GMAT Sentence Correction Discussions

srijack · July 23, 2009, 11:03am

The 32 species that make up the dolphin family are closely related to whales and in fact include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow to be 30 feet long and is famous for its aggressive hunting pods.

A. include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow to be 30 feet long and is
B. include the animal known as the killer whale, growing as big as 30 feet long and
C. include the animal known as the killer whale, growing up to 30 feet long and being
D. include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow as big as 30 feet long and is
E. include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow to be 30 feet long and it is

growing is wrong usage... B & C out.
killer whale grow as big as .. wrong .. should be size.. D out ..
left with A, E..
A looks good..

pearlcrystal · July 23, 2009, 1:28pm

Hi Vyom ,
I think the description by perl is absolute in itself. Also the example by you is bingo too. The answer should be A

You seem to be doing a lot of perl scripting these days:grin:

pearlcrystal · July 23, 2009, 1:36pm

To develop more accurate population forecasts, demographers have to know a great deal more than now about the social and economic determinants of fertility.
have to know a great deal more than now about the social and economic
have to know a great deal more than they do now about the social and economical
would have to know a great deal more than they do now about the social and economical
would have to know a great deal more than they do now about the social and economic
would have to know a great deal more than now about the social and economical

Hi Puys, Just need an explanation,I choose D..but the OA is E...question is why
"then they DO" is not needed here and why the option "than now" is prferred?
Cheers

Can you check if the answer is E?
GMATPrep says the ans is D.

tarun_b · July 23, 2009, 1:40pm

B - is long
C - was.. condenses is awkward
D - had been is wrong

Left with A, E.
had is good to use when one even is happening before the other in the past. ..
so E is the ans.

A cud be an ans also as the the froast gt dre b4 the delay

pearlcrystal · July 23, 2009, 2:29pm

woww .. i think i left at 408 and its 419 now!

Good work guys, lottsa nice ques ... thanks..

PS: Attempted most questions, not posting answers since OAs of most have already been provided.

siddharthaduggirala · July 23, 2009, 2:40pm

1. If industrial pollution continues to deplete the ozone layer, the resulting increase in ultraviolet radiation will endanger human health, causing a rise in the incidence of skin cancer and eye disease, and perhaps even threatening global ecological systems.
(A) and perhaps even threatening
(B) and may even threaten
(C) and even a possible threat to
(D) as well as possibly threatening
(E) as well as a possible threat to

Try this one Puys.OA later on,,,

OA for this question is B.

bizzarenym · July 23, 2009, 3:03pm

I will pick A.

The Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) spacecraft will orbit the asteroid Eros for a year, slowly moving closer to the surface of the object to make ever more precise measurements that scientists hope will enable them to understand how the solar system formed some four billion years ago.
to make ever more precise measurements that scientists hope will enable them to
to make ever more and more precise measurements, which scientists are hoping to enable them
for making ever more precise measurements, and scientists hope that they will be able to
with the purpose of making more precise measurements than ever, and which scientists hope will enable them to
in order to make more precise measurements than it ever did, and scientists are hoping they will be able to

bizzarenym · July 23, 2009, 3:06pm

D looks the best.

The 32 species that make up the dolphin family are closely related to whales and in fact include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow to be 30 feet long and is famous for its aggressive hunting pods.

A. include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow to be 30 feet long and is
B. include the animal known as the killer whale, growing as big as 30 feet long and
C. include the animal known as the killer whale, growing up to 30 feet long and being
D. include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow as big as 30 feet long and is
E. include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow to be 30 feet long and it is

bizzarenym · July 23, 2009, 3:15pm

C is my pick.
Foods are plular and hence "were" is good. Between A and C, AHA is singular and hence "warns" is better. If it was "warned" then I think I would prefer that.

The American Heart Association has documented that the fatty and highly processed foods of the basic American diet, along with the upsurge in smoking among women, were key factors in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warn thatrecent increases in smoking among teenage girls show that the fashion for healthier living has not entirely reversed the deleterious trends of a half-century ago.

A. were key factors in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warn that
B. that are the key factors in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warn that
C. were key factors in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warns that
D. that is the key factor in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warns that
E. was a key factor in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warns that

sdt83 · July 23, 2009, 3:31pm

1. According to some economists, the July decrease in unemployment so that it was the lowest in two years suggests that the gradual improvement in the job market is continuing.
(A) so that it was the lowest in two years
(B) so that it was the lowest two-year rate
(C) to what would be the lowest in two years
(D) to a two-year low levelďźˆEďź‰
(E) to the lowest level in two years
plz explain

siddharthaduggirala · July 23, 2009, 3:50pm

The American Heart Association has documented that the fatty and highly processed foods of the basic American diet, along with the upsurge in smoking among women, were key factors in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warn thatrecent increases in smoking among teenage girls show that the fashion for healthier living has not entirely reversed the deleterious trends of a half-century ago.

A. were key factors in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warn that
B. that are the key factors in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warn that
C. were key factors in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warns that
D. that is the key factor in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warns that
E. was a key factor in the increasing proportion of women who died from heart disease beginning in the 1950s, and warns that

OA for this question is C

siddharthaduggirala · July 23, 2009, 3:54pm

In Hungary, as in much of Eastern Europe, an overwhelming proportion of women work, many of which are in middle management and light industry.

(A) as in much of Eastern Europe, an overwhelming proportion of women work, many of which are in
(B) as with much of Eastern Europe, an overwhelming proportion of women works, many in
(C) as in much of Eastern Europe, an overwhelming proportion of women work, many of them in
(D) like much of Eastern Europe, an overwhelming proportion of women works, and many are
(E) like much of Eastern Europe, an overwhelming proportion of women work, many are in

OA for this one is C

the comparison here is not between the two countries but between the working women and the second clause has the correct pronoun them. Hence C

siddharthaduggirala · July 23, 2009, 3:55pm

The Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) spacecraft will orbit the asteroid Eros for a year, slowly moving closer to the surface of the object to make ever more precise measurements that scientists hope will enable them to understand how the solar system formed some four billion years ago.
to make ever more precise measurements that scientists hope will enable them to
to make ever more and more precise measurements, which scientists are hoping to enable them
for making ever more precise measurements, and scientists hope that they will be able to
with the purpose of making more precise measurements than ever, and which scientists hope will enable them to
in order to make more precise measurements than it ever did, and scientists are hoping they will be able to

I got this question from a diferrent fourm and there seems to be a confusion between A&D.; But the given OA is D.

siddharthaduggirala · July 23, 2009, 3:57pm

The 32 species that make up the dolphin family are closely related to whales and in fact include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow to be 30 feet long and is famous for its aggressive hunting pods.

A. include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow to be 30 feet long and is
B. include the animal known as the killer whale, growing as big as 30 feet long and
C. include the animal known as the killer whale, growing up to 30 feet long and being
D. include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow as big as 30 feet long and is
E. include the animal known as the killer whale, which can grow to be 30 feet long and it is

The given OA is A.

Hey vyomb we use as for a comparison. But here we are describing only a single animal so i think D cannot be a correct answer.

bizzarenym · July 23, 2009, 4:44pm

I think the main problem with D is that "as big as" and "long" are together which is wrong. Long is redundant here. In addition, "to be" is treated as "to become" therfore A is not incorect.
I got this problem wrong too and many thanks to Siddhartha for posting this question!

The given OA is A.

Hey vyomb we use as for a comparison. But here we are describing only a single animal so i think D cannot be a correct answer.

bizzarenym · July 23, 2009, 5:08pm

I dont get it exatly. I agree to the fact that we are comparing proportion of women in Hugary vs that in much of Europe but how does the use of "as" preferred over "like"?

What if I modify the sentence as below:
1. An overwhelming proportion of women in Hungary, as in much of Eastern Europe, work
2. An overwhelming proportion of women in Hungary, like in much of Eastern Europe, work

Which is better? Someone please enlighten me.

OA for this one is C

the comparison here is not between the two countries but between the working women and the second clause has the correct pronoun them. Hence C

siddharthaduggirala · July 23, 2009, 6:14pm

I dont get it exatly. I agree to the fact that we are comparing proportion of women in Hugary vs that in much of Europe but how does the use of "as" preferred over "like"?

What if I modify the sentence as below:
1. An overwhelming proportion of women in Hungary, as in much of Eastern Europe, work
2. An overwhelming proportion of women in Hungary, like in much of Eastern Europe, work

Which is better? Someone please enlighten me.

I found this good explanation:
choice (a) should be an easy elimination. you can never use "which" to refer to human beings. this principle has zero exceptions.

--

"an overwhelming proportion of ..." is a quantity expression. most such expressions, although the words themselves are singular, take grammatically plural forms because they represent quantities that are clearly plural in number.
for instance, percentages, proportions, fractions, and the like fall into this category.
one-third of all the students are chinese --> correct. it'd be ridiculous to write "one-third of all the students is chinese".
on the other hand.
one out of three students is chinese --> also correct. in this case, you're literally saying one student (out of three), so, there you go, singular.

there are also other miscellaneous quantity words that are ostensibly singular but are used in the plural, such as "a dozen", "a trio", and so on. same deal.

in fact, "a lot" is probably the single most common quantity word in (somewhat less formal) writing, and that follows the same prescription: a lot of people were there. you would not, by any stretch of the imagination, write a lot of people was there.

it depends on MEANING.
all you have to do is THINK VERY LITERALLY.

if the PROPORTION ITSELF did something, then "proportion" itself is the subject, and you use a singular verb:

the proportion of filipinos living in milpitas has increased --> it's the actual proportion that has increased (filipinos can't "increase")

a large proportion of the filipinos in milpitas work in san jose --> the filipinos themselves work (a proportion can't work)

that's really all there is to it.

siddharthaduggirala · July 23, 2009, 6:18pm

In between good to be on a page by number "420"

siddharthaduggirala · July 23, 2009, 6:26pm

I dont get it exatly. I agree to the fact that we are comparing proportion of women in Hugary vs that in much of Europe but how does the use of "as" preferred over "like"?

What if I modify the sentence as below:
1. An overwhelming proportion of women in Hungary, as in much of Eastern Europe, work
2. An overwhelming proportion of women in Hungary, like in much of Eastern Europe, work

Which is better? Someone please enlighten me.

(D) like much of Eastern Europe, an overwhelming proportion of women works, and many are
(E) like much of Eastern Europe, an overwhelming proportion of women work, many are in

See the option D. "and many are middle" does not make any sense.
See option E. we need a phrase referring to the "number of women" in the second clasue.

but in option E we dont have one. Many of them clearly indicates the some part of the proportion.

Just my 2 cents in explaining the elimination part.

bizzarenym · July 23, 2009, 8:36pm

Hey Siddhartha,

In regard to this problem, option C is the best of the given options. But i was trying to understand whether its THE best and whether my understanding of "as" vs "like" is correct.

Thanks anyways, buddy..