GMAT Sentence Correction Discussions

vikas.mogle · April 17, 2009, 7:07am

The complex tax dispute between the Covered Bridge Mall and Harris Township is not
likely to be adjudicated for several years, and in the meantime both sides are intent on
creating difficulties for the other.
(A) both sides are intent on creating difficulties for the other
(B) both sides are intent on creating difficulties for each other
(C) each side is intent on creating difficulties for the another
(D) each side is intent on creating difficulties for one another
(E) the sides are both intent on creating difficulties for each other

also can anyone pls gimme the anwers for the 1000 SC's questions

Answer: B

Usage of 'each other'. Only B uses it correctly.

When two parties are involved, use 'each other'. when more than two are involved, use 'one another'. You can't have 'each another' or 'one other'.

Correct usage could be 'One or other'

All other options are nonsensical.

A few more from my side:

Not since Galileo suffered the scurvy humor of the Inquisition has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue a theory.
(A) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(B) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(C) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(D) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(E) has a religious organization so effectively curbed whether a major scientist had the ability that he could be pursuing 4.

A recent New York Times editorial criticized the citys election board for, first of all, failing to replace outmoded voting machines prone to breakdowns, and secondarily, for their failure to investigate allegations of corruption involving board members.
(A) secondarily, for their failure to
(B) secondly, for their failure to
(C) secondly, that they failed and did not
(D) second, that they failed to
(E) second, for failing to

More than ever paper is expected to be recycled this year, due to new mandatory recycling laws in municipalities across the nation.
(A) More than ever, paper is expected to be recycled this year
(B) It is expected that more paper than ever will be recycled this year than previously and that is
(C) The paper expected to be recycled this year is more than ever
(D) The amount of paper that will be recycled this year is expected to be greater than ever
(E) A great increase in the amount of paper that will be recycled this year is

An attempt to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago, has been unsuccessful despite efforts by many important groups, including the National Organization for Women.
(A) to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago,
(B) begun almost two decades ago, for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment
(C) begun for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment almost two decades ago
(D) at ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago,
(E) that has begun almost two decades ago to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment

srijack · April 17, 2009, 10:32am

Not since Galileo suffered the scurvy humor of the Inquisition has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue a theory.
(A) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(B) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(C) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(D) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(E) has a religious organization so effectively curbed whether a major scientist had the ability that he could be pursuing 4.
EXP:
here so .. that is correct idiom to use.
so, eliminate , B,C.
D is lengthy and confusing.
now left with A,B
IM eliminating B , using DID is conveying someting that is already conveyed by 'CURB'. using verb again.

So my ANS is A.
A recent New York Times editorial criticized the citys election board for, first of all, failing to replace outmoded voting machines prone to breakdowns, and secondarily, for their failure to investigate allegations of corruption involving board members.
(A) secondarily, for their failure to
(B) secondly, for their failure to
(C) secondly, that they failed and did not
(D) second, that they failed to
(E) second, for failing to
EXP:
subject verb agreement is wrong in A,B,C,D use of 'their' for board.
So only E ans

ANS : E
More than ever paper is expected to be recycled this year, due to new mandatory recycling laws in municipalities across the nation.
(A) More than ever, paper is expected to be recycled this year
(B) It is expected that more paper than ever will be recycled this year than previously and that is
(C) The paper expected to be recycled this year is more than ever
(D) The amount of paper that will be recycled this year is expected to be greater than ever
(E) A great increase in the amount of paper that will be recycled this year is
EXP :
the subject is amount/quantity of the paper.
So,Eliminate A,C.
In B than previously is redundant.
In E . wrong usage of tenses. the increase is expected in future not already seen.

My ANS : D

An attempt to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago, has been unsuccessful despite efforts by many important groups, including the National Organization for Women.
(A) to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago,
(B) begun almost two decades ago, for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment
(C) begun for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment almost two decades ago
(D) at ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago,
(E) that has begun almost two decades ago to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment

EXP :
Attempt to is correct idiom.
Eliminate B,C,D
Left with A, E
E connects the sentence using 'THAT'
else sentence has hanging phrases.

Ans : E

What say guys?

saurav_chat1234 · April 17, 2009, 12:10pm

Not since Galileo suffered the "scurvy humor" of the Inquisition has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue a theory.
(A) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(B) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(C) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(D) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(E) has a religious organization so effectively curbed whether a major scientist had the ability that he could be pursuing 4.
EXP:
here so .. that is correct idiom to use.
so, eliminate , B,C.
D is lengthy and confusing.
now left with A,B
IM eliminating B , using DID is conveying someting that is already conveyed by 'CURB'. using verb again.

So my ANS is A.
the usage of since calls for usage of present perfect ..hence has curbed is better than did ..B n D out ...E has many errors ( am not going into the details ) ...ability to is the correct idiom ..C it is

saurav_chat1234 · April 17, 2009, 12:13pm

A recent New York Times editorial criticized the citys election board for, first of all, failing to replace outmoded voting machines prone to breakdowns, and secondarily, for their failure to investigate allegations of corruption involving board members.
(A) secondarily, for their failure to
(B) secondly, for their failure to
(C) secondly, that they failed and did not
(D) second, that they failed to
(E) second, for failing to
EXP:
subject verb agreement is wrong in A,B,C,D use of 'their' for board.
So only E ans

ANS : E
I agree.... E maintains parallelism also

saurav_chat1234 · April 17, 2009, 12:22pm

More than ever paper is expected to be recycled this year, due to new mandatory recycling laws in municipalities across the nation.
(A) More than ever, paper is expected to be recycled this year
(B) It is expected that more paper than ever will be recycled this year than previously and that is
(C) The paper expected to be recycled this year is more than ever
(D) The amount of paper that will be recycled this year is expected to be greater than ever
(E) A great increase in the amount of paper that will be recycled this year is
EXP :
the subject is amount/quantity of the paper.
So,Eliminate A,C.
In B than previously is redundant.
In E . wrong usage of tenses. the increase is expected in future not already seen.

My ANS : D

What say guys?

I concur ..lots of mistakes in the other options

saurav_chat1234 · April 17, 2009, 12:30pm

An attempt to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago, has been unsuccessful despite efforts by many important groups, including the National Organization for Women.
(A) to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago,
(B) begun almost two decades ago, for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment
(C) begun for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment almost two decades ago
(D) at ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago,
(E) that has begun almost two decades ago to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment

EXP :
Attempt to is correct idiom.
Eliminate B,C,D
Left with A, E
E connects the sentence using 'THAT'
else sentence has hanging phrases.

Ans : E

What say guys?

Even though A looks best here i wil go on to say that all the options seem wrong to me ...in A it seems begun almost two decades ago, is modifying
Equal Rights Amendment whereas it should modify " an attempt to ..."...

@ srijack ..E is wrong coz the usage of that has begun gives the impression that the attempt is still on ( its still continuing ) ..it puts has begun n has been unsuccessful in the same time frame ..

vikas130678 · April 17, 2009, 2:53pm

Not since Galileo suffered the scurvy humor of the Inquisition has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue a theory.
(A) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(B) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(C) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(D) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(E) has a religious organization so effectively curbed whether a major scientist had the ability that he could be pursuing 4.

I initially feel tough to crack this , but when I realized its a case of misplaced subject and verb-things get clear.

In this sentence the real subject is a relegious organisation , so use of has is right. So...that is right is the right idiom to show the extent of effectiveness.

A recent New York Times editorial criticized the citys election board for, first of all, failing to replace outmoded voting machines prone to breakdowns, and secondarily, for their failure to investigate allegations of corruption involving board members.
(A) secondarily, for their failure to
(B) secondly, for their failure to
(C) secondly, that they failed and did not
(D) second, that they failed to
(E) second, for failing to

E.secondly or secondarily means in other place or of second importance.
More than ever paper is expected to be recycled this year, due to new mandatory recycling laws in municipalities across the nation.
(A) More than ever, paper is expected to be recycled this year
(B) It is expected that more paper than ever will be recycled this year than previously and that is
(C) The paper expected to be recycled this year is more than ever
(D) The amount of paper that will be recycled this year is expected to be greater than ever
(E) A great increase in the amount of paper that will be recycled this year is

The quantities are compared and not the subject Noun. D is the only answer .E is wordy bcoz of-A great increase

An attempt to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago, has been unsuccessful despite efforts by many important groups, including the National Organization for Women.
(A) to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago,
(B) begun almost two decades ago, for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment
(C) begun for ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment almost two decades ago
(D) at ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment, begun almost two decades ago,
(E) that has begun almost two decades ago to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment
The question is talking about the attempt to ratify equal rights has been unsuccesful.Though the sandwitched phrase seems to modify the amendments but in the sentence context it is indeed modifying attempt.
So A.

Regards
Vikas.

Saurav:Plz reply to my earlier query posted to u.

saurav_chat1234 · April 17, 2009, 3:53pm

Yes Saurabh ,Answer is right and the reasonig is also precise.However , I will like to post my query here-
In this question , The moment I see IF , my views were of a conditional sentence, so I straight away removed all choices starting with IF as no choice was in line with the conditional sentence structure (I may not be right!!!!).I also used the reason between X and Y and hit the answer as E.So tell me whats wrong in the approach.
After giving a second thought , D sounds better to me but still I will like to know the prob with my approach.

its a conditional only vikas ..its not necessary that the word "then " be explicitly stated after the if clause in the conditional ..sometimes it is implied ...otherwise what do u think was the reason for choosing present tense over the other tenses ..yes u guessed it right

..its coz "connection between eating and excelling at sports is" is in present tense ..n u know that in a conditional the tense of the if clause and the then clause should be the same

srijack · April 17, 2009, 6:27pm

Not since Galileo suffered the "scurvy humor" of the Inquisition has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue a theory.
(A) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(B) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist that he could pursue
(C) has a religious organization so effectively curbed the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(D) did a religious organization so effectively curb the ability of a major scientist to pursue
(E) has a religious organization so effectively curbed whether a major scientist had the ability that he could be pursuing

Hi saurav

Vikas and I chose A for so.. that idom
i donno if we have to look for 'ability to' in this sentence.

Here is my exp why A wins over C

'ability to' persue is conveyed by the usage of..
' he could persue' and idiom 'so .. that' is not used properly in C.

what say.?

vikas130678 · April 18, 2009, 4:57am

Can anyone explain about the indicative form of verb?

Regards

Vikas

vikas130678 · April 18, 2009, 5:00am

One more-

When the technique known as gene-splicing was invented in the early 1970's, it was feared that scientists might inadvertently create an "Andromeda strain," a microbe never before seen on Earth that might escape from the laboratory and it would kill vast numbers of humans who would have no natural defenses against it.

(A) it would kill vast numbers of humans who would have no natural defenses against it
(B) it might kill vast numbers of humans with no natural defenses against it
(C) kill vast numbers of humans who would have no natural defenses against it
(D) kill vast numbers of humans who have no natural defenses against them
(E) kill vast numbers of humans with no natural defenses against them
153.

Plz also clear the usage of might and would?

saurav_chat1234 · April 18, 2009, 7:54am

One more-
When the technique known as gene-splicing was invented in the early 1970's, it was feared that scientists might inadvertently create an "Andromeda strain," a microbe never before seen on Earth that might escape from the laboratory and it would kill vast numbers of humans who would have no natural defenses against it.
(A) it would kill vast numbers of humans who would have no natural defenses against it
(B) it might kill vast numbers of humans with no natural defenses against it
(C) kill vast numbers of humans who would have no natural defenses against it
(D) kill vast numbers of humans who have no natural defenses against them
(E) kill vast numbers of humans with no natural defenses against them
153.
Plz also clear the usage of might and would?

C ...might escape and kill should be parallel

D and E are incoorect coz microbe is singular so it shud be used rather than them .

vikas bhai ..my VA is not that good so cant clearly expalin the usage of might and would

sachinanand · April 18, 2009, 9:16am

hiii need sum help
actually i hve just started wid my GMAT prep 1 week back.. started wid SC frm KAPLAN PREMIER PROGRAM...Bt d thng is i m nt very much comfortable wid it..keep doing mistakes & cnt get my concepts right.actualy m nt able to build on any concepts as such...so wat shld i do??? should i work wid KAPLAN verbal workbook or switching to MANHATTAN SC would b a guud option..
Pls suggest me hw shld i go bout it ......
thanks

vikas.mogle · April 18, 2009, 10:11am

One more-

When the technique known as gene-splicing was invented in the early 1970's, it was feared that scientists might inadvertently create an "Andromeda strain," a microbe never before seen on Earth that might escape from the laboratory and it would kill vast numbers of humans who would have no natural defenses against it.

(A) it would kill vast numbers of humans who would have no natural defenses against it
(B) it might kill vast numbers of humans with no natural defenses against it
(C) kill vast numbers of humans who would have no natural defenses against it
(D) kill vast numbers of humans who have no natural defenses against them
(E) kill vast numbers of humans with no natural defenses against them
153.

Plz also clear the usage of might and would?

C looks good.

D and E are out, since 'a microbe' is singular.

No need to have 'it'. It'll cause sentence fragment. 'might escape from the laboratory and kill ....' is parallel and clear.

srijack · April 18, 2009, 12:44pm

HI

this is soemthing new i learnt today

thanks saurav,vikas

'might' need not have to repeat in parallel phrase.

rgds-
sri

srijack · April 18, 2009, 12:59pm

@sachinanad...
its better to complete OG 10 & 11 first. There is so much to learn from those.
You will learn , how to attack and what to look for in a sentence.

ne ways this is my suggestion.

rgds-
sri

vikas.mogle · April 18, 2009, 3:41pm

HI

this is soemthing new i learnt today

thanks saurav,vikas

'might' need not have to repeat in parallel phrase.

rgds-
sri

You to have look at the sentence in entirety. Meaning has to be clear. Might is used first time to convey possibility of an event. i.e. microbe escaping. The second even it result of first, so you if first doesn't happen second is not going to happen anyway. So you don't need might or would twice.

But notice would in the last clause. You are talking hypothetical situation, outcome of which is not known at the moment, so you need would here.

vikas130678 · April 18, 2009, 6:46pm

While depressed property values can hurt some large investors, they are potentially devastating for home-owners. whose equity--in many cases representing a life's savings--can plunge or even disappear.

(A) they are potentially devastating for homeowners, whose
(B) they can potentially devastate homeowners in that their
(C) for homeowners they are potentially devastating, because their
(D) for homeowners, it is potentially devastating in that their
(E) it can potentially devastate homeowners, whose

saurav_chat1234 · April 18, 2009, 8:13pm

While depressed property values can hurt some large investors, they are potentially devastating for home-owners. whose equity--in many cases representing a life's savings--can plunge or even disappear.

(A) they are potentially devastating for homeowners, whose
(B) they can potentially devastate homeowners in that their
(C) for homeowners they are potentially devastating, because their
(D) for homeowners, it is potentially devastating in that their
(E) it can potentially devastate homeowners, whose

can and potentially together make the other redundant ..so B n E out..
subject is plural so it in D n E are wrong ...
C is wrong coz of the misplaced they...A wins

ramviswa · April 19, 2009, 4:59am

I have got some doubts on the following SCs. Please post your answer with explanation

Galls hypothesis of there being different mental functions localized in different parts of the brain is widely accepted today.

(A) of there being different mental functions localized in different parts of the brain is widely accepted today
(B) of different mental functions that are localized in different parts of the brain is widely accepted today
(C) that different mental functions are localized in different parts of the brain is widely accepted today
(D) which is that there are different mental functions localized in different parts of the brain is widely accepted today
(E) which is widely accepted today is that there are different mental functions localized in different parts of the brain

In 1978 only half the women granted child support by a court received the amount awarded; at least as much as a million and more others had not any support agreements whatsoever.
(A) at least as much as a million and more others had not any
(B) at least as much as more than a million others had no
(C) more than a million others had not any
(D) more than a million others had no
(E) there was at least a million or more others without any

In 1990s, there are more babies born by women over thirty years old than under it.
(A) than under it
(B) than were they under it
(C) than had been under it
(D) than were the babies
(E) than those were under it

In 1933 the rubber, clothing, and shipbuilding industries put into effect a six-hour workday, believing it a seeming permanent accommodation rather than a temporary expedient for what many observers thought was an economy made overproductive by advances in technology.
(A) believing it a seeming permanent accommodation rather than a temporary expedient for what many observers thought was
(B) believing it a seeming permanent accommodation instead of a temporary expedient for what many observers thought was
(C) believing that it was not a temporary expedient but a seeming permanent accommodation to what many observers thought of as a
(D) not as a temporary expedient but as a seemingly permanent accommodation to what many observers thought was
(E) not as a temporary expedient but believing it a seemingly permanent accommodation for what many observers thought

If additional deposits of oil are found, it will expand the amount that can be used as fuel and reduce the price of oil, even if the deposits are not immediately tapped.

(A) it will expand the amount that can be used as fuel and reduce the price of oil
(B) the amount that is able to be used as fuel will expand and the price of oil be reduced
(C) it will cause an increase in the amount that is able to be used as fuel and a reduction in the price of oil
(D) the amount that can be used as fuel will increase and the price of oil will drop
(E) it will increase the amount of oil that can be used as fuel and cause a drop in the price

Apologies for the delayed response:

1. C
2. D
3. E
4. C
5. D