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Great Plains - modifier question

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Great Plains - modifier question [#permalink] New post 12 Jul 2007, 10:03
On the Great Plains, nineteenth-century settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making do without timber and nails.

Make do = to manage with the current rousrces at hand



My question is what type of phrase is making do without timber and nails? What is it modifying? It seems like a dangling modifier and those are always wrong on the GMAT test.
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 [#permalink] New post 13 Jul 2007, 04:06
Same concept here.....anyone care to elaborate?

A new influx of private investment should create a bright new future for manned space exploration, making the possibility of commercial space tourism a much more viable than it was 10 years ago.
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On modifier [#permalink] New post 13 Jul 2007, 04:45
I hope this helps.I think it is right because it properly modifies what the settlers did.
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 [#permalink] New post 13 Jul 2007, 13:11
It is not always necessary that the participles modify the noun just before them...They can modify the whole previous clause by modifying a noun in that clause.

In the two examples above :
making modifies settlers
and creating modifies a new influx
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Re: Great Plains - modifier question [#permalink] New post 23 Sep 2007, 08:18
bmwhype2 wrote:
On the Great Plains, nineteenth-century settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making do without timber and nails.

Make do = to manage with the current rousrces at hand



My question is what type of phrase is making do without timber and nails? What is it modifying? It seems like a dangling modifier and those are always wrong on the GMAT test.


Wanted to pick these up again. I believe the highlighted part is a participial modifying settlers. Initially it looked like an absolute construction but then I thought Making Do clearly points to settlers and hence participial.
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 [#permalink] New post 23 Sep 2007, 08:19
bmwhype2 wrote:
Same concept here.....anyone care to elaborate?

A new influx of private investment should create a bright new future for manned space exploration, making the possibility of commercial space tourism a much more viable than it was 10 years ago.


Making the possiblity points to influx and hence participial.
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 [#permalink] New post 23 Sep 2007, 11:53
Here some additional thoughts:

http://www.gmatclub.com/forum/t52478
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 [#permalink] New post 23 Sep 2007, 12:48
Quote:
A new influx of private investment should create a bright new future for manned space exploration, making the possibility of commercial space tourism a much more viable than it was 10 years ago.



When a modifying phrase modifies an action and not a noun, the first verb in the modifier changes to the <ing> form and 'which' is removed.

(MGMAT SC BOOK, page 78)

Example.

The police found the murder weapon, which made the prosecutor's job much easier. - (incorrect)

As in above sentence, when a modifier beings with 'which', it modifies the noun it touches; in this case 'murder weapon'.

To correct this problem, just change the verb starting the modifier to its <ing> form as done above; 'which made' changed to 'making'.

The police found the murder weapon, making the prosecutor's job much easier. - (Correct)

This makes it clear that the modifier is modifying the action of finding the murder weapon.


Does this clear it up for you?
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 [#permalink] New post 23 Sep 2007, 12:58
Quote:
On the Great Plains, nineteenth-century settlers used mud and grass to build their homes, making do without timber and nails.


IMO This sentence is slightly different from the other one. There is a thread on which this type of sentence is being discussed.

http://www.gmatclub.com/forum/t52338
  [#permalink] 23 Sep 2007, 12:58
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