SIFT Hidden Figures, found in seconds

The task is a speeded search: find which simple figure is hidden in a complex line drawing. The FAQ prints no sample item; it describes this part of the battery as testing "the ability to quickly recognize patterns within objects and groups of images" (testing FAQ).

The sketch beside the title shows only the layout; it is not a test item.

The FAQ does not print the item rules, such as whether a figure may appear turned, flipped or resized. Read the on-screen instructions before the clock starts and apply them literally. Prep material that states a rule is describing its own version of the task, not quoting the Army.

Time: 5 minutes for 50 items, about 6 seconds each. The FAQ warns that most examinees cannot answer every item on this kind of subtest. Part of a point comes off for each wrong answer, so do not guess.

• Fix your eyes on one distinctive corner or angle of an option, then look for it in the drawing; do not trace the whole shape.
• If no option jumps out within your time budget, skip the item rather than guess.
• Do not fill in unanswered items in the last seconds. On this subtest that loses points; on the aviation and reading subtests it gains them (guessing rules).

We do not publish Hidden Figures questions as text: a list of coordinates is not a picture, and solving it trains a different skill. What does transfer:

• embedded-figure puzzles and printed hidden-shape worksheets, done against a timer;
• short daily sets rather than one long weekly session;
• logging your accuracy, because speed without accuracy loses points here.

The weekly plan that combines this with the other subtests is on the study guide.

The battery reports one compensatory score, and the testing office does not publish how much each subtest contributes. A weak Hidden Figures result can be offset elsewhere, which is one more reason not to burn points on random answers here (how the score works). The full subtest list is on the test overview.