If you can answer these five questions correctly in 8 mins or less, we need to talk!

[BigGreen]

Alright, I'm prepping for the LSAT's (Law School Admissions Test) and studying like an SOB as i want a score through the F'n roof! I want to be a professor of law one day most likely, so it is important that I attend a top law school along the lines of Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Chicago, and maybe Berkeley gets thrown in that mix as well. Reading comp and arguments I'm fine on...but to score in the 99th percentile and above (which I'll need to do to feel comfortable) i need to be acing the "Games" section. Four of these scenarios are presented per section and you need to finish up each scenario in about 8 minutes and 35 seconds to get through them all. So, without futher delay, here is an example. Honestly try to do it in eight minutes, and PM me for the correct answers and explanations (as best I can) for any you got wrong. When you PM me, please give me the time it took and your answers, as I'm trying to avoid people getting the answers and saying "yeah, i got them all right"...that doesn't help me and what I really am looking for is someone to hash through these with as a means to improve my time and efficiency.
********************************************
A crew of up to five workers is to install a partition in at most three days. The crew completes five tasks in this order: Framing, wallboarding, taping, sanding, priming. The crew is selected from the following list, which specifies exactly the tasks each person can do:
George: taping
Helena: sanding, priming
Inga: framing, priming
Kelly: framing, sanding
Leanda: wallboarding, taping
Maricita: sanding
Olaf: wallboarding, priming

The following conditions must apply:
At least one task is done each day.
Taping and Priming are done on different days
Each crew member does at least one task during the installation, but no more than one task per day.
Each task is done by exactly one worker, completed the day it is started and before the next task begins.
*****************************************
1. Which one of the following could be a complete and accurate list of the members of the crew?
A)George, Helena, Inga, Kelly
B)George, Helena, Kelly, Leanda
C)Helena, Inga, Kelly, Olaf
D)Helena, Inga, Maricita, Olaf
E)George, Helena, Leanda, Maricita, Olaf
*****************************************
2. If the installation takes three days, and if the same two crew members work on the first and third days, then which one of the following could be the pair of crew members who work on those two days?
A)Helena and Inga
B)Inga and Kelly
C)Inga and Leanda
D)Kelly and Olaf
E)Leanda and Olaf
*****************************************
3. Each of the following could be a complete and accurate list of the members of the crew EXCEPT:
A)Helena, Inga, Kelly, Maricita
B)Inga, Kelly, Leanda, Olaf
C)George, Helena, Inga, Leanda
D)Inga, Leanda, Maricita, Olaf
E)Kelly, Leanda, Maricita, Olaf
*****************************************
4. If the installation takes three days, and if the sanding is done on the third day, then which one of the following could be a list of all the crew members that work on the second day?
A)Inga
B)Kelly
C)Olaf
D)George and Helena
E)Leanda and Olaf
*****************************************
5. Which one of the following could be a pair of members of the crew both of whom work on the same days as each other and each of whom perform two tasks?
A)George and Maricita
B)Helena and Kelly
C)Inga and Leanda
D)Kelly and Leanda
E)Leanda and Olaf.


GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!

[ripped4fsu]

ugh... thanks BG, I think I just blew out my cerebellum!

[bermich]

Yeah right. I graduated school for ONE reason. So I wouldnt have to put up with bullshit questions like that again.

[sigrabbit]

Keep your pencil moving bro! I would probably scratch out a table showing with the order of installation across the top, and the workers going down. Put an "x" to show which worker could do a particular task on a day. Then have at the questions with the limitations in mind, such as priming has to be done on the third day, unless it is possible to finish in two days, etc. Don't let the order of the workers confuse you in the answers.

[sigrabbit]

I forgot to mention that most people don't finish; so don't waste too much time on one question. Just guess if you have to.

[BigGreen]

Keep your pencil moving bro! I would probably scratch out a table showing with the order of installation across the top, and the workers going down. Put an "x" to show which worker could do a particular task on a day. Then have at the questions with the limitations in mind, such as priming has to be done on the third day, unless it is possible to finish in two days, etc. Don't let the order of the workers confuse you in the answers.

I attacked it in similar method, but slightly different. Rather than confuse myself with a table that showed all workers with an "X" being the indicator that this worker could perform said task, I simply scrawled below the task those workers, and ONLY those workers, able to perform the task. Given the strict limitations in the conditions, it becomes quickly apparent that there are only two individuals available for most of the tasks...that, in the way my mind operates is easier to deal with than having the other workers' names present in the operation at all...too much info for me to deal with.

[sigrabbit]

Looks like no two names begin with the same letter so you could even just use the first letter to represent the worker.

[Doc M]

BigGreen..Don't get caught up in the hype of having to score in the 99th percentile to get into a great law school. Although a high score is definitely a plus, schools really look closely at the intangibles. Personality, honesty, dedication, and discipline. Don't put so much pressure on yourself as this could affect your concentration during the test.

Med Schools and Law Schools consider many factors for admissions, not just academics and test scores. Be yourself and you will do fine. And also keep in mind that being a good professor does not require getting into and graduating from a "Top School". In fact, most of the best Med School profs I had were graduates of mid-line schools who were able to connect with the students not intimidate them with their credentials. Just my .02..

Doc M

[Tock]

I bought a book of brain teasers a while back (quite a while back) and resolved to complete the entire thing, about 100 or 200 of 'em. Took a while to get the first few, but after a while, I got so I could look at a problem and zip right through it.
It helps to make notes of the salient points, simplify the rhetoric, and keep in mind that sometimes they toss in irrelevent information just to make things interesting.

Anyway, if you hae time before your big exam, you might consider working through a book of brain teasers to get the hang of this sort of logic.

Good luck . . .

[HeartDocMD]

BigGreen..Don't get caught up in the hype of having to score in the 99th percentile to get into a great law school. Although a high score is definitely a plus, schools really look closely at the intangibles. Personality, honesty, dedication, and discipline. Don't put so much pressure on yourself as this could affect your concentration during the test.

Med Schools and Law Schools consider many factors for admissions, not just academics and test scores. Be yourself and you will do fine. And also keep in mind that being a good professor does not require getting into and graduating from a "Top School". In fact, most of the best Med School profs I had were graduates of mid-line schools who were able to connect with the students not intimidate them with their credentials. Just my .02..

Doc M

I agree 100%...schools are not looking for ONLY an outstanding grade, they are looking for a person as a whole as well. A close friend of mine who was applying to medical school at the same time as I scored a 38 on the mcats (a very remarkable score). He however, was antisocial, had no work experience, no volunteer work, and I am sure gave a poor interview. Yes, he did get into a medical school, however, he did not get into the schools which people normally associate with top grades.

I have noticed a bunch of guys on this board preping for the LSATS, MCATS etc. and the one bit of advice I can give is to not stress out. I know thats a difficult task, but I can assure you that if you can keep your nerves under control, your will see your scores skyrocket. Good luck.

[gunner27]

Got to disagree with some of the earlier posters. If you want to get into certain schools, you can't do it without the right scores, regardless of what your personality is like. They get huge numbers of well qualified, interesting applicants and really can take their pick. That doesn't mean that you can't get a great legal education at lots of other law schools, but you usually need to do much better at lower ranked schools to have a shot at certain jobs, etc.

Have you considered a LSAT review course? Both Kaplan and Princeton review offer one, and they are great. I took my score from around 50th to 85th percentile with a coures from PR. There are so many tricks and tactics for the LSAT that can be taught, and so many people taking these prep courses that you are at a disadvantage by not taking one.

I dealt with this whole law school application process not too long ago--PM me if you want any more info.

[BigGreen]

im sorry big green i remember having to take the lsat. its not that the material is hard its just the time constraint which realy sucks. are you going to take a prep class like kaplan or harvard review? it would be a good idea.

I think you're thinking of Princeton Review (not harvard). At any rate, I'm considering taking a course...i'm trying to get some feedback on it right now. I hear good things about Powerscore as well. With all due respect to the Docs, I think law school is perhaps the single most numbers oriented of the professional schools. It is the only one of the three major professional programs (Med and Business being the other two major programs) NOT to offer an interview in ANY form. Additionally, there has to be a reason that in the last years for which Yale Law released their admit numbers, less than 1% of their incoming class had below a 3.55 undergrad GPA. I truly hope that their experiences translate to law schools, but everything I'm hearing from current law students is decidedly to the contrary.

[clockworks]

i'd just write a computer program to figure out the answers...=P

-- clocky baby

[BigGreen]

i'd just write a computer program to figure out the answers...=P

-- clocky baby

Do you want to sit outside the test center, set up some sort of communication system and make a quick 10 grand?

[Doc M]

With all due respect to the Docs, I think law school is perhaps the single most numbers oriented of the professional schools. It is the only one of the three major professional programs (Med and Business being the other two major programs) NOT to offer an interview in ANY form.

Now I fully understand why there are so many damn attorneys!!

I guess the fact that there was no personal interview involved in Law School admissions really escaped me. I think that is a grievous error not giving someone the opportunity to shine in an interview. I am a very strong believer in the intangibles. Grades are just a small piece of the pie..But what the hell do I know..I'm not an attorney, just a Doctor..At any rate BigGreen..You obviously have the intellect..Just apply it to the LSAT and you are going to make a great attorney some day..And if that fails, you could always be a professional writer..Good Luck and seriously consider a review prep test such as the ones mentioned above..

Doc M