Directions: Read the information given and answer the following question. John…
2024
Directions: Read the information given and answer the following question.
John is undecided which of four novels to buy. He is considering a spy thriller, a murder mystery, a Gothic romance and a science fiction novel. The books are written by Rothko, Gorky, Burchfield and Hopper, not necessarily in that order, and published by Heron, Pigeon, Blueja and Sparrow, not necessarily in that order.
The book by Rothko is published by Sparrow.
The spy thriller is published by Heron.
The science fiction novel is by Burchfield and is not published by Blueja.
The Gothic romance is by Hopper.
Pigeon publishes ___________
- A.
Spy thriller
- B.
Murder Mystery
- C.
Science Fiction
- D.
Cannot be determined
Attempted by 5 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Concept: This is an attribute-based, multi-variable puzzle -- three linked attributes (novel, author, publisher) must be paired up using direct-link clues and exclusion clues, working from the most constrained facts outward until every triple is fixed by elimination.
Application:
Clue (2) directly fixes: spy thriller -> Heron.
Clue (4) directly fixes: Gothic Romance -> Hopper (author).
Clue (3) directly fixes: Science Fiction -> Burchfield (author), and rules out Blueja as its publisher.
Clue (1) fixes Rothko's publisher to Sparrow. If Rothko had written the spy thriller, that novel's publisher would have to be both Heron (clue 2) and Sparrow (clue 1) at once, which is impossible. So Rothko did not write the spy thriller; among the two novels not yet tied to an author (spy thriller, Murder Mystery), Rothko's must be Murder Mystery. Hence Murder Mystery -> Rothko -> Sparrow, and the spy thriller's author is the one name left over, Gorky.
Two publishers are now used up: Heron (spy thriller) and Sparrow (Murder Mystery). The remaining publishers, Pigeon and Blueja, must go to the remaining novels, Science Fiction and Gothic Romance. Clue (3) already ruled out Blueja for Science Fiction, so Science Fiction -> Pigeon, leaving Gothic Romance -> Blueja.
Cross-check -- the completed table satisfies all four clues at once:
Novel | Author | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
Spy thriller | Gorky | Heron |
Murder Mystery | Rothko | Sparrow |
Science Fiction | Burchfield | Pigeon |
Gothic Romance | Hopper | Blueja |
Every clue holds with no contradiction, and the mapping is unique, so Pigeon publishes the Science Fiction novel.