Answer: What Comes Next? #264

The answer is C: an arrow pointing up and left.

The rule

The arrow turns 135 degrees anticlockwise (the opposite way to a clock’s hands) every time. It takes 8 steps to get back where it started, because 8 × 135 = 1080, which is 3 full turns.

The pattern as Python code

Here is a tiny Python program that follows the same rule. Type it into IDLE and run it to print the whole pattern, including the answer.

direction = 180
for step in range(8):
    print("Step", step + 1, "points", direction, "degrees")
    direction = (direction - 135) % 360

When you run it, Python prints:

Step 1 points 180 degrees
Step 2 points 45 degrees
Step 3 points 270 degrees
Step 4 points 135 degrees
Step 5 points 0 degrees
Step 6 points 225 degrees
Step 7 points 90 degrees
Step 8 points 315 degrees