This is an explanation of the first logic game from Section II of LSAT Preptest 64, the October 2011 LSAT.
Six new employees must be assigned parking spaces. An administrator will assign the spaces to Robertson, Souza, Togowa, Vaughn, Xu, and Young (R, S, T, V, X, Y). The rules determine which employee can get which space.
Game Setup
This is a linear/sequencing game. You have to figure out how to order the six employees. The last rule is the most restrictive and it makes sense to start there (I always read all the rules before drawing).
The last rule says that R can’t go in 5 or 6:
Now you can look at the sequencing rules. Start with one rule, and see what you can add on to it. You can usually combine some or all of them.
Above, I’ve combined the first and third rules. It’s a good idea to focus first on rules that can be combined. No one said you have to do them in order.
Note that “higher numbered” is to the right in this game. Often “higher” is to the left on sequencing games, so it’s easy to get confused. If you’re ever uncertain, look to the first question. You’ll see they’ve set it up with the higher numbers to the right.
Here’s the second rule. S comes before X. This can’t be combined with anything
The final thing to notice is that V has no rules. You should always check for random variables that have no rules. I draw circles around them.
Before moving on, think about how everything fits together. R has two people in front of it, so it can only go in 3 or 4. Here’s what things look like if R is in 3:
Since T and Y come before R, they have to go in 1 and 2.
I’ve drawn “S – X, V” above the diagram. That shows those three variables come after R. S is before X, and the comma before V shows V is also there, in any order.
There are other ways to draw this, but you should always try to fit rules and variables directly onto the diagram. Otherwise it’s easy to forget them. I find placing variables above the lines is a very useful way to remind myself of what the other variables are and where they go.
So in my diagrams, if you see things above the diagram, separated by a comma, it means they go in that area, in any order.
Here’s R in four. This diagram is a bit more flexible:
Either S or V could go before R, and S/V could go before, after or between T – Y. You should be aware of these possibilities, but don’t try to draw all of them.
I like having this template to help me visualize the possibilities when a question calls for it. Note that the template is a bit unclear. I’ve drawn S and V after R, but one of them will go before R.
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