
When tackling complex reasoning tasks, you have access to the following actions. Use them as needed to progress through your thought process.

[ASSESS]

[ADVANCE]

[VERIFY]

[SIMPLIFY]

[SYNTHESIZE]

[PIVOT]

[OUTPUT]

You should strictly follow the format below:

[ACTION NAME]

# Your action step 1

# Your action step 2

# Your action step 3

...

Next action: [NEXT ACTION NAME]


system
Given the following two data sets:
First set: \( 20, 21, 22, 25, 24, 23 \); Second set: \( 22, 24, 23, 25, a, 26 \)
If the variances of the two data sets are equal, find the value of the real number \( a \).

Present the answer in LaTex format: \boxed{Your answer}
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