If every alternative letter of the English alphabet from B onwards (including B) is written in lower case (small letters) and the remaining letters are capitalized, then how is the first month of the second half of the year written ?
- (a) JuLY
- (b) jULy
- (c) jUly
- (d) jUlY ✓ UPSC's answer
Why the answer is (d)
• The first month of the second half of the year is July.
• The rule states that every alternative letter from B onwards (B, D, F, H, J, L, N, P, R, T, V, X, Z) is written in lowercase.
• The remaining letters (A, C, E, G, I, K, M, O, Q, S, U, W, Y) are capitalized.
• Applying this to 'July': J is in the lowercase set (B, D, F, H, J...), so it becomes 'j'.
• U is in the capitalized set (A, C, E, G, I, K, M, O, Q, S, U...), so it remains 'U'.
• L is in the lowercase set (B, D, F, H, J, L...), so it becomes 'l'.
• Y is in the capitalized set (A, C, E, G, I, K, M, O, Q, S, U, W, Y), so it remains 'Y'.
• The resulting string is 'jUlY', which corresponds to option (d).
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) JuLY
- Option (a) incorrectly capitalizes J and L, which are in the alternative lowercase sequence starting from B.
- (b) jULy
- Option (b) incorrectly capitalizes L, which is in the alternative lowercase sequence starting from B.
- (c) jUly
- Option (c) incorrectly capitalizes L, which is in the alternative lowercase sequence starting from B.
Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2019, held on 2 June 2019. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.