Question

If -1<x<0, which of the following expressions is the largest? A.-1 B.x C. 2x D.x^3

Answer 1

The answer is C-2x because you can substitute a number between -1 and 0 for x, so for example .5, and try out all the choices with .5. Ultimately you get 2(.5) as the largest number, so the answer is C.

Answer 2

Why don't we evaluate all of them? 

{-1, -1/2 [as an example], -1 [example], .5^3 [example].    Which is the largest of -1, -1/2, -1 and -1/8?  Answer:  -1/2