This is an explanation of the fourth logic game from Section IV of LSAT Preptest 75, the June 2015 LSAT.
A business newsletter has five slots for each issue. Each issue should have at least three features from the following topics: finance, industry, marketing, and technology and each feature will occupy one or more of the slots. Any slot not taken by a feature should have a graphic. You must determine the possible arrangement of features and graphics based on the rules.
Game Setup
This game is fairly unique. I couldn’t say what type to call it. It’s sort of linear. Truth is, game type doesn’t matter much. The main thing on any game is understanding the effect of the rules and how they interact, and knowing a game’s “type” has nothing to do with that.
So in this game we have four features: finance, industry, marketing and technology. Features are interesting. They can span multiple slots. The game doesn’t set a max number of slots. If there were no other rules, this would be an allowable setup:
That’s a single finance feature filling all five slots. The arc to the right indicates that it’s a single large feature.
This isn’t an allowable combination because there are other rules. But I’m drawing it to show that there are no natural limits on the size of a feature.
In the setup, it says there at least three features. The setup does not say three different features. So this is actually an allowable setup:
That’s one three-slot finance feature and two single-slot finance features. This is perfectly legal and it obeys all of the rules!
A lot of people are afraid to make a diagram like the one above. “Is it allowed?” they ask. Yes! On logic games, if something isn’t explicitly forbidden, then it’s allowed.
This game is very flexible. Once you internalize that, it’s easy!
Ok, let’s look at the rules. If there’s no feature, there’s a graphic. Simple enough.
Next the listed rules:
- Multi slot features are consecutive
This just means that if a finance feature is in three slots, then it’s in 1,2,3 or 2,3,4 and not 1,3,5.
- If there’s a finance or technology feature, we need one of those in slot 1.
I believe this means that if, say, there’s a tech feature in slot 3, then slot 1 needs a tech or finance feature. I don’t think this rule means you need the same type in slot 1.
Note also that simply having a tech or finance feature in slot 1, and nowhere else, is also legal.
- Only one industry feature
Pretty straightforward. Don’t make more than one industry feature.
Marketing has no rules.
I actually drew no diagrams for the main setup on this game. What would I draw? The rules were so clear that it was easiest just to read them again if I forgot.
I think the main difficulty on this game is self-imposed. You probably want to think there must be more restrictions, because games tend to be restricted.
Nope. This game is incredibly open. Happens sometimes. The zones game is another example.
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Tina says
Hello, I have 2 questions,
so this rule: “Multi slot features are consecutive”
I thought this means if there are multiple same features appear, they have to be next to each other.
Usually it means box XX in other games right? when they say consecutively…why it’s different in this game?
Also, when it says “any feature occupying more than one slot must occupy consecutively numbered slots”
does it mean 1 below? or 2? or both can happen??
1. X[YY][ZZ]
2. X[Y][Y][Z][Z]
I’m so confused…would you please explain this? Thank you in advance.
TutorLucas (LSAT Hacks) says
When the explanation says “multi-slot features are consecutive”, it’s referring to the rule that “any feature occupying more than one slot must occupy consecutively numbered slots”. We know that a feature can occupy multiple slots — it’s not limited to one slot. So, this rule just tells us that if a feature does take up multiple slots, those slots must be next to each other, e.g. if a marketing feature spans multiple slots, it must occupy 1,2,3, or 2,3,4 etc.
So yes, both of the scenarios that you’ve listed can happen if we’re not taking any other rules into consideration.
But let’s use the variables of the game and take the other rules into account:
Ex. #1
1. F
2. M
3. F
4. F
5. T
Ex. #2
1. T
2. T
3. M
4. T
5. T
These are both valid scenarios. In Example 1, I’ve italicized the variables that belong to the same feature, and in Example 2 I’ve done the same and bolded two variables that belong to another feature. Note that if one feature takes up multiple slots, those slots must be consecutive. Also, note that we can have two features that both belong to one type (e.g. Technology), and even if the two features aren’t consecutive, the slots that each feature takes up are consecutive.