LSAT 78, Game 2 Setup, History Projects, LSATHacks

Game Setup

Time on second attempt: 4 min

See “repeating games” at bottom of section

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I found this game easier than average. I finished it in four minutes on my second attempt. The reason I found it easier is that it was possible to divide this game into three fairly restricted scenarios.

This division into scenarios used to be common on old logic games, but has become rare on new logic games. In fact, if you hadn’t done any old games, it’s possible you didn’t find this game particularly easy.

Games like this are rarer, but it is worth practicing the old games that allow up front deductions. Because when you do find one, you can go through it very quickly, allowing time for other games.

Now, how to divide the game in two? The key is that only L or T can be assigned to 1923. This means that there are only two possibilities for 1923. When there are only two possibilities, it makes sense to split a game.

Note that I’m going to number the years 1, 2, 3, 4, rather than 1921, 1920, etc. It’s just so much easier that way.

Let’s start with T in 3. First, draw that:

Rule 3 also mentions T. If T is in, then R must be in. And rule 4 says that if R is in, O must be directly in front of R. The only place to fit OR is in front of T:

So ORT fill the first three spaces. Rule 2 says that M can only go in slot 1 or 2. So, in this scenario M can’t be in. Only L or Y are possible. I drew by placing the remaining variables (M, L, Y) to the right, and crossing out M:

You could instead draw an “L/Y” in slot four, but somehow I found it clear to draw way clearer. I think it’s because it makes it clear that ORT are fixed and slot four is open.

So that’s the scenario with T in slot 3. Next, we have L in slot 3. We have O, R, M, T and Y left to place.

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We saw in the prior scenario that placing R is very restrictive, because it forces OR to go in the first two slots. And that, in turn, forces M out. So let’s make a scenario with R in:

Again, I’ve drawn M, T, Y off to the side. You could instead draw T/Y in slot four, but I find this way is clearer for this game. This way, all six possible students are visually accounted for.

Finally, we the scenario with L in slot three, but R out. This will allow M in. Note that since R is out, T must be out as well. So that leaves M, O and Y to fill the remaining spaces. M must be in spots 1 or 2:

Placing M in the middle of 1/2 signifies that M goes in one of those two spaces. The O, Y above L signifies that one will go to the right of L, and one to the left. I like using physical placement of variables to clarify where they might go – I find it easy to visualize the variables drifting down into the open spots.

You might have thought “How the hell did he know to make the third scenario”? I made it because:

• T and R are very restrictive (they lead to the first two scenarios).
• The final scenario is just what things look like if R and T are both out.

Note that I drew no separate rules for this game. The scenarios cover all the rules. But you still must know the rules. I found them easiest to memorize, but if you wanted to draw something you could draw this:

These are combined rules. For instance, the second one says T ➞ OR because we know that R requires OR. Also, note that Rule 1 is entirely covered by the scenarios)

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Repeating Games

I’ve written elsewhere about the benefits of repeating games, to solidify your intuition for deductions. Note that the purpose of repeating games is to prove the answers right, so it doesn’t matter if you remember the right answer.

I repeated this game about three days after I first saw it, by which time I had forgotten the answers. I’ve written how long it took me on the second attempt. That time, or a couple minutes above it, is roughly the standard you should be aspiring to – a lot of people take 8-9 minutes on a repeat attempt, get everything right, and pat themselves on the back. But that’s too slow. The faster you go when repeating, the faster you’ll learn to go the first time you see a game.

(I say “a couple minutes above” my time because, after years of teaching the LSAT, I’m really, really fast. You should be almost as fast as me, but you don’t exactly need to match my pace to score -0.)

Time on second attempt: 4 min

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