PI Cognitive Assessment Practice 3 — Questions and Answers

Question 1: Complete the analogy: Pen is to writer as brush is to ___.

Canvas
Painter (Correct answer)
Color
Gallery

Correct answer: Painter

A pen is the primary tool of a writer. A brush is the primary tool of a painter.

The analogy links a tool to its professional user. A pen is the essential tool that a writer uses to create written works. A brush is the essential tool that a painter uses to create visual works. Canvas is the surface painted on (equivalent to paper), color is the medium (equivalent to ink), and a gallery displays art (equivalent to a library). The tool-to-user relationship is the defining pattern.

Question 2: What comes next in the pattern: AZ, BY, CX, DW, ___?

EV (Correct answer)
EU
FV
EX

Correct answer: EV

The first letter advances forward (A,B,C,D,E) while the second letter moves backward (Z,Y,X,W,V). Next: EV.

Two simultaneous patterns operate on the letter pairs. First letter: A→B→C→D→E (advancing through the alphabet). Second letter: Z→Y→X→W→V (going backwards through the alphabet). Combining for the 5th pair: E + V = EV. The letters approach each other from opposite ends of the alphabet.

Question 3: A box contains 3 red balls, 5 blue balls, and 2 green balls. What is the probability of randomly selecting a blue ball?

30%
50% (Correct answer)
20%
25%

Correct answer: 50%

Total balls = 3+5+2 = 10. Probability of blue = 5/10 = 50%.

Probability = favorable outcomes / total outcomes. Favorable outcomes (blue balls) = 5. Total outcomes (all balls) = 3 + 5 + 2 = 10. Probability = 5/10 = 1/2 = 0.50 = 50%. This is a fundamental probability calculation: identify the count of the desired outcome and divide by the total number of possible outcomes.

Question 4: If APPLE is coded as 50 (1+16+16+12+5), what is the code for BANANA?

28
30
33 (Correct answer)
36

Correct answer: 33

B=2, A=1, N=14, A=1, N=14, A=1. Sum = 2+1+14+1+14+1 = 33.

Using the letter-to-number code (A=1, B=2, ..., Z=26): B=2, A=1, N=14, A=1, N=14, A=1. Sum = 2+1+14+1+14+1 = 33. The APPLE example verifies the system: A=1, P=16, P=16, L=12, E=5 = 50.

Question 5: Three containers hold water. Container A holds twice as much as Container B. Container C holds 3 liters more than Container B. If the total is 23 liters, how much does Container B hold?

4 liters
5 liters (Correct answer)
6 liters
7 liters

Correct answer: 5 liters

Let B = x. A = 2x. C = x+3. Total: x + 2x + (x+3) = 23. 4x + 3 = 23. 4x = 20. x = 5 liters.

Define B = x liters. Then A = 2x and C = x + 3. Total: A + B + C = 2x + x + (x + 3) = 4x + 3 = 23. Solving: 4x = 20, x = 5. So B = 5 liters, A = 10 liters, C = 8 liters. Verification: 10 + 5 + 8 = 23 ✓, A = 2×B ✓, C = B + 3 ✓.

Question 6: In a sequence of shapes, every third shape is shaded. If there are 20 shapes in total, how many are shaded?

5
6 (Correct answer)
7
8

Correct answer: 6

Every 3rd shape is shaded: positions 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18. That's 6 shaded shapes out of 20.

Shaded shapes appear at every 3rd position: 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18. Count: 6 shapes. Mathematically, the number of multiples of 3 up to 20 is ⌊20/3⌋ = ⌊6.67⌋ = 6. Position 21 would be the 7th shaded shape, but that exceeds the 20-shape total, so the answer is 6.

PI Cognitive Assessment Practice 3

Complete the analogy: Pen is to writer as brush is to ___.