7 days to CAT 2013: Verbal Series (Pt 1); Solving 6 types of Logical Reasoning Qs

We bring forth the first expert article in this series on preparation, strategy and tips to perform well in Verbal Ability & logical Reasoning section. While the problems in this section can be formed on any topic, this article by Prof S K Agarwal, author and expert in Verbal Area, help you to learn the tips and tricks to solve the questions based on six relatively more important topics in LR namely, Seating arrangements, Team formation, Blood relations, Binary logic, Ranking & Arrangement.

Ten questions of Logical Reasoning that appear in CAT are clubbed with Verbal Ability section. Logical Reasoning alone may award you a credit of 30 marks and may improve your percentile significantly. A good LR score also helps you get away with an average performance in Verbal ability, since the two sections are clubbed together.

If you can hit 7 LR and 14 VA correct you may expect a very good percentile in this section. Ample time is also available to solve these LR problems as you have 70 minutes for 30 questions in this section. The need is to improve your attempts with accuracy.

High percentile with less preparation Logical Reasoning requires less preparation and the questions in this section are based on the understanding of simple logic prevailing in common life. They can be understood and solved fairly easily, if proper attention is paid to the information given in the problem. With a little logical understanding and following certain tips, one can score high in this section.

Practical tips on how to solve LR questions
Aspirants should remember make use of the following before going to solve the LR problems

The vocabulary used in logical reasoning questions is different from the one used in Verbal Ability hence it is essential to go through the terminology used in LR problems and follow logical rules to solve them. Words like all some, none, other than, only or unless etc. have to be given due care and special attention, since questions will be based on such information.

All the sentences in the question should be carefully read and understood, the clues in the sentences will enable you to find out the relationship between different variables.

There may be multiple conditions and it is expected from the aspirant to logically understand the same. It is very much advisable to get accustomed to use the scratch sheet, so whenever you are doing the LR problems, keep paper and pencil ready with you. Do not jump to the answer options unless and until you have carefully read the problem and have understood it. Now go for elimination method. When you go through the options please ensure to understand and eliminate the incorrect option. If you are able to pin point the incorrect ones you are the winner. To achieve this, please go through all the given options carefully, dont skip any of them.

The problem has to be solved on the basis of given information and not on the assumptions. Please therefore, do not assume any formation which is not available in the problems. Only the given facts are supposed to be used.

You must keep in mind that the information you are provided with, will lead to a Valid conclusion since it definitely follows But the conclusion which does not definitely follow from the given information will be invalid one. This you have to remember, while solving the questions.

1. Seating Arrangement sets Questions in Logical Reasoning based on Seating Arrangement sets should be solved by preparing a sketch in mind or preferably, on the paper so that you are able to answer more than one questions comfortably. Example problem Read the information given below and answer the questions based on the small paragraph One of the renowned NGOs in India has taken on the challenge to save tigers in the country and has invited five film personalities to pose for photographs with the specially designed shirts and placards to convey the message. However, Shahrukh doesnt want to stand next to Salman as they have some problems between them. Vidya and Vivek wish to pose standing close to each other as there is more understanding between them. Bobby has some issues with vivek as he misbehaved with him in a party and both are at logger heads. Vivek always loves to stand at the extreme right and would seldom compromise the position. Nevertheless, the problem was resolved somehow and it became a great message for the world in the best manner. Question 1: If Shahrukh is standing to the extreme left, who is standing in the middle? (a) Vivek (b) Salman (c) Vidya (d) Bobby Question 2: If Shahrukh stands to the extreme left, who stands fourth from left? (a) Vidya (b) Salman (c) Vivek (d) Bobby Question 3: If Vidya gets a conflict with Vivek and doesnt want to stand next to him and Vivek is ready to give-up his claim on extreme right position while Sharukh wants to stand second from right, who will stand on extreme right position. (a) Vidya (b) Salman (c) Bobby (d) Unable to decide

Explanation
Left-to right 1. Shahrukh 2.Bobby 3.Salman 4. Vidya 5.Vivek , Therefore Answer 1: B If Shahrukh is standing at the extreme left, this arrangement will be fine satisfying all the personalities. It is, therefore Salman who is in the middle. Answer 2: A Once you have understood the arrangement, you can solve all the questions. Looking at the arrangement the fourth position from left will be occupied by Vidya. Answer 3: C Going by the question and changed situation following arrangement may be made - Left to right 1.Vidya 2.Salman 3.Vivek 4.Shahrukh 5.Bobby 2. Blood Relations Questions based on Blood Relations are, although a little complex, can be solved faster, if one has the understanding of Family Tree.

Sample Question with answer explanation Direction for questions 1 to 4 Answer the questions that follow the information given in the undernoted paragraph. Four families decided to attend the marriage ceremony of one their colleagues. One family has no kids, while the others have at least one kid each. Each family with kids has at least one kid attending the marriage. Given below is some information about the families, and who reached when to attend the marriage. The family with two kids came just before the family with no kids. Shanthi who does not have any kids reached just before Sridevis family. Sunil and his wife reached last with their only kid. Anil is not the husband of Joya. Anil and Raj are fathers. Sridevis and Anitas daughters go to the same school. Joya came before Shanthi and met Anita when she reached the venue. Raman stays the farthest from the venue. Raj said his son could not come because of his exams.

Q.1 Which woman arrived third?
Shanthi b) Sridevi c) Anita d) Joya

Q.2-Name the correct pair of Husband and Wife?
a) Raj and Shanthi b) Sunil and Sridevi c) Anil and Sridevi d) Raj and Anita

Q.3- Of the following pairs, whose daughters go to the same school?
Anil and Raman b) Sunil and Raman c) Sunil and Anil d) Raj and Anil

Q.4- Whose family is known to have more than one kid for certain?
Ramans b) Rajs c) Anils d) Sunils

How to figure out the answers Four men are Anil, Raj, Sunil and Raman; four women are-Shanthi, Sridevi, Joya, Anita. Now we have to find out

Order of arrival Anita was already there, Joya came before Shanthi followed by Sridevi. Kids On the basis of information we have- Anita (1 kid daughter), Joya has 2 kids, Shanthi no kids, Sridevi- 1 kid daughter

Husbands Since Anil and Raj are fathers and Sunil reached last, Anil is not the husband of Joya- we get Anil-Anita; Raj-Joya; Raman-Shanthi; Sunil-Sridevi now we have a clear picture and can answer any question logically; So

Ans. From 1 to 4 1.a) Shanthi 2.b) Sunil and Sridevi 3.c) Sunil and Anil 4. b) Rajs

3. Team Formation Questions in CAT

These problems consist of selection problems which tend to have two aspects: one is structural and the other is quantitative in nature. Devising a method that allows decisions on both aspects is very crucial as well as important. The decisions are based on context information. Certain conditions and constraints exist in the questions before arriving at the decision of the team formations. Necessary leads and clues have to be retrieved from the information, condition, data given in the question. The group whether of people or other objects needs or doesnt need to be placed in the team depends on such clues. Direction Answer the questions on the basis of the information given below -

The Head of a newly formed Government desires to appoint five of the six elected members A,B,C,D,E, and F the portfolios of Home, Power, Defence, Telecom and Finance. F does not want any portfolio if D gets one of the five. C wants either Home or Finance or no portfolio. B says if D gets either Power or Telecom, then she must get the other one. E insists on a portfolio if A gets one.

Q.1. Which is a valid assignment?
(a) A-Home, B-Power, C-Defence, D-Telecom, E-Finance

(b) C-Home, D-Power, A-Defence, B-Telecom, E-Finance

(c) A-Home, B-Power, E-Defence, D-Telecom, A-Telecom, F-Finance

(d) B-Home, F-Power, E-Defence, C-Telecom, A-Finance

Q.2 If A gets Home and C gets Finance, then which is not a valid assignment for Defence and Telecom?

D-Defence, B-Telecom
F-Defence, B-Telecom
B-Defence, E-telecom
B-Defence, D-Telecom

How to solve it?

Let us find out the conditions and constraints in the question

i) While going through the question remember the following condition Each of A,B,C and E is supposed to be given a portfolio

ii) Only one (either) of F and D is to be taken.

iii) While Cs condition is to go for Home or Finance, B is dependent on external condition i.e. what does D get. B will get what D doesnt get- since D has to be given either power or Telecom-the remaining either power or telecom will be given to B. No such condition exists, if D doesnt get either.

iv) E will get the Ministry if A gets a portfolio, hence A and E should be given portfolio in the Ministry.

Now choose the right option -

Answer for Question-1 Eliminate option a- this answer gives Defence to C which is contradictory to the information and provided condition as C has to be given either Home or Finance.

Option-b-not only confirms to the given information but also there is no violation of any condition.

Eliminate option c- since D as well as F are given portfolios together so not correct as per the given conditions

Eliminate option d as again C is not given the Home or Finance portfolio

Hence for question 1 correct answer is option b

Answer for Question-2 Now we have understood all the constrains and condition, it is easy to find out the invalid assignment. With the available information and given conditions- only option D is not a valid assignment. Hence right answer is option d, where B is not given power while D gets Telecom. Hence for question-2-correct answer option is d 4. Problems based on Binary Logic
Out of the ten questions in Logical Reasoning, one may expect to find two questions based on Binary Logic in CAT. Questions can be of two types

Question Type 1- Two statements by each of the three persons are made in this type. One of the statements has got to be true and other is false. Now, one has to consider the two Propositions to arrive at the right answer.

The statement logic of the contents stated within
The ingredients i.e. the fact- one is true other will be naturally false or vice versa.
Question Type 2 Two types of persons are found in this type of question.
Those who always speak the truth
Those who always tell a lie

Direction Answer the question based on the following information. Four students (Ashish, Dhanraj, Felix and Sameer) sat for the Common Entrance Exam for Management (CEEM). One student got admission offers from three National Institutes of Management(NIM), another in two NIMs, the third in one NIM, while the fourth got none. Below are some of the facts about who got admission offers from how many NIMs and what is their educational background

The one who is an engineer didnt get as many admissions as Ashish.
The one who got offer for admissions in two NIMs isnt Dhanraj nor is he a chartered accountant.
Sameer is an economist
Dhanraj isnt an engineer and received more admission offers than Ashish.

The medical doctor got the most number of admission offers.
Which one of the following statements is necessarily true?
Ashish is a chartered accountant and got offer for admission in three NIMs.
Dhanraj is a medical doctor and got admission offer in one NIM.

Sameer is an economist who got admission offers in two NIMs.
Felix who is not an engineer did not get any offer for admission.

Ans. (c) Explanation Understand by analyzing the information and eliminate the other possibilities. Sameer Economist with 2 offers; Felix engineer with 0/1 offer; Dhanraj Doctor 0/1 offer; Ashish Chartered Accountant 3 offers . With this analysis, the answer becomes self-explanatory i.e. (c). 5. Ranking Based Questions You may find one or more than one question, based on the concept of Ranking. Form a structure in accordance to the question which requires creation of Rankings. Now, place the clues and necessary information in table. This will help you to avoid referring to the text information again and again apart from the fact that you will be able to answer number of questions based on the gathered information. Visualise the movement of the question.

CAT Question with Answer Explanation

Question is followed by two statements, A and B. Answer the question using the following instructions Mark (a) if the question can be answered by using statement A alone but not by using statement B alone Mark(b) if the question can be answered by using statement B alone but not by using statement A alone. Mark(c) if the question can be answered by using either of the statements alone. Mark(d) if the question can be answered by using both the statements together but not by either of the statements alone Mark(e) if the question cannot be answered on the basis of the two statements.

Q.1-In a particular school, sixty students were athletes. Ten among them were also among the top academic performers. How many top academic performers were in the school?

Sixty percent of the top academic performers were not athletes
All the top academic performers were not necessarily athletes.

1.(a) 2.(b) 3.(c) 4.(d) 5.(e)

Q.2 Five students Atul, Bala, Chetan, Dev and Ernesto were the only ones who participated in a quiz contest. They were ranked based on their scores in the contest. Dev got a higher rank as compared Ernesto, while Bala got a higher rank as compared to Chetan. Chetans rank was lower than the medium. Who among the five got the highest rank?

Atul was the last rank holder.
Bala was not among the top two rank holders.
Approach to answer

(a) should be the right answer. As per Statement A- 60 percent of top academic performers were not athletes; but 40 percent were athletes. Ten among the athletes were also top academic performers, hence it can now be resolved that number of top academic performers can be found as athletes plus non athletes, so A is sufficient to answer the question. Now let us analyse the statement B.- All the top academic performers were not necessarily athletes, well we need more information in this regard which is not available in the statement B. Therefore, option (a) is the right answer.

(d) is the right answer. Try to form a table on the basis of Statement A Atul was the last rank holder meaning the following

Dev
(higher rank than Ernesto)
Ernesto
(Lower rank than Dev)
Bala
(higher than Chetan but below median so 4th or 5th) Hence cant be placed here
Chetan
Below Bala
Atul
Last rank holder BUT how possible-

The possibilities, however, bring B and D, hence as per our approach we find that answer cannot be formed based on statement A only. Now analyse the statement B According to this statement nothing substantial is divulged to us. Many combinations could come up with the placement of first rank. It could be either Atul or Dev. We are required to use both the statements and if we use statement B along with A, we arrive at the right possibility of Dev being the topper conforming to the given information.

6. 'Arrangement' based questions

Questions based on different types of arrangements call for specific skill to form various geometrical shapes e.g. triangular, rectangular, straight line, square etc. The questions may be framed to test the ability of the aspirant in arranging alternate shapes in accordance with the given information/data.

The words like Whether, if, unless, always, usually, only, all, few, some,other than, none etc. must be understood in their correct context, as they play a key role in arriving at the answer. It must be remembered that the conclusion will either definitely follow the given information and so will be a valid conclusion or it wiil not definitely follow the information and therefore will be invalid conclusion.

CAT Question with answer explanation

Direction -Study the information below and answer questions based on it. (i) There are three houses on each side of the road. (ii) These six houses are labeled as P, Q, R, S, T and U. (iii) The houses are of different colours, namely, Red, Blue, Green, Orange, Yellow and White. (iv) The houses are of different heights. (v) T, the tallest house, is exactly opposite to the Red coloured house. (vi) The shortest house is exactly opposite to the Green coloured house. (vii) U, the Orange coloured house, is located between P and S. (viii) R, the Yellow coloured house, is exactly opposite to P. (ix) Q, the Green coloured house, is exactly opposite to U. (x) P, the White coloured house, is taller than R, but shorter than S and Q. Question 1:What is the colour of the house diagonally opposite to the Yellow coloured house? (1) White (2) Blue (3) Green (4) Red (5) none of these Question 2:Which is the second tallest house? (1) P (2) S (3) Q (4) R (5) cannot be determined Question3: What is the colour of the tallest house? (1) Red (2) Blue (3) Green (4) Yellow (5) none of these How to analyse the given information According to the given statements following information is available and can be drawn as follows P-S U S-P; now you have road in between, so, across the road R-T Q T-R Since the statements VII to IX clarify - P U(Orange) R(Yellow) Q (Green), Or, much better will be to form a table on the basis of the given information-

1.T is therefore opposite to S and the colour of S is Red, while colour of P is white, so colour of T is blue. 2. U will be the shortest house situated opposite the green coloured house Q 3. The order of the houses in ascending order is clear as per the table Picking out the right answer options Now, we have entire information in chronological order and can answer the questions as follows Answer to question-1 S is diagonally opposite to R ( the house with yellow colour) and the colour of S is Red, so option( 4)-Red is the correct answer. Answer to question-2- Option-(5) cannot be determined-should be the answer since either Q or S could be the 2nd tallest house. Answer to question-3- Option-(2)-Since T is the tallest house which is situated opposite to S(the red coloured house and we have already determined the colours of all other houses except Blue) the colour of T is Blue(look at the table) Final tips Although topics on Logical Reasoning can not be restricted to above nor there is any limitation to what should and what shouldnt appear in LR section of CAT, captioned topics, if prepared well, will lead an aspirant to a well-placed position. This section can get you a good percentile, if the problems in this part are practiced well by using natural human instincts logically. Next article in the series will on improving the pace of practice in error corrections.

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