

C.

D. msup

ID: fe5eca98 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Each of the given choices is an equation of the form , where , , ,
and are positive constants. In the xy-plane, the graph of an equation of this form has x-intercepts at , , and
. The graph shown has x-intercepts at , , and . Therefore, and . Of the given
choices, only choices A and B have and . For an equation in the form , if all
values of that are less than or greater than correspond to negative y-values, then the sum of all the exponents of
the factors on the right-hand side of the equation is even. In the graph shown, all values of less than or greater than
correspond to negative y-values. Therefore, the sum of all the exponents of the factors on the right-hand side of the
equation must be even. For choice A, the sum of these exponents is , or ,
which is odd. For choice B, the sum of these exponents is , or , which is even. Therefore,
could be the equation of the graph shown.
Choice A is incorrect. For the graph of this equation, all values of less than correspond to positive, not negative, y-
values.

Choice C is incorrect. The graph of this equation has x-intercepts at , , and , rather than x-intercepts
at , , and .

Choice D is incorrect. The graph of this equation has x-intercepts at , , and , rather than x-intercepts
at , , and .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 01264050
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: 01264050

Which expression is equivalent to ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 01264050 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. Applying the distributive property to the given expression yields .
Applying the distributive property once again to this expression yields
, or . This expression can be
rewritten as . Thus, is equivalent to .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID c54102e2
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: c54102e2

If the given function is graphed in the xy-plane, where , what is the y-intercept of the graph?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: c54102e2 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. The x-coordinate of any y-intercept of a graph is . Substituting for in the given equation yields
. Since any nonzero number raised to the power is , this gives , or . The
y-intercept of the graph is, therefore, the point .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 8a89ef72
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 8a89ef72

Time (years) Total amount (dollars)

Rosa opened a savings account at a bank. The table shows the exponential relationship between the time
, in years, since Rosa opened the account and the total amount , in dollars, in the account. If Rosa made
no additional deposits or withdrawals, which of the following equations best represents the relationship
between and ?
A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: 8a89ef72 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It’s given that the relationship between and is exponential. The table shows that the value of
increases as the value of increases. Therefore, the relationship between and can be represented by an increasing
exponential equation of the form , where and are positive constants. The table shows that when
, . Substituting for and for in the equation yields , which is
equivalent to , or . Substituting for in the equation yields .
The table also shows that when , . Substituting for and for in the equation
yields , or . Dividing both sides of this equation by
yields approximately . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields that the value of is
approximately . Substituting for in the equation yields .
Therefore, of the choices, choice C best represents the relationship between and .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 960aabc0
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 960aabc0

In the xy-plane, a line with equation for some constant intersects a parabola at exactly one
point. If the parabola has equation , what is the value of ?

ID: 960aabc0 Answer

Correct Answer: 20.25, 81/4

Rationale

The correct answer is . The given linear equation is . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields .
Substituting for in the equation of the parabola yields . Adding and to both sides of this
equation yields . Since it’s given that the line and the parabola intersect at exactly one point, the
equation must have exactly one solution. An equation of the form , where ,
, and are constants, has exactly one solution when the discriminant, , is equal to . In the equation
, where , , and , the discriminant is . Setting the
discriminant equal to yields , or . Adding to both sides of this equation yields
. Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Note that 81/4 and 20.25 are examples of ways to
enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 7ed068cf
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 7ed068cf

An egg is thrown from a rooftop. The equation represents this situation, where
is the height of the egg above the ground, in meters, seconds after it is thrown. According to the
equation, what is the height, in meters, from which the egg was thrown?

ID: 7ed068cf Answer

Correct Answer: 18

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that an egg is thrown from a rooftop and that the equation
represents this situation, where is the height of the egg above the ground, in meters, seconds after it is thrown. If
follows that the height, in meters, from which the egg was thrown is the value of when . Substituting for in the
equation yields , or . Therefore, according to the
equation, the height, in meters, from which the egg was thrown is .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID a2a2a711
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: a2a2a711

The function gives the area of a rectangle, , if its width is and its
length is times its width. Which of the following is the best interpretation of ?
A. If the width of the rectangle is , then the area of the rectangle is .

B. If the width of the rectangle is , then the length of the rectangle is .

C. If the width of the rectangle is , then the length of the rectangle is .

D. If the width of the rectangle is , then the area of the rectangle is .

ID: a2a2a711 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. The function gives the area of the rectangle, in , if its width is . Since the value of is
the value of if , it follows that means that is if . In the given context,
this means that if the width of the rectangle is , then the area of the rectangle is .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from interpreting as the width, in , of the rectangle if its area is , rather
than as the area, in , of the rectangle if its width is .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 23923e5b
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 23923e5b

A quadratic function models the height, in feet, of an object above the ground in terms of the time, in
seconds, after the object is launched off an elevated surface. The model indicates the object has an initial
height of feet above the ground and reaches its maximum height of feet above the ground
seconds after being launched. Based on the model, what is the height, in feet, of the object above the
ground seconds after being launched?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 23923e5b Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It's given that a quadratic function models the height, in feet, of an object above the ground in terms
of the time, in seconds, after the object is launched off an elevated surface. This quadratic function can be defined by an
equation of the form , where is the height of the object seconds after it was launched,
and , , and are constants such that the function reaches its maximum value, , when . Since the model
indicates the object reaches its maximum height of feet above the ground seconds after being launched,
reaches its maximum value, , when . Therefore, and . Substituting for and for
in the function yields . Since the model indicates the object has an
initial height of feet above the ground, the value of is when . Substituting for and for in the
equation yields , or . Subtracting from
both sides of this equation yields . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Therefore,
the model can be represented by the equation . Substituting for in this equation
yields , or . Therefore, based on the model, seconds after being
launched, the height of the object above the ground is feet.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID f9e32510
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: f9e32510

The function gives a metal ball's height above the ground , in inches,
seconds after it started moving on a track, where . Which of the following is the best
interpretation of the vertex of the graph of in the xy-plane?
A. The metal ball's minimum height was inches above the ground.

B. The metal ball's minimum height was inches above the ground.

C. The metal ball's height was inches above the ground when it started moving.

D. The metal ball's height was inches above the ground when it started moving.

ID: f9e32510 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. The graph of a quadratic equation in the form , where , , and are positive
constants, is a parabola that opens upward with vertex . The given function is in the form
, where , , , and . Therefore, the graph of is a parabola that
opens upward with vertex . Since the parabola opens upward, the vertex is the lowest point on the graph. It follows
that the y-coordinate of the vertex of the graph of is the minimum value of . Therefore, the minimum value
of is . It’s given that represents the metal ball’s height above the ground, in inches,
seconds after it started moving on a track. Therefore, the best interpretation of the vertex of the graph of is
that the metal ball’s minimum height was inches above the ground.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 14fe10e5
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 14fe10e5

What is the sum of the solutions to the given equation?

ID: 14fe10e5 Answer

Correct Answer: 18

Rationale

The correct answer is . Subtracting from each side of the given equation yields . By the definition of
absolute value, if , then or . Adding to each side of the equation
yields . Adding to each side of the equation yields . Therefore, the solutions to the given
equation are and , and it follows that the sum of the solutions to the given equation is , or .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID edcedac7
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: edcedac7

The solutions to are and , where . The solutions to are

and , where . The solutions to , where is a constant, are and .
What is the value of ?

ID: edcedac7 Answer

Correct Answer: 31

Rationale

The correct answer is . Subtracting from both sides of the equation yields . To
complete the square, adding , or , to both sides of this equation yields , or
. Taking the square root of both sides of this equation yields . Subtracting from both
sides of this equation yields . Therefore, the solutions and to the equation are
and . Since , it follows that and . Subtracting from both sides
of the equation yields . To complete the square, adding , or , to both sides of
this equation yields , or . Taking the square root of both sides of this equation
yields , or . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields .
Therefore, the solutions and to the equation are and . Since , it
follows that and . It's given that the solutions to , where is a
constant, are and . It follows that this equation can be written as , which is
equivalent to . Therefore, the value of is . Substituting
for , for , for , and for in this equation yields
, which is equivalent to

, or , which is equivalent to , or . Therefore, the

value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 8746c762
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 8746c762

Bacteria are growing in a liquid growth medium. There were cells per milliliter during an initial
observation. The number of cells per milliliter doubles every hours. How many cells per milliliter will
there be hours after the initial observation?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 8746c762 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Let represent the number of cells per milliliter hours after the initial observation. Since the
number of cells per milliliter doubles every hours, the relationship between and can be represented by an
exponential equation of the form , where is the number of cells per milliliter during the initial observation
and the number of cells per milliliter increases by a factor of every hours. It’s given that there were cells per
milliliter during the initial observation. Therefore, . It’s also given that the number of cells per milliliter
doubles, or increases by a factor of , every hours. Therefore, and . Substituting for , for , and
for in the equation yields . The number of cells per milliliter there will be hours after
the initial observation is the value of in this equation when . Substituting for in the equation
yields , or . This is equivalent to , or
. Therefore, hours after the initial observation, there will be cells per milliliter.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 7b54c7af
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 7b54c7af

The functions and are defined by the given equations, where . Which of the following equations
displays, as a constant or coefficient, the maximum value of the function it defines, where ?
I.
II.

A. I only

B. II only

C. I and II

D. Neither I nor II

ID: 7b54c7af Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Functions and are both exponential functions with a base of . Since is less than ,
functions and are both decreasing exponential functions. This means that and decrease as increases.
Since and decrease as increases, the maximum value of each function occurs at the least value of for
which the function is defined. It's given that functions and are defined for . Therefore, the maximum value of
each function occurs at . Substituting for in the equation defining yields , which is
equivalent to , or . Therefore, the maximum value of is . Since the equation
doesn't display the value , the equation defining doesn't display the maximum value of .
Substituting for in the equation defining yields , which can be rewritten as
, or , which is equivalent to . Therefore, the maximum value
of is . Since the equation displays the value , the equation defining displays the
maximum value of . Thus, only equation II displays, as a constant or coefficient, the maximum value of the function it
defines.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 92a352a9
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 92a352a9

The graph gives the estimated population , in thousands, of a town years since , where
. Which of the following best describes the increase in the estimated population from
to ?

A. The estimated population at is times the estimated population at .

B. The estimated population at is times the estimated population at .

C. The estimated population at is times the estimated population at .

D. The estimated population at is times the estimated population at .

ID: 92a352a9 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. On the graph shown, the y-axis represents estimated population, in thousands. The graph shows that
when , the y-coordinate is . Therefore, the estimated population at is thousand. The graph also shows
that when , the y-coordinate is . Therefore, the estimated population at is thousand. Dividing thousand
by thousand yields ; therefore, thousand is times thousand. It follows that the estimated population at
is times the estimated population at .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 0f587cc6
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 0f587cc6

What is the positive solution to the given equation?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 0f587cc6 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Multiplying each side of the given equation by yields . To complete the
square, adding to each side of this equation yields , or . Taking
the square root of each side of this equation yields two equations: and . Subtracting
from each side of the equation yields . Dividing each side of this equation by yields , or
. Therefore, is a solution to the given equation. Subtracting from each side of the equation
yields . Dividing each side of this equation by yields . Therefore, the given equation has two
solutions, and . Since is positive, it follows that is the positive solution to the given equation.

Alternate approach: Adding and to each side of the given equation yields . The right-hand
side of this equation can be rewritten as . Factoring out the common factor of from the first
two terms of this expression and the common factor of from the second two terms yields .
Factoring out the common factor of from these two terms yields the expression . Since this
expression is equal to , it follows that either or . Adding to each side of the equation
yields . Dividing each side of this equation by yields . Therefore, is a positive solution to
the given equation. Subtracting from each side of the equation yields . Therefore, the given
equation has two solutions, and . Since is positive, it follows that is the positive solution to the given
equation.

Choice A is incorrect. Substituting for in the given equation yields , which is false.

Choice C is incorrect. Substituting for in the given equation yields , which is false.

Choice D is incorrect. Substituting for in the given equation yields , which is false.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 41ab1df4
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 41ab1df4

The function is defined by the given equation. If , which of the following equations
defines function ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 41ab1df4 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that and . Substituting for in

yields . Substituting for in this equation yields . Using the
properties of exponents, the function can be rewritten as , which is equivalent to
, or . Therefore, of the given choices, an equation that defines function is
.

Choice B is incorrect. This equation defines function if , not .

Choice C is incorrect. This equation defines function if , not .

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID e0cc40e8
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: e0cc40e8

What is the negative solution to the given equation?

ID: e0cc40e8 Answer

Correct Answer: -3

Rationale

The correct answer is . Dividing both sides of the given equation by yields . Taking the square root of both
sides of this equation yields the solutions and . Therefore, the negative solution to the given equation is
.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 3aaf7740
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 3aaf7740

Time (years) Total amount (dollars)

Sara opened a savings account at a bank. The table shows the exponential relationship between the time
, in years, since Sara opened the account and the total amount , in dollars, in the account. If Sara made
no additional deposits or withdrawals, which of the following equations best represents the relationship
between and ?
A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: 3aaf7740 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It’s given that the relationship between and is exponential. The table shows that the value of
increases as the value of increases. Therefore, the relationship between and can be represented by an increasing
exponential equation of the form , where and are positive constants. The table shows that when
, . Substituting for and for in the equation yields , which is equivalent
to , or . Substituting for in the equation yields . The table
also shows that when , . Substituting for and for in the equation yields
, or . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields .
Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields . Substituting for in the equation
yields . Therefore, of the choices, choice B best represents the relationship
between and .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 5b955063
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 5b955063

A rectangle has an area of square inches. The length of the rectangle is inches less than times
the width of the rectangle. What is the width of the rectangle, in inches?

ID: 5b955063 Answer

Correct Answer: 5

Rationale

The correct answer is . Let represent the width, in inches, of the rectangle. It's given that the length of the rectangle is
inches less than times its width, or inches. The area of a rectangle is equal to its width multiplied by its
length. Multiplying the width, inches, by the length, inches, yields square inches. It’s given that the
rectangle has an area of square inches, so it follows that , or . Subtracting
from both sides of this equation yields . Factoring the left-hand side of this equation yields
. Applying the zero product property to this equation yields two solutions: and .
Since is the rectangle’s width, in inches, which must be positive, the value of is . Therefore, the width of the
rectangle, in inches, is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 27b93ec4
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: 27b93ec4

Which expression is equivalent to ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 27b93ec4 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. The expression can be written as , which is equivalent to

. Distributing and to yields , or
. The expression is equivalent to . Distributing and to
yields , or . Therefore, the expression is
equivalent to , or . Combining like terms in this
expression yields .

Choice A is incorrect. Equivalent expressions must be equivalent for any value of . Substituting for in this
expression yields , whereas substituting for in the given expression yields .

Choice C is incorrect. Equivalent expressions must be equivalent for any value of . Substituting for in this
expression yields , whereas substituting for in the given expression yields .

Choice D is incorrect. Equivalent expressions must be equivalent for any value of . Substituting for in this
expression yields , whereas substituting for in the given expression yields .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 28a57ae5
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 28a57ae5

An object was launched upward from a platform. The graph shown models the height above ground, , in
meters, of the object seconds after it was launched. For which of the following intervals of time was the
height of the object increasing for the entire interval?

A. From to

B. From to

C. From to

D. From to

ID: 28a57ae5 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that the variable represents the height, in meters, of the object above the ground. The
graph shows that the height of the object was increasing from to , and decreasing from to .
Therefore, the height of the object was increasing for the entire interval of time from to .

Choice B is incorrect. The height of the object wasn't increasing for this entire interval of time, as it was decreasing from
to .

Choice C is incorrect. The height of the object was decreasing, not increasing, for this entire interval of time.
Choice D is incorrect. The height of the object was decreasing, not increasing, for this entire interval of time.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 99b8a5c8
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 99b8a5c8

In the given quadratic function, and are constants. The graph of in the xy-plane is a
parabola that opens upward and has a vertex at the point , where and are constants. If
and , which of the following must be true?
I.
II.

A. I only

B. II only

C. I and II

D. Neither I nor II

ID: 99b8a5c8 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that the graph of in the xy-plane is a parabola with vertex . If
, then for the graph of , the point with an x-coordinate of and the point with an x-coordinate
of have the same y-coordinate. In the xy-plane, a parabola is a symmetric graph such that when two points have the
same y-coordinate, these points are equidistant from the vertex, and the x-coordinate of the vertex is halfway between
the x-coordinates of these two points. Therefore, for the graph of , the points with x-coordinates and are
equidistant from the vertex, , and is halfway between and . The value that is halfway between and is
, or . Therefore, . The equation defining can also be written in vertex form, .
Substituting for in this equation yields , or . This equation is
equivalent to , or . Since , it follows
that and . Dividing both sides of the equation by yields , or . Since ,
it's not true that . Therefore, statement II isn't true. Substituting for in the equation yields
, or . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields . If , then
, or . Since could be any value less than , it's not necessarily true that . Therefore, statement I
isn't necessarily true. Thus, neither I nor II must be true.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 0106a3a1
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 0106a3a1

How many distinct real solutions does the given equation have?

A. Exactly one

B. Exactly two

C. Infinitely many

D. Zero

ID: 0106a3a1 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. Since the square of a real number is never negative, the given equation isn't true for any real value of
. Therefore, the given equation has zero distinct real solutions.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID b9dc1baa
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: b9dc1baa

The function gives the number of bacteria in a population minutes after an initial
observation. How much time, in minutes, does it take for the number of bacteria in the population to
double?

ID: b9dc1baa Answer

Correct Answer: 410

Rationale

The correct answer is . It's given that minutes after an initial observation, the number of bacteria in a population is
. This expression consists of the initial number of bacteria, , multiplied by the expression . The
time it takes for the number of bacteria to double is the increase in the value of that causes the expression to
double. Since the base of the expression is , the expression will double when the exponent increases by .
Since the exponent of the expression is , the exponent will increase by when increases by . Therefore the
time, in minutes, it takes for the number of bacteria in the population to double is .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 8f89f154
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 8f89f154

If , what is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 8f89f154 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. Dividing each side of the given equation by yields . Squaring both sides of this equation
yields . Multiplying each side of this equation by yields . Therefore, the value of is .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of , not .

Choice C is incorrect. This is the value of , not .

Choice D is incorrect. This is the value of , not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID ab245384
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: ab245384

If , what is the value of ?

ID: ab245384 Answer

Correct Answer: .2916, .2917, 7/24

Rationale

The correct answer is . An expression of the form , where and are integers greater than and , is
equivalent to . Therefore, the expression on the right-hand side of the given equation, , is equivalent to . Thus,
. It follows that . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Note that 7/24, .2916, .2917,
0.219, and 0.292 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 98f7ab7a
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 98f7ab7a

Function is defined by , where and are constants. In the xy-plane, the graph of
has a y-intercept at . The product of and is . What is the value of ?

ID: 98f7ab7a Answer

Correct Answer: 20

Rationale

The correct answer is . It’s given that . Substituting for in the equation
yields . It’s given that the y-intercept of the graph of is .
Substituting for and for in the equation yields , which is
equivalent to , or . Adding to both sides of this equation yields . It’s
given that the product of and is , or . Substituting for in this equation yields .
Dividing both sides of this equation by yields .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID e7f2ab9c
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: e7f2ab9c

In the given equation, and are positive constants. The product of the solutions to the given equation is
, where is a constant. What is the value of ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: e7f2ab9c Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. The left-hand side of the given equation is the expression . Applying the
distributive property to this expression yields . Since the first two terms of this expression have
a common factor of and the last two terms of this expression have a common factor of , this expression can be
rewritten as . Since the two terms of this expression have a common factor of , it can be
rewritten as . Therefore, the given equation can be rewritten as . By the zero
product property, it follows that or . Subtracting from both sides of the equation
yields . Subtracting from both sides of the equation yields . Dividing both sides of
this equation by yields . Therefore, the solutions to the given equation are and . It follows that the
product of the solutions of the given equation is , or . It’s given that the product of the solutions of the
given equation is . It follows that , which can also be written as . It’s given that and
are positive constants. Therefore, dividing both sides of the equation by yields . Thus, the
value of is .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 06ee10bb
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 06ee10bb

A company opens an account with an initial balance of . The account earns interest, and no
additional deposits or withdrawals are made. The account balance is given by an exponential function ,
where is the account balance, in dollars, years after the account is opened. The account balance
after years is . Which equation could define ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 06ee10bb Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. Since it's given that the account balance, , in dollars, after years can be modeled by an
exponential function, it follows that function can be written in the form , where is the initial value of the
function and is a constant related to the growth of the function. It's given that the initial balance of the account is
, so it follows that the initial value of the function, or , must be . Substituting for in
the equation yields . It's given that the account balance after years, or when
, is . It follows that , or . Dividing each side of the
equation by yields . Taking the th root of both sides of this

equation yields , or is approximately equal to . Substituting for in the equation

yields , so the equation could define .

Choice B is incorrect. Substituting for in this function indicates an initial balance of , rather than
.

Choice C is incorrect. Substituting for in this function indicates an initial balance of , rather than
. Additionally, this function indicates the account balance is decreasing, rather than increasing, over time.

Choice D is incorrect. This function indicates the account balance is decreasing, rather than increasing, over time.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 06fac60b
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 06fac60b

The function gives the value, in dollars, of a certain piece of equipment after months of use. If the
value of the equipment decreases each year by of its value the preceding year, what is the value of ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 06fac60b Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. For a function of the form , where , , and are constants and , the value of
decreases by for every increase of by . In the given function, , , and .
Therefore, for the given function, the value of decreases by , or , for every increase of by
. Since represents the value, in dollars, of the equipment after months of use, it follows that the value of the
equipment decreases every months by of its value the preceding months. Since there are months in a
year, the value of the equipment decreases each year by of its value the preceding year. Thus, the value of is .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID e9fc3093
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: e9fc3093

An object is kicked from a platform. The equation represents this situation, where
is the height of the object above the ground, in meters, seconds after it is kicked. Which number
represents the height, in meters, from which the object was kicked?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: e9fc3093 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It’s given that the equation represents this situation, where is the height, in
meters, of the object seconds after it is kicked. It follows that the height, in meters, from which the object was kicked is
the value of when . Substituting for in the equation yields ,
or . Therefore, the object was kicked from a height of meters.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 2aaaec85
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 2aaaec85

In the given equation, is a positive integer. The equation has no real solution. What is the greatest
possible value of ?

ID: 2aaaec85 Answer

Correct Answer: 51

Rationale

The correct answer is . A quadratic equation of the form , where , , and are constants, has no
real solution if and only if its discriminant, , is negative. In the given equation, and .
Substituting for and for in this expression yields a discriminant of , or .
Since this value must be negative, , or . Taking the positive square root of each side of this
inequality yields . Since is a positive integer, and the greatest integer less than is , the greatest possible
value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID da9efa2f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: da9efa2f

The function is defined by the given equation. For what value of does reach its minimum?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: da9efa2f Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. It's given that , which can be rewritten as . Since

the coefficient of the -term is positive, the graph of in the xy-plane opens upward and reaches its minimum
value at its vertex. The x-coordinate of the vertex is the value of such that reaches its minimum. For an equation
in the form , where , , and are constants, the x-coordinate of the vertex is . For the
equation , , , and . It follows that the x-coordinate of the vertex is ,
or . Therefore, reaches its minimum when the value of is .

Alternate approach: The value of for the vertex of a parabola is the x-value of the midpoint between the two x-
intercepts of the parabola. Since it’s given that , it follows that the two x-intercepts of the
graph of in the xy-plane occur when and , or at the points and . The
midpoint between two points, and , is . Therefore, the midpoint between and
is , or . It follows that reaches its minimum when the value of is .

Choice A is incorrect. This is the y-coordinate of the y-intercept of the graph of in the xy-plane.

Choice B is incorrect. This is one of the x-coordinates of the x-intercepts of the graph of in the xy-plane.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 033e2be3
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: 033e2be3

The functions and are defined by the given equations.

If , where is a constant, what is the value of ?

ID: 033e2be3 Answer

Correct Answer: -4.9, -49/10

Rationale

The correct answer is . The value of is the value of when . Substituting for in the
equation yields , or , which is
equivalent to , or . Since it's given that , it follows that and the value of
is the value of . Substituting for in the equation yields
, or , which is equivalent to , or . Note
that -4.9 and -49/10 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID f8a698f7
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: f8a698f7

The given expression is equivalent to , where is a constant. What is the value of ?

ID: f8a698f7 Answer

Correct Answer: 9

Rationale

The correct answer is . The given expression can be rewritten as . By applying the
distributive property, this expression can be rewritten as , which is equivalent to
. Adding like terms in this expression yields . Since it's given that
is equivalent to , it follows that is equivalent to . Therefore, the
coefficients of in these two expressions must be equivalent, and the value of must be .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 17f72638
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 17f72638

A rectangle has a length that is times its width. The function represents this situation,
where is the area, in square feet, of the rectangle and . Which of the following is the best
interpretation of in this context?

A. The length of the rectangle, in feet

B. The area of the rectangle, in square feet

C. The difference between the length and the width of the rectangle, in feet

D. The width of the rectangle, in feet

ID: 17f72638 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that a rectangle has a length that is times its width. It's also given that the function
represents this situation, where is the area, in square feet, of the rectangle and . The area of a
rectangle can be calculated by multiplying the rectangle's length by its width. Since the rectangle has a length that is
times its width, it follows that represents the width of the rectangle, in feet, and represents the length of the
rectangle, in feet. Therefore, the best interpretation of in this context is that it's the length of the rectangle, in feet.

Choice B is incorrect. This is the best interpretation of , not , in the given function.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice D is incorrect. This is the best interpretation of , not , in the given function.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID b7f055bc
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: b7f055bc

The function is defined by , where and are positive constants. The graph of
in the -plane passes through the points ( , ) and ( , ). What is the value of ?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: b7f055bc Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It’s given that the function is defined by and that the graph of in the xy-
plane passes through the points and . Substituting for and for in the equation
yields , or . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields .
Substituting for and for in the equation yields . Subtracting from both
sides of this equation yields , which can be rewritten as . Taking the square root of both sides of this
equation yields and , but because it’s given that is a positive constant, must equal . Because the
value of is and the value of is , the value of is , or .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from finding the value of rather than the value of .

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from correctly finding the value of as , but multiplying it by the y-value in the first
ordered pair rather than by the value of .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID e65d34a5
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: e65d34a5

The area A, in square centimeters, of a rectangular painting can be represented by the expression
, where is the width, in centimeters, of the painting. Which expression represents the
length, in centimeters, of the painting?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: e65d34a5 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. It's given that the expression represents the area, in square centimeters, of a rectangular
painting, where is the width, in centimeters, of the painting. The area of a rectangle can be calculated by multiplying its
length by its width. It follows that the length, in centimeters, of the painting is represented by the expression .

Choice A is incorrect. This expression represents the width, in centimeters, of the painting, not its length, in centimeters.

Choice B is incorrect. This is the difference between the length, in centimeters, and the width, in centimeters, of the
painting, not its length, in centimeters.

Choice D is incorrect. This expression represents the area, in square centimeters, of the painting, not its length, in
centimeters.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID aea3b524
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: aea3b524

Square P has a side length of inches. Square Q has a perimeter that is inches greater than the
perimeter of square P. The function gives the area of square Q, in square inches. Which of the following
defines ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: aea3b524 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. Let represent the side length, in inches, of square P. It follows that the perimeter of square P is
inches. It's given that square Q has a perimeter that is inches greater than the perimeter of square P. Thus, the
perimeter of square Q is inches greater than inches, or inches. Since the perimeter of a square is
times the side length of the square, each side length of Q is , or inches. Since the area of a square is
calculated by multiplying the length of two sides, the area of square Q is , or square
inches. It follows that function is defined by .

Choice B is incorrect. This function represents a square with side lengths inches.

Choice C is incorrect. This function represents a square with side lengths inches.

Choice D is incorrect. This function represents a square with side lengths inches.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 91f6f890
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: 91f6f890

Which expression is equivalent to , where and are positive?

A. msup

B. msup

C. msup

D. msup

ID: 91f6f890 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. For positive values of and , , , and . Therefore, the given

expression, , can be rewritten as . This expression is equivalent to , which can be rewritten as

, or .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 77899762
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Medium

ID: 77899762

The equation gives the estimated stock price , in dollars, for a certain company days after a new
product launched, where . Which statement is the best interpretation of in
this context?
A. The company's estimated stock price increased every day after the new product launched.

B. The company's estimated stock price increased every days after the new product launched.

C. day after the new product launched, the company's estimated stock price is .

D. days after the new product launched, the company's estimated stock price is .

ID: 77899762 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale

Choice C is correct. In the given equation, represents the number of days after a new product launched, where
, and represents the estimated stock price, in dollars, for a certain company. Therefore, the best
interpretation of in this context is that day after the new product launched, the company's estimated
stock price is .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID bcbf0e45
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Hard

expressions

ID: bcbf0e45

One of the factors of is , where is a positive constant. What is the smallest

possible value of ?

ID: bcbf0e45 Answer

Correct Answer: 8

Rationale

The correct answer is . Since each term of the given expression, , has a factor of , the
expression can be rewritten as , or . Since the values and
have a sum of and a product of , the expression can be factored as .
Therefore, the given expression can be factored as . It follows that the factors of the given
expression are , , , and . Of these factors, only and are of the form , where is a
positive constant. Therefore, the possible values of are and . Thus, the smallest possible value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 1aec2be9
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 1aec2be9

A solution to the given system of equations is . What is the greatest possible value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 1aec2be9 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that and ; therefore, it follows that

. This equation can be rewritten as . Subtracting from both
sides of this equation yields . This equation can be rewritten as
, or . By the zero product property, or .
Subtracting from both sides of the equation yields . Subtracting from both sides of the equation
yields . Therefore, the given system of equations has solutions, , that occur when and
. Since is greater than , the greatest possible value of is .

Choice B is incorrect. This is the negative of the greatest possible value of when for the second equation in the
given system of equations.

Choice C is incorrect. This is the value of when for the first equation in the given system of equations.

Choice D is incorrect. This is the value of when for the second equation in the given system of equations.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 9a182495
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 9a182495

How many distinct real solutions does the given equation have?
A. Exactly one

B. Exactly two

C. Infinitely many

D. Zero

ID: 9a182495 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. The number of solutions of a quadratic equation of the form , where , , and
are constants, can be determined by the value of the discriminant, . If the value of the discriminant is positive,
then the quadratic equation has exactly two distinct real solutions. If the value of the discriminant is equal to zero, then
the quadratic equation has exactly one real solution. If the value of the discriminant is negative, then the quadratic
equation has zero real solutions. In the given equation, , , , and . Substituting
these values for , , and in yields , or . Since the value of its discriminant is
negative, the given equation has zero real solutions. Therefore, the number of distinct real solutions the given equation
has is zero.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID a9e93fa1
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: a9e93fa1

The function is defined by . For what value of does reach its minimum?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: a9e93fa1 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that . Since , it follows that

. Expanding the quantity in this equation yields
. Distributing the and the yields
. Combining like terms yields .
Therefore, . For a quadratic function defined by an equation of the form
, where , , and are constants and is positive, reaches its minimum, , when the value
of is . The equation can be rewritten in this form by completing the square. This
equation is equivalent to , or . This equation can
be rewritten as , or , which is equivalent to
. This equation is in the form , where , , and .
Therefore, reaches its minimum when the value of is .

Choice B is incorrect. This is the value of for which , rather than , reaches its minimum.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect. This is the value of for which , rather than , reaches its minimum.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 42c3e1dd
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 42c3e1dd

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

ID: 42c3e1dd Answer

Correct Answer: 99

Rationale

The correct answer is . In the given system of equations, the second equation is . Subtracting from both
sides of this equation yields . In the given system of equations, the first equation is .
Substituting for in this equation yields , or . Therefore, the solution to the given
system of equations is . Thus, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID af1aea31
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: af1aea31

Which of the following functions has(have) a minimum value at ?

I.
II.

A. I only

B. II only

C. I and II

D. Neither I nor II

ID: af1aea31 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is correct. A function of the form , where and , is a decreasing function. Both of
the given functions are of this form; therefore, both are decreasing functions. If a function is decreasing as the value of
increases, the corresponding value of decreases; therefore, the function doesn’t have a minimum value. Thus,
neither of the given functions has a minimum value.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 0daafba7
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Medium

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: 0daafba7

How many distinct real solutions does the given equation have?
A. Exactly two

B. Exactly one

C. Zero

D. Infinitely many

ID: 0daafba7 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. The number of solutions of a quadratic equation of the form , where , , and
are constants, can be determined by the value of the discriminant, . If the value of the discriminant is positive,
then the quadratic equation has exactly two distinct real solutions. If the value of the discriminant is equal to zero, then
the quadratic equation has exactly one real solution. If the value of the discriminant is negative, then the quadratic
equation has zero real solutions. In the given equation, , , , and . Substituting
these values for , , and in yields , or . Since the value of its discriminant is positive,
the given equation has exactly two distinct real solutions.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID a65952d9
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Equivalent Medium

expressions

ID: a65952d9

Which expression is equivalent to , where ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: a65952d9 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. The given expression has a common factor of in the denominator, so the expression can be
rewritten as . The three terms in this expression have a common factor of . Since it's given that
, can't be equal to , which means can't be equal to . Therefore, each term in the expression,
, can be divided by , which gives .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID c3e3b12e
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: c3e3b12e

The function is defined by , where , , and are constants. The graph of

in the xy-plane passes through the points and . If is an integer greater than ,
which of the following could be the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: c3e3b12e Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is correct. It's given that the graph of in the xy-plane passes through the points and . It
follows that when the value of is either or , the value of is . It's also given that the function is defined by
, where , , and are constants. It follows that the function is a quadratic function and,
therefore, may be written in factored form as , where the value of is when is either
or . Since the value of is when the value of is either or , and the value of is when the value of is
either or , it follows that and are equal to and . Substituting for and for in the equation
yields , or . Distributing the right-
hand side of this equation yields , or . Since it's given that
, it follows that . Adding to each side of this equation yields . Since
, if is an integer, the value of must be a multiple of . If is an integer greater than , it follows that
. Therefore, . It follows that the value of is less than or equal to , or . Of the given
choices, only is a multiple of that's less than or equal to .

Choice B is incorrect. This is the value of if is equal to, not greater than, .

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID dba8a697
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear equations Hard

in one variable and
systems of equations
in two variables

ID: dba8a697

What is the sum of the solutions to the given equation?

ID: dba8a697 Answer

Correct Answer: 10.33, 31/3

Rationale

The correct answer is . Subtracting from each side of the given equation yields
. Since is a common factor of each of the terms on the right-hand side
of this equation, it can be rewritten as . This is equivalent to
, or . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields
. Since a product of two factors is equal to if and only if at least one of the factors is , either
or . Subtracting from both sides of the equation yields . Adding to
both sides of the equation yields . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields .
Therefore, the solutions to the given equation are and . It follows that the sum of the solutions to the given
equation is , which is equivalent to , or . Note that 31/3 and 10.33 are examples of ways to enter
a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID c9e4bac1
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Advanced Math Nonlinear functions Hard

ID: c9e4bac1

A quadratic function models a projectile's height, in meters, above the ground in terms of the time, in
seconds, after it was launched. The model estimates that the projectile was launched from an initial
height of meters above the ground and reached a maximum height of meters above the ground
seconds after the launch. How many seconds after the launch does the model estimate that the projectile
will return to a height of meters?
A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: c9e4bac1 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is correct. It's given that a quadratic function models the projectile's height, in meters, above the ground in
terms of the time, in seconds, after it was launched. It follows that an equation representing the model can be written in
the form , where is the projectile's estimated height above the ground, in meters,
seconds after the launch, is a constant, and is the maximum height above the ground, in meters, the model estimates
the projectile reached seconds after the launch. It's given that the model estimates the projectile reached a maximum
height of meters above the ground seconds after the launch. Therefore, and . Substituting
for and for in the equation yields . It's also given that the
model estimates that the projectile was launched from an initial height of meters above the ground. Therefore, when
, . Substituting for and for in the equation yields
, or . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields .
Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Substituting for in the equation
yields . Therefore, the equation
models the projectile's height, in meters, above the ground seconds after it was
launched. The number of seconds after the launch that the model estimates that the projectile will return to a height of
meters is the value of when . Substituting for in yields
. Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields . Dividing
both sides of this equation by yields . Taking the square root of both sides of this equation yields
two equations: and . Adding to both sides of the equation yields . Adding
to both sides of the equation yields . Since seconds after the launch represents the time at which
the projectile was launched, must be the number of seconds the model estimates that the projectile will return to a
height of meters.

Alternate approach: It's given that a quadratic function models the projectile's height, in meters, above the ground in
terms of the time, in seconds, after it was launched. It's also given that the model estimates that the projectile was
launched from an initial height of meters above the ground and reached a maximum height of meters above the
ground seconds after the launch. Since the model is quadratic, and quadratic functions are symmetric, the model
estimates that for any given height less than the maximum height, the time the projectile takes to travel from the given
height to the maximum height is the same as the time the projectile takes to travel from the maximum height back to the
given height. Thus, since the model estimates the projectile took seconds to travel from meters above the ground to
its maximum height of meters above the ground, the model also estimates the projectile will take more seconds
to travel from its maximum height of meters above the ground back to meters above the ground. Thus, the model
estimates that the projectile will return to a height of meters seconds after it reaches its maximum height, which is
seconds after the launch.

Choice A is incorrect. The model estimates that seconds after the launch, the projectile reached a height of
meters, not meters.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard