Simple Ways To Solve Series Based Questions In Logical Reasoning

Number series is a crucial aspect of many competitive examinations. But, how to solve series-related questions in the logical reasoning section? Aspirants should understand the concept of the series and its patterns to solve series questions quickly. A series is a systematic arrangement of numbers or characters that follow a specific pattern. In a number series, a set of numbers are provided in the question, and the candidate has to either find the next term at the end of the series or find the missing term of a series. Read on to know how to find the missing number in a series.

Series in Logical Reasoning

A series is a specific pattern of numbers or symbols organised systematically. Aspirants must identify a missing or inaccurate term in the series. The number-series questions and answers help students comprehend the concept of series quickly. Series is an important concept that is highly useful in competitive examinations. Aspirants can utilise the questions supplied here to gain a fast overview of the topic and practise them to be more familiar with the concept.

Simple Ways To Solve Series Based Questions

Aspirants may often wonder how to solve series-related questions in the logical reasoning section? Let us look at a few steps to solve series questions easily. Here are the steps to follow to solve series related questions in the logical reasoning section:

• Candidates should first attentively study the question. Reading the question thoroughly might sometimes be sufficient for the applicant to answer the problem.
• Occasionally, applicants are unable to discern the pattern of the number series. Applicants should try to determine the series trend by examining the series pattern. They can detect it by examining the series to see if it reduces, increases, or adopts an alternate trend.
• Candidates must carefully study the question to determine if the character of the series is rising or decreasing. Furthermore, based on it, they should determine the pace at which the terms are rising or dropping. Some series may include a difference of squares and cubes of numbers.
• In other questions, the series may seem to increase or decrease exponentially. Here, we can check if the series follows a multiplication or division pattern.

What are some number series based questions?

Here are some series based questions:

• 3, 8, 13, 18, 23, 28

In this series, we see an increasing order with a difference of 5 between consecutive terms. So, the next term in the series would be 28 + 5, which is 33

• 18, 15, 12, 9, 6

The above series follows a negative or decrease in terms with the difference of 3 between consecutive terms. The next term in the series would be 6 – 3 = 3

• 4, 9, 16, 25, 36

As we examine the series, we find that it does not follow the addition or subtraction pattern. Then, we find that the terms are the square of natural numbers starting from 2. The next term in the series would be the square of 7, which is 49

• 1, 0.5, 0.5, 1, 4

In this series, the relation between terms is found through multiplication. When we multiply 1 by ½, we get 0.5 which is multiplied by 1 to get 0.5 again. Next, we multiply 0.5 by 2 to get 1. Following the exponential trend, we multiply 1 by 4 to get 4. Thus, the last term would be 32, which is found by multiplying 4 by 8.

• 1, 9, 125, 343, 729

The above series shows a sudden increase in terms, which cannot be based on addition or subtraction. The next term in the series is found by analysing the trend of the series, which is the cube of alternate natural numbers, such as 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9. The last term would be the cube of 11, which is 1331.

Series Based Questions – Missing Numbers

How to find the missing number in a series? Let us see a few examples to understand:

• 2, 4, __, 8, 10

The series follows a pattern with increasing values such that the difference between two consecutive terms is 2. So, the missing term would be 4+2= 6

• 1, 4, 9, __, 25

In the given series, we see that the difference between the terms is not uniform. So, these cannot be addition and subtraction series. By closely analysing, we understand that the series has squares of natural numbers starting from 1 to 5. So, the missing term would be the square of four, which is 16.

• 44, 40, __, 32, 28

This series has the terms in a decreasing manner. Each term has a difference of 4 from its previous term. Thus, the missing term would be 40 – 4 = 36.

• 13, 19, 32, __, 83

The terms in the series do not have a common difference between them. The series also does not have squares or cubes. We check the difference between the terms and find that each term in the series is a sum of its previous two terms. So, the missing term would be 19 + 32 = 51

Conclusion

A series is a specified pattern of sequentially arranged numbers or symbols. Aspirants must either find a missing or incorrect term in the sequence. The key elements in a series include numbers in ascending or descending order, adding or subtracting a number to advance the series, and multiplying or dividing by a number, including squares and cubes.