An interesting fact about the human ear is that in the cochlea, hair cells are placed close to each other,
moving in unison and assuming distinct cell shapes independent of one another.
A. moving in unison and assuming
B. they move in unison while assuming
C. move in unison, and assume
D. moving in unison yet assuming
E. even though they move in unison and assume
This is a simulated version of the GMAT Prep question, given below; the Industry seems to thrive on such imitations.
A peculiar feature of the embryonic mammalian circulatory system is that in the area of the heart the cells adhere to one another, beating in unison and adopting specialized orientations exclusive of one another.
(A) beating in unison and adopting
(B) they beat in unison while adopting
(C) beat in unison, and adopt
(D) beating in unison yet adopting
(E) even though they beat in unison and adopt
However, in the heart beat case, the heart cells beating in unison is an effect of the adherence to one another, because when they adhere, they can't escape unified action. However in the ear cells case, being placed close to one another does not have to necessarily end in moving in unison. So, the use of the adverbial modifier 'moving' is suspect
This is a sly pitfall that the author of the look-alike version has missed