Stop at the first mismatch
Take the row one column at a time, from the left. Read the symbol, find it in the key, and check the letter under it.
The moment a letter does not match, the answer is different. Stop there. Checking the rest costs time and changes nothing.
Look at what the shape does, not at what you would call it. A circle with a filled dot and a circle with a small ring have the same name in your head. What tells them apart is the middle, so look at the middle.
In a counting line, first identify the target symbol. Here, count only circles with a filled dot. Scan four symbols at a time and add only target matches to your total.
One item, worked
Column one is the triangle pointing up. The key says A. The letter shown is A, so keep going.
Column two is the circle with the filled dot. The key says B. The letter shown is B, so keep going.
Column three is the arrow pointing right. The key says C. The letter shown is C, so keep going.
Column four is the circle with the small ring. The key says D. The letter shown is B, which belongs to the other circle. That is the mismatch, so the answer is different.
Same or different
The key is the same one: triangle up is A, circle with a filled dot is B, arrow right is C, circle with a small ring is D.
Read this row from the left and decide.
Try it
Does every letter in that row match the key?
- Different
- Same
Show the answer
Same
Correct. D, C, A and B are exactly what the key says, so the row is the same. The two circles are the place to slow down, because they differ only in the middle.
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Practice Perceptual speed