"In order for carbon to obtain the inert gas configuration, it must gain or lose (2,4, or 6) valence electrons."
The answer is 4 electrons
Explanation:
Carbon has only four valence electrons and in order to get the nearest inert gas configuration it either has to accept four electrons or lose four electrons.
Image #1 is clearly sharing their electrons to complete an octet, which makes me believe it is a Double Bond. Image #2 is a duplicate (if my computer is displaying this picture correctly) which if this is the case and my computer isn't the issue I'd say it is a Double Bond. I don't think "above" and "below" make a difference but it may depend on the attachments and where they were originally placed. Either way Image #1 and #2 are Double Bonds.
Image #3 if I recall accurately is where 4 valence electrons must be gained. I'm a bit fuzzy with valence electrons and recommended viewing Crash Course on this if you'd like to perfect your understanding on Valence Electrons, but I recall a similar question and I remember 4 valence electrons for this type of image. Wish I could help more on this. :(
