PT21.S1.G4 - during a four period week

ls_hopeful_2017

Cannot for the life of me understand this rule:

"K is advertised during one of the first two weeks."

Doesn't this mean that K cannot be in weeks 3 or 4? Wouldn't K being in either 3 or 4 (which it does, as per J.Y.'s explanation) break that rule that K has to be in the first two weeks? Am I taking this rule way too literally or something?

Thanks y'all!
https://7sage.com/lsat_explanations/lsat-21-section-1-game-4/

danielznelson

Great question. As you noted, the rules states, "K is advertised during one of the first two weeks." Often, this prevents K from moving elsewhere (e.g. in a slot in week 3 or 4).

But rule #2 states, "The product that is advertised during two of the weeks is advertised during week 4....."

No rule excludes the possibility that K can be in two slots, including the rule you mentioned. Given the tendency for a rule such as this to effectively mean "only" during one of the two weeks, it's easy to process that rule as such. But the rule never says that K is only delegated to week one or two, and since the game demands that one variable be in twice, K can be in both 1/2 & 4.

ls_hopeful_2017

@danielznelson Thanks for the clarification! If I understand you correctly though, if rule #2 does not exist, does that mean K must be in 1/2? I'm just trying to see how this rule could be understood in other games. So if in another game the rule stated that K is in 1/2, that means only 1/2, correct? Sorry if that's unclear!

danielznelson

Another good question. I'll start more with the latter half of your question and work from there:

In many (most?) logic games, variables are forced into one slot.

Ex. 7 of 7 artists showcase their work in a museum, each doing so at a different time from another and doing so only once.

In this setup, you would have seven slots, one for each artist. As it states, 7 of the 7 showcase their work and each artist can only showcase once.

Ex. 5 TV shows are aired on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, with each show airing only once and each day having exactly one of the 5 shows aired.

Similar to the first example, the five TV shows are all aired on one of five days, each on a different day, and each day must have exactly one of the five shows to its name.

If the rule, "K showcases during one of the first two weeks," or "K airs during one of the first two weeks" were a rule in the respective game, K would obviously be forced into either slot one or two, and only one of those slots.

In the game you ask about, there are 8 slots to only 7 variables, with each slot having the requirement that it be filled. Unless otherwise stated, any of the variables can fill in two slots. Such it is with K in this game, since there is nothing requiring that K fit only into one slot.

To your first question to my reply, K must be in 1 or two (but not both) regardless of rule #2. Rule #2 only states that the variable that shows up twice MUST show up in 4 and NOT 3 (therefore, 1 or 2, but not both). K could meet this criteria, along with any of the other variables aside from O, it seems. O must be in 3; therefore, it cannot be the variable in two slots, since the variable in two slots must be in 4 and NOT 3.

This is all pretty technical, though I hope the examples helped. Let me know if you need further clarification or have any more questions after that lengthy reply, haha.

ls_hopeful_2017

Wow, that was extremely thorough and helpful. It's people like you that made me join the 7Sage community in the first place. Thank you so much!!

danielznelson

Glad I could help! And I agree. Some may believe the forum to be a major disadvantage to perhaps the most comparable alternative: one-on-one tutoring. But the forum has helped me as well - unmeasurably so.