Find the next number in the series: 2, 6, 12, 20, 30, ___.

The pattern in this series is that each number is increasing by increasing multiples of 2.

• The difference between 6 and 2 is 4 (2*2).
• The difference between 12 and 6 is 6 (3*2).
• The difference between 20 and 12 is 8 (4*2).
• The difference between 30 and 20 is 10 (5*2).

Following this pattern, the difference between the next number and 30 should be 12 (6*2).

So, the next number in the series would be 30 + 12 = 42.