SAFRS Firefighter Aptitude cheat sheet

Main idea = the point the whole passage supports; details support it but do not replace it.

A stated detail is directly in the text; an inferred detail follows only from what the text implies.

Scope rule: an answer choice that is broader or narrower than the passage is wrong even if true.

Tone words (e.g., 'unfortunately', 'remarkably') signal the author's attitude toward the subject.

Sequence markers (first, then, finally) establish chronology; causal markers (because, therefore) establish cause.

'Except' and 'NOT' questions ask for the one choice that does not fit; verify each remaining choice.

Pronoun reference: the nearest preceding noun that agrees in number and logic is usually the antecedent.

Passage order often mirrors question order; locate the line before evaluating the choices.

Active voice: subject performs the action ('The captain ordered evacuation'), which is shorter and clearer than passive.

Subject-verb agreement: the verb agrees with the head noun, not with a phrase between them ('The box of hoses is').

A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number and gender; 'everyone' and 'each' are singular.

Comma splice: two independent clauses joined by only a comma; fix with a period, semicolon, or conjunction.

Apostrophes: 'its' is possessive, 'it's' means 'it is'; plural nouns take 's' after the apostrophe.

Parallel structure: items in a list or comparison use the same grammatical form ('reading, writing, and testing').

Modifier placement: a descriptive phrase must sit next to the word it describes.

In formal reports, avoid slang, contractions, and vague pronouns like 'they said' without a clear referent.

Percent change = (new − old) ÷ old × 100; a drop from 80 to 60 is −25%.

Rate problems: distance = rate × time; rearrange to rate = distance ÷ time.

Proportions: set up a/b = c/d and cross-multiply (a × d = b × c) to solve for the unknown.

Unit conversion: multiply by fractions equal to 1 (e.g., 60 min/1 hr) so unwanted units cancel.

Average (mean) = sum of values ÷ number of values; total = average × count.

Fractions: to add or subtract, find a common denominator; to divide, multiply by the reciprocal.

Area of a rectangle = length × width; volume of a rectangular box = length × width × height.

Order of operations: parentheses, exponents, multiplication/division left to right, then addition/subtraction.

A lever balances when effort × effort arm = load × load arm (moments about the fulcrum).

Longer effort arm or shorter load arm reduces the force needed to move a load.

Fixed pulleys change direction only; movable pulleys reduce effort by sharing load among rope segments.

Mechanical advantage of an inclined plane = length of slope ÷ height of rise.

Gears in mesh turn in opposite directions; a larger gear turns slower than a smaller meshing gear.

Liquids transmit pressure equally in all directions (hydraulics); force = pressure × area.

Friction opposes motion between surfaces and converts kinetic energy into heat.

In a series circuit, one break stops current everywhere; in parallel circuits, other paths stay live.

A 90° clockwise rotation maps 'up' to 'right'; counterclockwise maps 'up' to 'left'.

A 180° rotation is equivalent to a point reflection through the center; left-right and up-down both flip.

A mirror reflection reverses orientation across the mirror line but preserves size and shape.

Folded-paper punch problems: unfold by reflecting each hole across every fold line in reverse order.

Net of a cube: six squares; opposite faces never share an edge on the net.

Top, front, and side views of a solid must agree on heights and widths at each position.

Objects farther away appear smaller (perspective); parallel lines converge toward a vanishing point.

Counting blocks: count hidden supporting cubes, not just visible ones, when asked for the total.

Priority order in emergencies: life safety first, then incident stabilization, then property conservation.

Follow the chain of command; report problems to the supervisor before acting outside your authority.

When a conflict arises, address the behavior and its impact, not the person's character.

Active listening: restate the speaker's message and confirm understanding before responding.

Confidentiality: share crew or patient information only with those who need it to do the job.

If an order seems unsafe or unclear, seek clarification through the chain of command rather than ignoring it.

Team cohesion improves when credit is shared and errors are corrected privately, not publicly.

A written record (log, report) should be factual, timely, and free of opinion or blame.

Identify the goal, the givens, and the constraints before choosing a method.

Work backward from the answer choices when the forward path is long or ambiguous.

Eliminate impossible choices first; each elimination narrows the search.

If-then logic: 'If P then Q' is false only when P is true and Q is false; it does not assert 'if Q then P'.

Contrapositive: 'If P then Q' is equivalent to 'If not Q then not P'.

Look for a pattern by comparing consecutive terms: constant difference (arithmetic) or constant ratio (geometric).

Check the answer against the original conditions; a solution that violates a constraint is invalid.

Break complex problems into smaller sub-problems and solve each before recombining.

Chunking groups items (e.g., digits into pairs) to expand short-term memory capacity.

The primacy effect favors recall of first items; the recency effect favors recall of last items.

Spaced rehearsal produces stronger long-term retention than massed repetition in one sitting.

Encoding is stronger when material is given meaning or linked to something already known.

Change blindness: people often miss alterations to a scene unless they specifically attend to that feature.

Systematic scanning (left to right, top to bottom) reduces missed details in a scene or list.

Eyewitness recall improves with open-ended prompts ('What did you see?') and worsens with leading questions.

Record observations promptly; memory for detail decays rapidly within the first hours.