Four of the following five are alike in a certain way and hence form a group. Which of the following does not belong to the group?

Question

Accepted Answer

Step-by-step reasoning:

1. Let positions be 1 (top) to 7 (bottom). From the clues, 9 and G are 4 positions apart, and G and B are 3 positions apart, with B below 9. The only feasible placement is 9 at position 3, B at 4 and G at 7.

2. "E is immediately below 12" and "E is above 9" force 12 at position 1 and E at position 2.

3. E's number is neither 7 nor 8 and there is exactly one box between E and the box having a number less than E. With E above 9 and position 4 being the only spot two away from E, B (pos 4) must hold the number less than E. Thus E cannot be 2, so E = 5 and B = 2.

4. "Only two boxes between 5 and F" puts F at position 5. Remaining numbers are 7 and 8 for positions 5 and 7. The difference between F and the box immediately below it (pos 6) is < 4; since pos 6 will be 4, F must be 7 (|7-4|=3), and G at pos 7 is 8.

5. Remaining letters A, C, D go to positions 1, 3, 6. C is not topmost and C's number is not 4, so C must be at position 3 (number 9). With "only two boxes between C and A", A must be at position 6 (number 4), and D at position 1 (number 12).

6. Final stack (top to bottom): D-12, E-5, C-9, B-2, F-7, A-4, G-8. In particular, A's number is $4$, not $8$; therefore the pair A-8 is not valid and does not belong to the group.

FINAL_ANSWER: e

Answer

Answer

Answer

Answer