Maximum/minimum questions on Logic Games

[dan]

Some Logic Games questions will ask you for the "maximum number of ways" that something could happen, or the "minimum number of ways" that something could happen.

As a general rule, you want to tackle these questions as follows:

1. MAXIMUM questions: start with the answer choice that represents the largest number and work your way down. Try to make the scenario "work" with the biggest number possible. If it does, you've got your answer. If it doesn't, move to the next biggest number.

2. MINIMUM questions: start with the answer choice that represents the smallest number and work your way up. Try to make the scenario "work" with the smallest number possible. If it does, you've got your answer. If it doesn't, move to the next smallest number.

Here's an example of this. The following link will take you to a post related to a specific min question on a binary grouping game:

post480.html#p480

[nazu.s.shaikh]

I'm still not following, for example I am working on PT 12 S2 Q 12-17 and Q13, 14 and 17 involve max/min.

What I don't understand is if the rules state that "None of the three buys more than one portion of each kind of food" how is it that we can have variables such as $3 be the lowest? and $9 the highest?

Maybe I am diagramming it incorrectly because each individual ends up having 2 food items max. and for the maximum to be $9 wouldn't that imply that more than one portion of each kind of food, if each food is priced at $1?

[ManhattanPrepLSAT2]

Not sure I understand your question correctly --

We can have $3 if each person buys exactly one item.

We can have $9 if, among the three of them, 9 items are bought.

Neither of these situations violates the rule that "None of the three buys more than one portion of each kind of food"

However, both of these situations are not possible because they violate other rules, which is why $3 and $9 are both incorrect answers.

If you were able to make inferences that told you each person can get a max of 2, great. That leads to a max of 6, which is the correct answer for the max question.

Again, I'm sure if I understood your question correctly, so I'm not sure I addressed it. If I didn't, please let me know, and I'll do my best to clarify.

[nazu.s.shaikh]

Sorry I think I misunderstood the question and the rule "None of the three buys more than one portion of each kind of food" I thought that meant each person does not purchase 2 fruit cups or 2 hot dogs ... and with that I assumed that each person can buy up to 3 food items .. because the stimulus said " at least one kind of food from a street vendor"

But now I'm looking at this question (13) again and this is what I came up with

L - H
M - S & P
N - F

That's $4 dollars. Why isn't that the minimum?

As for the maximum

L - S/H + F
M - S P
N - F S/H

That would be $8.

Am I missing an inference? or a rule?

[ManhattanPrepLSAT2]

I created a diagram for this game. Here's a link to it:

pt-12-s-2-g-3-lara-mendel-and-nastassia-t1047.html

It seems that all of your work is sound (including your understanding of that particular constraint -- you are right to think it means one person can't get two hotdogs, etc.). The issue seems to be, I believe, in the way you are applying your work to answering the questions.

You are correct that the minimum is 4. For #13, the minimum question, (B) 4 is the right answer.

In terms of the maximum, your work seems to be correct, but I'm not sure about your interpretation of it. You wrote:

L - S/H + F
M - S P
N - F S/H

What I take this to mean is:

L gets either S or H (but not both) and also F --> so she gets 2 items
M gets S and P --> So he gets 2 items
N gets F and either S or H (but not both) -- > so she gets 2 items

That would add to 6 items total as the max, which is answer choice (B).

Again, hope that is helpful! Please do let me know if I haven't addressed any of your concerns.