Read the following information carefully and answer the question that follows.…
2024
Read the following information carefully and answer the question that follows. (Questions 9 to 11 are based on this information.)
P, Q, R, S, T, U and V are seven friends sitting in a circle, facing the centre.
V is second to the left of S, and is the neighbour of T and U.
S is not a neighbour of R or T.
P is a neighbour of Q and R.
Which of the following is correct?
Answer: A. Q is between P and S. — ConceptIn a circular arrangement, relative positions are read from each seated person’s own viewpoint. When everyone faces the centre, clockwise movement is…
- A.
Q is between P and S.
- B.
S is between U and P.
- C.
T is to the immediate right of V.
- D.
U is to the immediate left of V.
Attempted by 150 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept
In a circular arrangement, relative positions are read from each seated person’s own viewpoint. When everyone faces the centre, clockwise movement is to a person’s left and counter-clockwise movement is to the person’s right.
A neighbour occupies an immediately adjacent seat. A statement such as “second to the left” counts two seats in the appropriate direction, while a person who is neighbour to two named people must occupy the seat between them.
Application
Number the seats 1 to 7 clockwise and place S at seat 1. V is second to the left of S, so V takes seat 3; seats 2 and 4, adjacent to V, are occupied by T and U in some order.
S is not a neighbour of R or T. Because S’s adjacent seats are 2 and 7, seat 2 cannot contain T and seat 7 cannot contain R. Therefore U takes seat 2 and T takes seat 4.
The remaining seats 5, 6 and 7 belong to P, Q and R. Since P must be adjacent to both Q and R, P takes the middle seat 6, with Q and R at seats 5 and 7.
Seat 7 cannot contain R, so R takes seat 5 and Q takes seat 7. The clockwise order is S – U – V – T – R – P – Q – back to S.
Cross-check
Q has P and S as its two immediate neighbours.
S has U and Q as its two immediate neighbours.
T is the clockwise neighbour of V, which is V’s left-hand side when facing the centre.
U is the counter-clockwise neighbour of V, which is V’s right-hand side when facing the centre.
Therefore, the statement “Q is between P and S” is the correct result.