Alphabet test – If the letters of the word VERTICAL are arranged in strict alphabetical order (A → Z), how many letters of the original word remain in exactly the same positions as before the rearrangement? Choose the precise count (zero, one, two, three, or four).

Introduction / Context:
Alphabet-test questions check whether you can map letters from a given word to their positions in a reordered (often alphabetical) arrangement and detect “fixed points,” i.e., letters that end up in the exact same index as before. Here, the word is “VERTICAL,” and we must count how many letters remain in the same position after alphabetically sorting its letters from A to Z.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Original word: VERTICAL (letters all distinct).
• Alphabetically sorted letters of VERTICAL must be computed.
• We compare index-by-index between the original and the sorted version.

Concept / Approach:
Write the original word with 1-based indices: 1 V, 2 E, 3 R, 4 T, 5 I, 6 C, 7 A, 8 L. Now sort the multiset of letters alphabetically: A, C, E, I, L, R, T, V. Assign these back to positions 1 through 8. A standard trap is to assume at least one letter must match; in fact, many such items yield zero fixed points.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Original (index: letter): 1:V, 2:E, 3:R, 4:T, 5:I, 6:C, 7:A, 8:L.Sorted sequence by index: 1:A, 2:C, 3:E, 4:I, 5:L, 6:R, 7:T, 8:V.Compare positions: (1) V vs A – different; (2) E vs C – different; (3) R vs E – different; (4) T vs I – different; (5) I vs L – different; (6) C vs R – different; (7) A vs T – different; (8) L vs V – different.No indices match. Fixed-points count = 0.

Verification / Alternative check:
Cross-check by mapping each original letter’s alphabetical rank among the set {A,C,E,I,L,R,T,V} and noting that none are situated at the same ordinal as they were in “VERTICAL.” A quick mental check is also possible: the smallest letter A cannot be at index 1 in the original (since 1 is V), and the largest letter V cannot be at index 8 in the original (since 8 is L); this already breaks the endpoints, making mid-index matches unlikely in this distribution.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• One/Two/Three/Four: Each would imply one or more index-wise coincidences that do not occur when you compare VERTICAL to ACEILRTV position-by-position.

Common Pitfalls:
Assuming at least one letter must match or forgetting to use position-wise comparison. Also avoid comparing sets rather than ordered sequences. The test requires exact index equality, not mere membership.

Final Answer:
Zero