How to use units digits to avoid calculations

Imagine you would have to solve 130,467 * 367,569. Without a calculator, we are surely entering a world of hurt. But we can see almost instantaneously what the units digit of this product would be. The units digit of 130,467 * 367,569 would be the same as the units digit of 7*9, as only the units digits of the larger numbers are relevant in such a calculation. 7*9 = 63, so the units digit of 130,467 * 367,569 is 3. This is one of those concepts that is so simple and elegant that it seems too good to be true. And yet, this simple, elegant rule comes into play on the entrances with surprising frequency. Take this question for example: If n is a positive integer, how many of the ten digits from 0 through 9 could be the units digit of n^3? A) three B) four C) six D) ten Surely, you think, the solution to this question can’t be as simple as cubing the easiest possible numbers to see how many different units digits result. And yet that’s exactly what we’d do here. 1^3 = 1 2^3 = 8 3^3 = 27 à units 7 4^3 = 64 à units 4 5^3 = ends in 5 (Fun fact: 5 raised to any positive integer will end in 5.) 6^3 = ends in 6 (Fun fact: 6 raised to any positive integer will end in 6.) 7^3 = ends in 3 (Well 7*7 = 49. 49*7 isn’t that hard to calculate, but only the units digit matters, and 9*7 is 63, so 7^3 will end in 3.) 8^3 = ends in 2 (Well, 8*8 = 64, and 4*8 = 32, so 8^3 will end in 2.) 9^3 = ends in 9 (9*9 = 81 and 1 * 9 = 9, so 9^3 will end in 9.) 10^3 = ends in 0 Amazingly, when I cube all the integers from 1 to 10 inclusive, I get 10 different units digits. Pretty neat. The answer is D. Of course, this question specifically invoked the term “units digit.” What are the odds of that happening? Maybe not terribly high, but any time there’s a painful calculation, you’d want to consider thinking about the units digits. Take this question, for example: A certain stock exchange designates each stock with a one, two or three letter code, where each letter is selected from the 26 letters of the alphabet. If the letters may be replaced and if the same letters used in a different order constitute a different code, how many different stocks is it possible to uniquely designate with these codes?  A) 2,951 B) 8,125 C) 15,600 D) 18,278  Conceptually, this one doesn’t seem that bad. If you wanted to make a one-letter code, there’d be 26 ways you could do so. If you wanted to make a two-letter code, there’d be 26*26 or 26^2 ways you could do so. If you wanted to make a three-letter code, there’d be 26*26*26, or 26^3 ways you could so. So the total number of codes I could make, given the conditions of the problem, would be 26 + 26^2 + 26^3. Hopefully, at this point, you notice two things. First, this arithmetic will be deeply unpleasant to do.  Second, all of the answer choices have different units digits! Now remember that 6 raised to any positive integer will always end in 6. So the units digit of 26 is 6, and the units digit of 26^2 is 6 and the units digit of 26^3 is also 6. Therefore, the units digit of 26 + 26^2 + 26^3 will be the same as the units digit of 6 + 6 + 6. Because 6 + 6 + 6 = 18, our answer will end in an 8. The only possibility here is D. Pretty nifty. Takeaway: Painful arithmetic can always be avoided on the GMAT. When calculating large numbers, note that we can quickly find the units digit with minimal effort. If all the answer choices have different units digits, the question writer is blatantly telegraphing how to approach this problem.