SNAP Analytical and Logical Reasoning Syllabus

Analytical and Logical Reasoning syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Analytical and Logical Reasoning in SNAP, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Arrangements and Puzzles

   4 topics

   • Linear Arrangements
     • Single and double row seating
   • Circular Arrangements
     • Facing centre and outward
   • Distribution and Grouping
   • Scheduling and Ordering Puzzles
     • Day, time and floor-based puzzles
2. 2

   Verbal Logical Reasoning

   5 topics

   • Syllogisms
     • Two and three statement syllogisms
     • Possibility cases
   • Statement and Conclusion
   • Statement and Assumption
   • Cause and Effect
   • Course of Action
3. 3

   Analytical Reasoning

   5 topics

   • Blood Relations
     • Family tree and coded relations
   • Direction Sense
     • Distance and displacement
   • Coding-Decoding
     • Letter, number and symbol coding
   • Ranking and Order
   • Input-Output Sequencing
4. 4

   Non-Verbal and Pattern Reasoning

   4 topics

   • Series Completion
     • Number series
     • Alphabet and figure series
   • Analogy and Classification
     • Verbal and non-verbal analogy
   • Visual and Figure-Based Reasoning
     • Mirror and water images
     • Paper folding and cutting
   • Clocks and Calendars
     • Angle between clock hands
     • Odd days and day calculation
5. 5

   Critical and Decision Reasoning

   3 topics

   • Critical Reasoning Arguments
     • Premise, inference and conclusion
     • Strengthen, weaken and flaw identification
   • Decision Making
     • Condition-based selection problems
   • Binary Logic and Truth-Teller Puzzles

Analytical and Logical Reasoning flashcards for SNAP

18 of 51 cards from the Analytical and Logical Reasoning deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. In a linear arrangement puzzle, what does the phrase 'A is to the immediate left of B' tell you about positions when the row faces you (north)?

   B sits in the position directly next to A on your right side; i.e., reading left-to-right the order is A then B with no one between them. (If the row faces the observer, the persons' own left/right are reversed.)

2. What is the key first step to solve any linear arrangement problem efficiently?

   Identify and fix the 'definite' clues (exact positions, ends, or fixed pairs) first, then place the conditional/relative clues around them, leaving flexible clues for last.

3. In a circular arrangement, how do you interpret 'facing the centre' versus 'facing outward' for left/right directions?

   Facing the centre: a person's left/right is opposite to ours, so clockwise = their left. Facing outward: their left/right matches the observer's, so clockwise = their right.

4. For n people seated around a circle, how many distinct arrangements are there (rotations considered identical)?

   (n − 1)! arrangements. If reflections (clockwise vs anticlockwise) are also identical, it is (n − 1)!/2.

5. In distribution/grouping puzzles, what is the recommended tool for tracking which item belongs to which person/category?

   A matrix (grid) table with persons/groups as rows and attributes/items as columns, marking confirmed Yes (✓) and ruled-out No (✗) cells until each row and column resolves uniquely.

6. In a grouping puzzle, what does a 'negative' constraint like 'A and B cannot be in the same group' let you deduce?

   It eliminates all combinations placing A and B together, forcing them into different groups; combined with positive constraints it sharply narrows valid distributions.

7. What characterizes a scheduling/ordering puzzle and what clue type is most powerful in it?

   It arranges events/items in a sequence over days, times, or ranks. Relative-order clues ('X is before Y', 'exactly two between X and Y') are most powerful, especially gap (exact-distance) clues.

8. In ordering puzzles, how do you handle a clue stating 'exactly two people are between P and Q'?

   Treat P and Q as a block with two fixed slots between them, giving two orientations (P_ _Q and Q_ _P); slide this block across the available positions to test placements.

9. What are the three standard logical quantifiers used in syllogisms and their meaning?

   All (universal affirmative — every member included), No (universal negative — no member included), Some (particular affirmative — at least one included); 'Some...not' is the particular negative.

10. State the syllogism rule for drawing a valid 'No' (universal negative) conclusion.

    A negative conclusion requires at least one negative premise; from two affirmative premises you can never validly conclude 'No'. Also, two negative premises yield no valid conclusion.

11. In syllogisms, what is the 'middle term' and what rule must it satisfy?

    The middle term is the term common to both premises but absent from the conclusion. It must be distributed (cover all members, i.e., the subject of 'All' or either term of 'No') in at least one premise, or no conclusion follows.

12. What is an 'immediate inference' (conversion) of the statement 'Some A are B'?

    'Some B are A' — 'Some' converts validly (and so does 'No': 'No A are B' → 'No B are A'). 'All A are B' converts only to 'Some B are A', never to 'All B are A'.

13. In a Statement and Conclusion question, what is the test for a conclusion to 'follow'?

    The conclusion must be necessarily and logically derivable strictly from the information in the statement(s) — no outside knowledge or assumptions allowed. If it merely could be true, it does not follow.

14. How do Statement-and-Conclusion questions differ from Statement-and-Assumption questions?

    A conclusion is derived AFTER/FROM the statement (a logical consequence). An assumption is something taken for granted BEFORE/WITHIN the statement — an unstated premise the speaker presupposes for the statement to hold.

15. In Statement and Assumption, what is the 'negation test' for checking whether an assumption is implicit?

    Negate the candidate assumption; if the negation makes the statement absurd, illogical, or impossible to act upon, the assumption is implicit. If the statement still stands, it is not implicit.

16. Which kinds of statements should you reject as implicit assumptions even if related to the topic?

    Reject ones containing 'all', 'only', 'every', 'never' (overly strong/universal), restatements of the statement itself, obvious universal truths, and irrelevant or future-prediction claims — assumptions must be the minimum unstated support.

17. In Cause and Effect questions, what is the core relationship being tested?

    Whether one event (the cause) directly produces or precedes and triggers the other (the effect). The cause must logically and temporally precede the effect, and the effect must be the consequence of that cause.

18. List the standard answer options structure for a two-statement Cause and Effect problem.

    Typically: (a) Statement I is cause, II is effect; (b) II is cause, I is effect; (c) both are independent causes; (d) both are effects of a common/independent cause; (e) both are effects of independent causes.

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