Final answer:
The sequence seems to follow a pattern where the second letter decreases by one, the third letter increases by one, and the fourth alternates between moving forward and backward in the alphabet. The next in the sequence should be XNBO.
Step-by-step explanation:
The sequence given (XRFM, XQEN, XPDO, XOCP) appears to follow a specific pattern with both letters and positions changing in a regular fashion. To determine what comes next in the sequence, let's analyze the pattern.
- The first letter 'X' remains constant in all sequences.
- The second letter decreases by one letter in the alphabet with each step: R (18th letter) to Q (17th letter) to P (16th letter) to O (15th letter), so the next letter should be N (14th letter).
- The third letter increases by one letter in the alphabet with each step: F (6th letter) to E (5th letter) to D (4th letter) to C (3rd letter), so the next letter should be B (2nd letter).
- The fourth letter alternates between moving one step forward and then one step back in the alphabet: M to N, N to O, O to P; since we went forward last time, we now go back to O.
Based on this pattern, the next sequence should be XNBO.