7 February 2025 · Shift 2

Paper folding and cutting The sheet is folded twice, so it opens into 4 equal quarters and every cut is repeated 4 times. One square and one circle are cut, so the open sheet must carry 4 squares and 4 circles, that is 8 marks. Opening the vertical fold copies the pair from the left half to the right half, and opening the horizontal fold copies the bottom half to the top half. Read down either column and the marks come as circle, square, square, circle, which is option (c).

Letter cluster series Compare the clusters place by place; each letter gains 2 positions from one cluster to the next. First place: K, M, O, Q, S. Second place: R, T, V, X, Z. Third place: B, D, F, H, J. So the cluster after QXH is SZJ, option (c).

Alphabetical rearrangement Sorting the letters of ROTCHES in English alphabetical order gives CEHORST. Place by place the pairs are R-C, O-E, T-H, C-O, H-R, E-S and S-T, and none of them match. So zero letters keep their position, option (b).

Interchange of signs Swap the signs first, then solve by BODMAS. The expression becomes $48÷3+16-6\times 3$. =16+16-18 =14, so option (b) is correct.

Letter series with blanks The string breaks into five groups of four letters, and one blank falls in each group. In every place of the group the letter moves one step forward: I, J, K, L, M then K, L, M, N, O then H, I, J, K, L then L, M, N, O, P. Filling the blanks in order gives I, L, J, O, P, that is ILJOP, option (c).

Figure series In each step one new symbol joins at the bottom right and the whole bottom row slides one place to the left. The symbol pushed out of the bottom row climbs into the left column of the row above. So f joins the fourth frame, the bottom row becomes dot, H, f, the star climbs up and pi keeps the top place. That is exactly the figure in option (c).

Embedded figure Figure (X) is a circle resting on the apex of a triangle whose base is horizontal. In option (b) the two slanting lines that meet just under the circle, together with the bottom edge, form that very triangle, and the circle sits on its apex. In option (a) the circle lies inside the triangle, in option (c) the triangle points downwards and in option (d) the circle stands apart from any triangle. Hence option (b) is correct.

Number series Take the consecutive differences: 55-18=37, 89-55=34, 120-89=31, 148-120=28. The differences themselves drop by 3, so the next difference is 28-3=25. 148+25=173, so option (c) is correct.

Parallel row seating Row 2 faces north, so its left hand points west; no one to the left of S puts S at the west end of row 2. Row 1 faces south, so its left hand points east; no one to the left of L puts L at the east end of row 1. Only one person sits between T and S, so T takes the third seat from the west in row 2. The person facing E sits second to the right of L, that is two seats west of L, so E faces that seat and B is left with the east end of row 2. O sits second to the right of G, which puts G third and O first from the west in row 1, leaving F in between. The extreme ends are O and L in row 1 and S and B in row 2, and the pair offered is O and B, option (b).

Symbol coding The codes are not written letter for letter, so compare the two words instead. T, R and P appear in both words and #, @ and & appear in both codes, so those three symbols belong to those three letters. The only letter left in PART is A and the only symbol left in its code is ^. So A is coded as ^, option (c).

Coded blood relation Read the chain from the left, one sign at a time. E + F says E is the daughter of F, and F × G says F is the sister of G. F is female and has a daughter E, so F is E's mother, and G is F's brother. Therefore G is E's mother's brother, option (d).

Linear seating All seven face north, so left and right are read as they are printed; number the seats 1 to 7 from the left. No one sits to the right of M, so M takes seat 7, and with two people between M and F, F takes seat 4. F sits immediately to the left of L, so L takes seat 5, and three people between E and L put E in seat 1. Seats 2, 3 and 6 are free, and H immediately to the right of G fits only as G in 2 and H in 3, leaving seat 6 for K. Between K in seat 6 and H in seat 3 sit F and L, that is two people, option (c).

Dice 8 stays on the left face in both views, so the cube has only been turned about the axis through that face. Such a turn moves the top, right, bottom and back faces round in a cycle, and 9 has moved from the right to the top. So the face that came to the right in view II, 12, was the bottom face in view I. Top and bottom are opposite faces, so 12 lies opposite 7, option (c).

Letter cluster analogy In DGHK to ADEH every letter moves 3 places back, and MQTU to JNQR repeats the same shift. Apply it to HLQR: H to E, L to I, Q to N and R to O. So HLQR is related to EINO, option (c).

Odd one out Measure the gap between the first and second letter and between the second and third. BDG, EGJ and QSV all run +2 then +3. MOQ runs +2 then +2, so it does not belong to the group, option (b).

Number series Take the consecutive differences: 660-650=10, 669-660=9, 677-669=8, 684-677=7. The difference falls by 1 each time, so the next difference is 6. 684+6=690, so option (d) is correct.

Venn diagram Some cars run on petrol and some cars are electric, so Car must cut both Petrol and Electric. Petrol is also used outside cars and electricity outside cars, so neither class lies wholly inside Car. Petrol and Electric share nothing, so those two circles must stay apart. Only option (b) shows a middle circle cutting both outer circles while the outer circles never touch.

Syllogism Some balls are toys and all toys lie inside plastic, so those balls are plastic as well; conclusion (I) follows. All toys lie inside plastic and plastic and water are completely separate, so no toy can be water; conclusion (II) follows. Both conclusions follow, so option (a) is correct.

Number coding Add the alphabet positions of the four letters and double that sum. 14+2+19+6=41 and $41\times 2=82$, which matches NBSF. 9+13+19+18=59 and $59\times 2=118$, which matches IMSR. For AYLC, 1+25+12+3=41 and $41\times 2=82$, so option (d) is correct.

Letter cluster analogy In GFBE to FEAD each letter moves one place back, and AZVY to ZYUX repeats it, with A wrapping round to Z. Apply it to CBXA: C to B, B to A, X to W and A to Z. So CBXA is related to BAWZ, option (d).