Which pattern from the bottom line (A, B, C, D or E) is missing from the top line?
Show Hint
Note which quadrant, top left, top right, bottom left or bottom right, is shaded in each top line box, then check which bottom line box uses a quadrant never seen in the top line.
Step 1: List the patterns in the top line. Each box in the figure is split into two equal halves on top and two equal halves on the bottom, like a 2 by 2 grid, with exactly one of the four small squares shaded black. Reading the top line left to right: box 1 has its top left square shaded, box 2 has its top right square shaded, box 3 has no square shaded at all, and box 4 has its bottom left square shaded.
Step 2: List the patterns in the bottom line. Box A has its top right square shaded. Box B has its top left square shaded. Box C also has its top right square shaded, the same pattern as box A. Box D has its bottom right square shaded.
Step 3: Match each bottom pattern to the top line. Box A, top right shaded, matches top line box 2. Box B, top left shaded, matches top line box 1. Box C, top right shaded, repeats box A and also matches top line box 2. Box D, bottom right shaded, does not match any of the four top line boxes, since the top line only shows top left, top right, blank and bottom left shading, never bottom right.
Final Answer: The pattern that never appears in the top line is box D, with its bottom right square shaded. \[ \boxed{\text{Pattern D}} \]
