Four friends, namely S, R, T and V are all sitting in a straight row, facing the same side. Further, it is known that T and V have no one sitting between them. There is at least one person sitting to the right of T and S is sitting on one of the two ends of the row. Identify the option which is most likely to be false:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → T is sitting at one end of the row
The clues do not fix one seating, so all the rows that obey them are listed, and the option that is true in the fewest of them is the one most likely to be false.
S sits at one end, so S is first from the left or first from the right
T and V sit next to each other (no one between them)
Someone sits to the right of T, so T is never at the right end
Placing R, T and V in the other three seats under these rules gives seven possible rows:
How often each option is true in the seven rows:
Option (1) V and R have someone between them: true in 4 rows
Option (2) no one to the left of S: true in 3 rows (S at the left end)
Option (3) T at one end: true in only 1 row (T V R S); T can never be at the right end, and the left end is free only in the four rows where S sits on the right
Option (4) V not at an end: true in 5 rows