8, 43, 11, 41, ?, 39, 17

Options

A. 8
B. 14
C. 43
D. 44

Explanation

To find the missing number in the series: 8, 43, 11, 41, ?, 39, 17, we can break down the problem step by step.

### Step-by-Step Solution:

1. **Identify the Series**: The given series is 8, 43, 11, 41, ?, 39, 17. We can observe that there are two interleaved sequences.

2. **Separate the Two Sequences**:
- First Sequence: 8, 11, ?, 17
- Second Sequence: 43, 41, 39

3. **Analyze the First Sequence (8, 11, ?, 17)**:
- The difference between 8 and 11 is 3.
- We can denote the missing number as "x". The next number in the sequence is 17.
- The difference between 11 and x should also be consistent with the pattern. If we assume the pattern continues with an increase of 3, we can calculate:
- 11 + 3 = 14 (this could be our missing number x).
- Then, we check: 14 + 3 = 17, which holds true.

4. **Analyze the Second Sequence (43, 41, 39)**:
- The difference between 43 and 41 is -2.
- The difference between 41 and 39 is also -2.
- This indicates a consistent decrease of 2 in this sequence.

5. **Conclusion**:
- The missing number in the first sequence is 14.
- Therefore, the complete series is: 8, 43, 11, 41, 14, 39, 17.

### Final Answer:
The missing number is **14**.