SSC JE General Intelligence and Reasoning Syllabus

In Blood Relations, what are Direct Relations and give examples?

Direct relations are single-step family links stated explicitly, such as father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, husband, wife. They connect two people directly without an intermediate relative.

In Blood Relations, what are Indirect Relations and how are they resolved?

Indirect relations involve a chain of two or more links (e.g. 'father's brother's son' = cousin). They are resolved by breaking the statement into successive direct relations and tracing the family tree step by step, often drawing a diagram with + (male) and - (female) and generation levels.

Pointing to a man, a woman says, 'He is the son of my grandfather's only son.' How is the man related to the woman?

The grandfather's only son is the woman's father; his son is therefore the woman's brother. So the man is her brother.

What symbols/conventions are commonly used to draw a blood-relation family tree?

A '+' or square denotes a male, a '-' or circle denotes a female; a horizontal double line links a married couple (husband-wife); a vertical/branching line links parents to children; people on the same row are the same generation.

In Direction Sense, what are the Basic Directions and how are they arranged?

The four cardinal directions are North (top), South (bottom), East (right), West (left). The four inter-cardinal (ordinal) directions lie between them: North-East, South-East, South-West, North-West. North and South are opposite; East and West are opposite.

In Direction Sense, if you face North and turn 90 degrees clockwise (to your right), which direction do you face? And after a further right turn?

Facing North and turning right (clockwise) 90 degrees makes you face East. A further right turn makes you face South.

What are Complex Directions problems and which formula is essential for them?

Complex direction problems involve multiple turns and displacements, asking for the shortest distance or final direction from the start. The essential tool is the Pythagoras theorem: shortest (straight-line) distance = sqrt(x^2 + y^2), where x and y are the net horizontal and vertical displacements.

A person walks 3 km East, then 4 km North. What is the shortest distance from the starting point?

5 km. By Pythagoras theorem, distance = sqrt(3^2 + 4^2) = sqrt(9 + 16) = sqrt(25) = 5 km.

In direction problems, how does turning left versus right rotate your facing direction?

A left turn rotates you 90 degrees anti-clockwise (North->West->South->East->North), and a right turn rotates you 90 degrees clockwise (North->East->South->West->North).

What are Simple Diagrams (Venn diagrams) used for in reasoning, and what does a simple two-circle overlap mean?

Simple Venn diagrams represent relationships between groups using circles. Two overlapping circles mean the groups share some common members (the overlap); fully separate circles mean no common members; one circle inside another means one group is wholly contained in the other.

Which Venn diagram correctly represents 'Dogs, Animals, Cats'?

Two separate small circles (Dogs and Cats, which share nothing) both lying entirely inside one large circle (Animals), because dogs and cats are both animals but no dog is a cat.

What are Complex Diagrams in logical Venn-diagram problems and how do you read three overlapping circles?

Complex diagrams use three or more overlapping figures to show layered relationships. With three overlapping circles you read seven regions: items in only one circle, items in exactly two circles (three such regions), and items common to all three (the central region).

Which Venn relationship fits 'Doctors, Players, Men'? (some doctors are men, some players are men, some doctors play)

Three mutually intersecting circles, because some members can belong to two or all three groups (a man who is both a doctor and a player), so every pairwise overlap and a common central region can exist.

What is a Seating Arrangement problem and what are its two main types?

A seating arrangement places people in fixed positions according to clues. The two main types are: (1) Linear arrangement (people in a row, facing the same or opposite ways) and (2) Circular arrangement (people around a table, facing the centre or outward).

In a circular seating arrangement where everyone faces the centre, which way is a person's left and right?

When facing the centre, a person's right hand points in the anti-clockwise direction and the left hand points in the clockwise direction (the reverse of facing outward).

What do Grouping and Scheduling (selection) problems require, and what is the first step?

They require forming teams/groups or assigning items to days, slots or categories under given conditions and constraints. The first step is to list all fixed conditions (who must/cannot be together, capacity limits) and make a grid or table to test valid combinations.

In Order and Ranking, if A is 7th from the top and 18th from the bottom, how many people are there in total?

Total = (rank from top) + (rank from bottom) - 1 = 7 + 18 - 1 = 24 people.

In Order and Ranking, what is the formula to find a person's rank from one end given their rank from the other end and the total?

Rank from the other end = (Total number of people) - (given rank) + 1. For example, the 5th from the top in a class of 30 is 30 - 5 + 1 = 26th from the bottom.

What are Letter Arrangement problems and how are they tackled?

Letter arrangement problems ask you to rearrange letters of a word, form meaningful words, or find which letter occupies a certain position after sorting (e.g. alphabetically). They are tackled by writing the letters in the required order and counting positions carefully.

In Mathematical Operations, what are Basic Operations and the rule for solving such problems?

Basic operations are addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, sometimes represented by changed symbols. To solve, substitute the given symbol meanings and then evaluate using the BODMAS/PEMDAS order (Brackets, Orders, Division/Multiplication, Addition/Subtraction).

What does the BODMAS rule stand for and why is it important in operations questions?

BODMAS = Brackets, Orders (powers/roots), Division, Multiplication, Addition, Subtraction. It fixes the order in which an expression is evaluated, ensuring a single correct answer (Division and Multiplication rank equally left-to-right, as do Addition and Subtraction).

Using BODMAS, evaluate: 8 + 2 x 5 - 6 / 3.

16. First multiply and divide: 2 x 5 = 10 and 6 / 3 = 2; then 8 + 10 - 2 = 16.

What are Complex Operations (symbol substitution) problems and the key technique?

Complex operations replace standard math signs with arbitrary symbols (e.g. '+' means 'x', '-' means '/') and may chain several. The key technique is to first decode every symbol back to its true operation, then apply BODMAS strictly to compute the result.

If '+' means 'x', '-' means '+', 'x' means '/', and '/' means '-', then 6 + 2 - 3 = ?

15. Decode: 6 x 2 + 3 = 12 + 3 = 15.

What is Data Sufficiency and what is the goal in such questions?

In data sufficiency a question is followed by two (or more) statements; the goal is NOT to compute the final answer but to decide whether each statement alone, or both together, provide enough information to answer the question uniquely.

What are the standard answer options in a Basic Data Sufficiency question with two statements?

(a) Statement I alone is sufficient but II alone is not; (b) Statement II alone is sufficient but I alone is not; (c) Either statement alone is sufficient; (d) Both statements together are sufficient but neither alone; (e) Both together are still not sufficient.

In Advanced Data Sufficiency with three statements, how do you determine the minimum sufficient set?

Test each statement alone, then every pair, then all three together, choosing the smallest combination that yields a unique answer. The correct option usually states which subset (e.g. 'I and III only' or 'any two of the three') is both necessary and sufficient.

What is a Syllogism and what are its two essential parts?

A syllogism is a logical argument with two given premises (statements) from which a conclusion must logically follow. Its parts are the premises (e.g. 'All A are B', 'Some B are C') and the conclusion(s) to be tested for validity, regardless of real-world truth.

In Basic Syllogism, from 'All cats are animals' and 'All animals are living things', what conclusion definitely follows?

'All cats are living things.' Two universal-affirmative premises sharing the middle term ('animals') yield a valid universal conclusion linking the end terms.

What are Complex Syllogisms involving 'possibility' conclusions, and how is a possibility judged valid?

Complex syllogisms add multiple premises and 'possibility' (may/can be) conclusions. A possibility conclusion is valid (true) when the premises do not definitely forbid that case; it is invalid only when the premises make it impossible. (A definite conclusion, by contrast, must always hold given the premises.)