Astronomers have determined that at least one asteroid weighing about

Question

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Astronomers have determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits the planet about once every 1,200 years.
A. determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits - Use of "Likely" indicating probability with Simple present tense is incorrect as Present tense to is used to indicate Truth, Fact etc (No uncertainty)

B. determined that one asteroid that weighs at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one hits - CORRECT

C. determined that one asteroid weighing at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and one is likely to hit- Use of AND breaks the flow & creates the confusion

D. determination of at least one asteroid that weighs about 130,000 metric tons, flies very close to Earth about every 40 years, and it likely hits - Use of Noun "DETERMINATION" is incorrect.

E. determination of at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons, flying very close to Earth about every 40 years, and hitting - Use of Noun "DETERMINATION" is incorrect.

So the answer has to be B. BTW options A, B, & C are close in meaning.

Hope it helps

Fame

fameatop · Answer

Astronomers have  determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits  the planet about once every 1,200 years.
A. determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one  likely   hits  -  Use of "Likely" indicating probability with Simple present tense is incorrect as Present tense to is used to indicate Truth, Fact etc (No uncertainty)

B. determined that one asteroid that weighs at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one hits -   CORRECT

C. determined that one asteroid weighing at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years  and  one is likely to hit-  Use of AND breaks the flow & creates the confusion

D.  determination  of at least one asteroid that weighs about 130,000 metric tons, flies very close to Earth about every 40 years, and it likely hits -  Use of Noun "DETERMINATION" is incorrect.

E.  determination  of at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons, flying very close to Earth about every 40 years, and hitting -  Use of Noun "DETERMINATION" is incorrect.

So the answer has to be B. BTW options A, B, & C are close in meaning.

Hope it helps

Fame

nm01 · Answer

+1 A

A - Correct 
B - incorrect placement of 'at least' - original meaning of the sentence is changed
C - Same as above
D - use of 'have determination of' not correct
E - use of 'have determination of' not correct

ratinarace · Answer

B for me too...

A. determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits.... I think it should rather be saying "and that one of those likely hits" the use of one is ambigious here

B. determined that one asteroid that weighs at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one hits  here we rightly talk about a single asteroid that weighs 130000mt, this has an entirely different meaning but is clear

C. determined that one asteroid weighing at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and one is likely to hit.  here its seems like we are talking about an asteroid that just happens to weigh 130000...which one hits every 1200 year?? is not clear...

D. determination of at least one asteroid that weighs about 130,000 metric tons, flies very close to Earth about every 40 years, and it likely hits  determination is noun

E. determination of at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons, flying very close to Earth about every 40 years, and hitting determination is noun

Official answer and official explanation will be posted after some discussion. In the meanwhile, post your detailed analysis and earn Kudos from e-gmat experts.

Darmody · Answer

B and C both change the meaning of the sentence into an illogical one. It seems that the same asteroids flies very close to the earth every 40 years and also crashes one every 1200 years. Not logical. D and E have very awkward and wrong structure (have determination?) also the parallelism between "weighting" "flying" and "hitting" does not make sense as these verbs are not logically parallel

Dinesh2Apr · Answer

Meaning :- Astronomers have determined 2 things
a. atleast 1 asteroid which weighs 130,000 mt flies close to the earth every 40 years
b. 1 asteroid hits the earth once every 1200 years

POE :-
Option A :- Correct
Option B :- change of meaning, this states that there is only 1 asteroid that flies vey close to earth every 40 years
Option C :- same as B
Option D :- 'determination of' is not correct. Also the list of verbs are not connected in a correct manner.
Option E :- 'determination of' is not correct.

IMO :- A

Archit143 · Answer

Following the guidelines for parallelism...all options except A and B are out as clauses when to be made parallel preferably must have the same word at start of the clause.
Moreover, i think there is no issue with the original sentence "likely" is an aadverb and hence must be used to modify a verb ie..hits hence is correctly used....

So i vote for A.

Archit

Archit143 · Answer

I do not think B is the correct answer because uses "determined that one asteroid that weigh" now consider the construction used in A "determined that at least one asteroid weighing'...A presents in more clear and concise manner.

Archit

aditya111 · Answer

Astronomers have determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits the planet about once every 1,200 years.
Errors to focus on:
i. verb must be used to describe action( in this case determined must be used to describe action done by Astronomers, not the noun-determination)
ii. parallelism issue, parallel marker- 'and' (rule- clauses joined with parallelism markers must start with the same word - in this case - that ... and ... that must be the structure)

case i rules out options D,E
case ii rules out option C
We are left with A and B as possible contenders.

A. determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits
I find not one but two possible issues with this sentence
a. the use of 'at least' should have modified the weight of asteroid instead of the number of asteroids. Because in the second part of the phrase the use of 'one' would be incorrect if the number is more than just one.
b. 'likely' introduces possibility whereas the word 'determined' is too strong a word to term it as possibility

B. determined that one asteroid that weighs at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one hits
As this sentence satisfies the above raised issues, this is the correct option
C. determined that one asteroid weighing at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and one is likely to hit
Parallelism issue- that is missing in the second clause-
D. determination of at least one asteroid that weighs about 130,000 metric tons, flies very close to Earth about every 40 years, and it likely hits
use of noun is wrong as discussed in case i
E. determination of at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons, flying very close to Earth about every 40 years, and hitting
use of noun is wrong as discussed in case i

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Thedevils88 · Answer

I chose B because when I read it as 'astronomers have determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons likely hits the earth...' it sounds strange. As "fameatop" pointed out the future meaning of 'likely', I believe that it should be written as 'is likely to hit' or 'will likely to hit' rather than 'likely hits'.

ankitD · Answer

"A" should be the correct answer as it is has proper sentence construction.

All the other options have some flaw or the other. For eg. "determination" is not required in the sentence.

Thanks

AvgIndianGuy · Answer

A should be correct ...since in be it says "and that one hits" whereas in original sentence it says its likely that it wil hit .

Rock750 · Answer

I vote also for A : same reasons above Waiting for the OA

tissime · Answer

IMO the answer is B.

I agree that B changes the meaning but in A the last part is really awkward...

I'm waiting for the OA.

eski · Answer

Here is my part of the gyan

Step1 Meaning : X have determined that Y and that Z X(Astronomers) have determined that Y(at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years) and that Z(one likely hits the planet about once every 1,200 years). Step 2: 1. X .... action that was in past and cont in present have determined is right here can eliminate D and E 2. make Y and Z parallel . A . that A(at least one....) and that B(one likely) ...... not parallel B. that A(one ...) and that B(one .....) ........... parallel C. that A(one ...) and B(one...) ........ not parallel . Step 3: read the whole sentence and try to make sense. Step 4: click and move , think abt the next question. my OA B BTW , this fantastic question teaches one thing .... if the original meaning is distorted in the ans , dont flow with the meaning , flow with the grammar . A. determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits B. determined that one asteroid that weighs at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one hits C. determined that one asteroid weighing at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and one is likely to hit D. determination of at least one asteroid that weighs about 130,000 metric tons, flies very close to Earth about every 40 years, and it likely hits E. determination of at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons, flying very close to Earth about every 40 years, and hitting

novam · Answer

Astronomers have  determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits  the planet   about once   every 1,200 years.

A. determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one  likely hits

B. determined that one asteroid that weighs at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one hits

C. determined that one asteroid weighing at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and one is likely to hit

D.  determination  of at least one asteroid that weighs about 130,000 metric tons, flies very close to Earth about every 40 years, and it likely hits

E.  determination  of at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons, flying very close to Earth about every 40 years, and hitting

Correct me if I am wrong.

neerajeai · Answer

I will go with B- the only statement that is parallel (best match- though it changes the meaning slightly).

OA Please?

regards,
N

monsoon1 · Answer

IMO A .
The sentence presents a fact or a result of some experiment by the Scientists.

Here, the Scientists have determined 2 things:
1) atleast one asteroid (that weighs about 130,000 metric tons-> modifies an asteroid) flies very close to Earth about every 40 years
2) one asteroid probably (not surely though) hits the planet about once in every 1,200 years

I don't see any error in the sentence and the meaning conveyed looks fine.

B) was a strong contender of A)

However, it was easy to reject B) on the basis of meaning.
B) determined that one asteroid that weighs at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that   one hits    ( Scientists mean to say that one astroid   possibly   hits the earth once in every 1200 years)

I think B) might be incorrect, because the first part of the sentence in B) puts an emphasis on the weight of the asteroid. However i feel the emphasis should be on the fact that   atleast one asteroid   (or more than one)   travels closely   to the earth ( and doesn't hit)   once in every 40 years   and that   one asteroid   possibly   hits   the earth   once in every 1200 years   .

Good Question!

Awaiting Official Response....

egmat · Answer

Thanks everyone for their overwhelming participation in this question. Sorry about the delay in posting the solution. Here it comes:

Astronomers have determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits the planet about once every 1,200 years.

• Astronomers have determined
• that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years
• and that one likely hits the planet about once every 1,200 years.

Astronomers have determined two things:
a. at least one asteroid that weighs about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth.
b. one such asteroid likely hits Earth about once every 1,200.

Error Analysis

• Astronomers have determined
• that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years
• and that one likely hits the planet about once every 1,200 years.

1. All the SV pairs in the sentence are accounted for.
2. All the verbs are correctly written in present tense.
3. Verb-ing modifier “weighing” correctly modifies “asteroid”. Other modifiers also modify the correct entities.
4. The list is parallel and conveys logical meaning.
5. This sentence has no errors.

PoE

A. determined that at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one likely hits: Correct Answer

B. determined that one asteroid that weighs at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and that one hits: Incorrect.

Error 1 – Change in placement of “at least” changes the meaning of the sentence. Per the original sentence, at least one asteroid i.e. one or more asteroids that weigh 130,000 metrics tons fly very close to Earth. “at least” describes the quantity of “asteroids”. However, per this choice, one asteroid that weighs at least 130,000 metrics tons i.e. greater than or equal to 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth. Here “at least” describes the weight.
Error 2 – The word “likely” is missing in choice. Thus this choice turns the possibility of an asteroid hitting Earth in 1,200 years into a certainty.

C. determined that one asteroid weighing at least about 130,000 metric tons flies very close to Earth about every 40 years and one is likely to hit: Incorrect.

Error 1 – Same change of meaning error as in choice B because of placement of “at least”.
Error 2 – “that” should be repeated before “one” also to make the entities in the list obvious to avoid any ambiguity.

D. determination of at least one asteroid that weighs about 130,000 metric tons, flies very close to Earth about every 40 years, and it likely hits: Incorrect.

Error 1 - “Scientists have determination” is not the same thing as “Scientists have determined”. This expression changes the meaning of the sentence.
Error 2 – Per this choice, the parallel entities are not as intended. As such the two things that scientists determined formed the parallel list. The weight part of information was just the description of the asteroids. In this choice, the weight information has been made parallel to the “fly” information.
Error 3 – Construction of this choice is incorrect. Either the connection of two verbs – weighs and flies - is not correct or the pronoun “it” is unnecessary since “likely hits” is the third verb in the list.

E. determination of at least one asteroid weighing about 130,000 metric tons, flying very close to Earth about every 40 years, and hitting: Incorrect.
Error 1 – Same “determination” expression error as in Choice D.
Error 2 – Same meaning issue because of illogical unintended parallel list – “weighing”, “flying”, and “hitting”.

1. Watch for the change in the placement of certain words. These changes may lead to change in the intended meaning of the sentence.
2. The entities in the list must be both logically and grammatically parallel.
3. When there is a chance of ambiguity, it helps to repeat the elements that could otherwise be taken common. For example, in this sentence, it makes sense to repeat “that” for the second element as well so that it is clear that there are two things that the scientists determined.

Thanks.

Shraddha

egmat · Answer

Thanks every one for participating in this question/poll.  
 Here are the statistics for this question:

https://e-gmat.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/SC37A_Astronomers_57Per_66.png

Number of responses - 66
57% people answered this question correctly.
The tussle was between choices A and B. There were 34% votes for Choice B. I hope those of you who marked choice B, now know why it is indeed incorrect. The most critical thing that you should have noticed with choice B is that subtle change in placement of "at least" and that subtle omission of the word "likely" - the two commonly used strategies to change the meaning of the sentence. For more information refer to Strategy 1  here and Strategy 5  here .

Regards,

Shraddha

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