On a chess board, in how many different ways can 6 consecutive squares be chosen on the diagonals along a straight path ?

Correct Answer: (B) 6

In standard chessboard geometry, the two main continuous corner-to-corner diagonals contain 8 squares each. Along each main diagonal of length 8, the number of ways to choose 6 consecutive squares along a straight path is $8 - 6 + 1 = 3$. For both main diagonals combined, the total number of ways is $2$$\times$ 3 = 6.