Stacked Container
Stacked Container puzzles involve arranging boxes (or containers) in a vertical stack from bottom to top (positions 1 to N). Each box has a unique color. Clues include direct position assignments, adjacency relationships (immediately above/below), positional color assignments, and exclusion statements. These puzzles test your ability to create a complete vertical ordering from positional and relational clues.
What You'll Learn
Introduction to Stacked Container
Stacked Container puzzles involve arranging boxes (or containers) in a vertical stack from bottom to top (positions 1 to N). Each box has a unique color. Clues include direct position assignments, adjacency relationships (immediately above/below), positional color assignments, and exclusion statements. These puzzles test your ability to create a complete vertical ordering from positional and relational clues.
Prerequisites
How to Solve Stacked Container Problems
Step 1: Identify total number of boxes and positions
Step 2: Draw positions 1 to N (bottom to top)
Step 3: Place all directly given boxes at their specified positions
Step 4: Apply adjacency constraints (immediately above/below) to place consecutive boxes
Step 5: Apply positional color assignments (e.g., 'The box at position 3 is Red')
Step 6: Use exclusion clues (e.g., 'Box X is not color Y') to eliminate possibilities
Step 7: Use process of elimination to fill remaining positions
Step 8: Verify all clues are satisfied
Example Problem
Example: Five boxes A-E stacked (positions 1-5 bottom to top). Box C is at bottom (position 1). Box E is at top (position 5). Box A is immediately above Box B. The box at position 3 is Green. Box D is not Blue. Find the color of Box A. Solution: Step 1: C at pos1, E at pos5, pos3=Green Step 2: A immediately above B → consecutive with A above B Step 3: Possible (B,A) pairs: (1,2),(2,3),(3,4),(4,5) Step 4: pos1=C eliminates (1,2), pos3=Green eliminates (2,3) if A or B is Green? Not necessarily Step 5: Try (4,5): pos5=E → conflict (A would be E) Step 6: Only (2,3) works: B=2, A=3 Step 7: A at pos3 → A is Green Answer: A is Green
Pro Tips & Tricks
- Position 1 = bottom, Position N = top
- 'Immediately above' means position difference = +1
- 'Immediately below' means position difference = -1
- List all possible consecutive pairs before elimination
- Cross off placed boxes from your list
- Each position has exactly one box, each box exactly one position
Shortcut Methods to Solve Faster
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Practice Worksheets
Practice makes perfect! Work through these worksheets to master Stacked Container. Each worksheet contains 20 questions with detailed explanations. Start from Worksheet 1 and progress through increasing difficulty levels.
Exam Importance
Stacked Container is an important topic for various competitive exams. Here's how frequently it appears:
Ready to Master Stacked Container?
Start with Worksheet 1 and work your way up to expert level! Each worksheet includes: