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Difficulty: MediumSeating Arrangement

Eight colleagues—Fiona, George, Hannah, Ian, Jack, Kelly, Liam, and Mia—are sitting around a square table. Four of them sit at the four corners of the table facing outward (away from the center), while the other four sit in the middle of each of the four sides facing inward (towards the center).

The following information is known about their seating arrangement:
1. Fiona sits at one of the corners.
2. Jack is an immediate neighbor of both Fiona and Kelly.
3. George sits third to the left of Kelly.
4. Hannah sits second to the right of George.
5. Ian is an immediate neighbor of Hannah.
6. Liam sits second to the right of Ian.

Who sits to the immediate left of Mia?

  1. IanAnswer
  2. B
    Kelly
  3. C
    George
  4. D
    Liam

Answer

Ian
Based on the logical deduction of all clues, Mia is forced into the Right-Middle seat and faces the center of the table. Because she faces inward, her immediate left is in the clockwise direction along the table's perimeter. The person sitting in that adjacent corner is Ian.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the facing directions
Corner seats face outward (left is counter-clockwise, right is clockwise). Middle seats face inward (left is clockwise, right is counter-clockwise).
Establishing the correct left and right directions for each seat type is crucial before placing anyone.
2
Place Fiona, Jack, and Kelly
Assume Fiona is at the Top-Left corner. Since Jack is between Fiona and Kelly, Jack must be at the Top-Middle seat, and Kelly must be at the Top-Right corner.
A corner person's neighbor must be a middle person, locking in this three-person block.
3
Determine George's position
George is at the Left-Middle seat.
Kelly is at a corner (facing outward). Her left is counter-clockwise. Counting three seats counter-clockwise from Kelly places George at the Left-Middle seat.
4
Determine Hannah's position
Hannah is at the Bottom-Middle seat.
George is at a middle seat (facing inward). His right is counter-clockwise. Two seats counter-clockwise from George places Hannah at the Bottom-Middle seat.
5
Place Ian and Liam
Ian is at the Bottom-Right corner, and Liam is at the Bottom-Left corner.
Ian is next to Hannah, so he must be at Bottom-Right or Bottom-Left. If Ian were at Bottom-Left (facing outward), his second right (clockwise) would be Top-Left (Fiona), which is occupied. Thus, Ian must be at Bottom-Right. His second right (clockwise) is Bottom-Left, placing Liam there.
6
Identify Mia and answer the question
Mia is at the remaining Right-Middle seat. The person to her immediate left is Ian.
Mia faces inward, so her left is clockwise, pointing directly to the Bottom-Right corner where Ian is seated.

Key Concept

Positional logic with mixed facing directions (inward vs. outward) on a closed polygon.
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Topics

Seating Arrangement

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