High-frequency blue light, emitted by computer or phone screens, is

Question

High-frequency blue light,  emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause problems with sleep due to its impact on  circadian rhythm, the body’s internal twenty-four-hour clock.

(A) emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause problems with sleep due to its impact on
(B) such as computer or phone screens emit, is known to cause sleeping problems due to impacting
(C) such as that emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause sleeping problems because of its impact on
(D) like computer or phone screens emit, is known to cause sleeping problems, with its impact on
(E) like that emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause problems with sleep because of its impacting

Source: Self-made question

systemsav · Answer

In my opinion, the answer should be  C .

Method: 
First considerations- the phrase between two commas must be an independent or accessory phrase. Thus, there should be no dependency on the first phrase (High-frequency blue light).  Rules out Option A .

Between like and such as - 'like' is used to compare nouns, 'such as' is used to compare phrases. 'Such as' has to be preferred here. But I wasn't 100% sure, so I looked for other clues.
Clue #1: Parallelism. Options B and D compare light to computers.  Eliminate B and D .
Clue #2: Awkward construction and meaning. Option E has wordy construction - 'problems with sleep' instead of sleep problems. Also, 'because of its impacting circadian rhythm' makes no sense.  Eliminate E.

Remaining option  C . Fits perfectly with the independent clause, use of 'such as', parallelism, construction, and meaning.

AndrewN · Answer

Hello, everyone. It is interesting that as of the reveal, the question has been answered correctly exactly half the time.

Attachment:

Screen Shot 2021-07-27 at 15.04.49.png [ 25.86 KiB | Viewed 4245 times ]

This is a question I wrote up last year ahead of the 12 Days of Christmas Challenge, but I abandoned it in the end, thinking it was too one-note, perhaps not challenging enough. But what do I know? How about we get into specifics to unlock all the question has to offer?

AndrewN

High-frequency blue light, emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause problems with sleep due to its impact on circadian rhythm, the body’s internal twenty-four-hour clock.

(A) emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause problems with sleep due to its impact on

I like the analysis above by systemsav, but on this emitted phrase, we do not see eye to eye. It is perfectly acceptable to drop in a phrase to interrupt the main clause, as long as that phrase is placed in a logically consistent manner. Could high-frequency blue light be emitted by certain screens? Sure. Does that information have to be restrictive in nature—i.e. without commas? No. Maybe the writer has placed it in the sentence as an afterthought, rather than to convey that blue light from these specific devices causes certain problems. So, what is the real issue with the original sentence? It is the usage of due to when because of is more appropriate. This is a split that I was uncertain of when I first came across it on the GMAT™, so I thought I would drum up a question with the very same topic at the heart of it. You can read all about the split in this wonderful e-GMAT post, but in short:

Use due to to modify a noun only
Use because of to modify a verb or to explain an entire clause

In this sentence, the idea is to clarify why blue light interferes with sleep, and that is more than a mere noun. Hence, due to is incorrect, and the original sentence is as well.

Quote:

(B) such as computer or phone screens emit, is known to cause sleeping problems due to impacting

You will notice, first off, that due to is preserved here. If you saw through it before, you can dismiss this answer choice on the same grounds. Apart from this issue, remember that the GMAT™ is strict about comparisons: make sure that like is being compared with like. The usage of such as indicates that we are about to get an example, and since nothing besides high-frequency blue light has been mentioned up to this point in the sentence, it must be this light that serves as the example: high-frequency blue light, such as computer or phone screens provides a skewed comparison. Light should go with light, and you should not have to rely on an ellipsis—i.e. such as [the light] computer or phone screens emit—to shore up a comparison. Finally, the gerund impacting is improperly used within the context of the sentence. If you replace due to with caused by, you get a nonsensical phrase: is known to cause sleeping problems caused by impacting circadian rhythm. You expect the agent that is causing the problems to follow due to, not a further explanation in the form of a noun phrase. This answer choice has several issues working against it and should be easy to toss aside.

Quote:

(C) such as that emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause sleeping problems because of its impact on

Notice how all of our concerns from above have been addressed here. First, light is compared to light, with that standing in for a generic noun such as the light. You might not like the passive construct over the earlier, more active iteration, but the words light and emit (in whichever forms the words may appear) ought to appear as close together as possible to avoid confusion, and a passive construct achieves that. Next, the unwieldy due to has been replaced by because of for the reason explained above. Then, to have an impact on something is perfectly idiomatic, so no problems there. If you noticed that problems with sleep from the original sentence had morphed into sleeping problems in both (B) and this answer choice, it is what I call red herring split. There are times when a longer version may be preferred, and there are others in which a shorter version may be preferred. The clear communication of vital expression is what helps us dictate when to choose what, and in this case, I see the two as a nonissue. In short, keep this one in the running while you check other options. Only eliminate an answer choice if you are certain some part of it is incorrect.

Quote:

(D) like computer or phone screens emit, is known to cause sleeping problems, with its impact on

First off, the out-and-out wrong part is the same as the comparison error discussed in (B). I have highlighted like to draw attention to the like versus such as split, but you are not expected to know whether the screens of computers or phones emit blue light or some other light, so that brings us to another teaching point:

Use like to suggest that something is similar to something else
Use such as to provide a direct example of what is under discussion

Again, in this sentence, it is conceivable that the author means to say that computer or phone screens emit light similar to high-frequency blue light. But it is probably a safer bet to think that the author means to draw on a specific example, since the topic is already narrow and specialized. Lastly, I have also chosen to highlight the latter part of the answer choice because, while a prepositional phrase might not be incorrect necessarily, this particular one does not do a great job clearly modifying anything. When we look at the tail-end of (C) in comparison, we just want to move away from the confusion this one causes. Why sort something out when we have a reasonable alternative in place?

Quote:

(E) like that emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause problems with sleep because of its impacting

Notice the same like as before. Again, I might mark it as a doubt, but I would not get rid of (E) based on this consideration alone. However, the same cannot be said for its impacting. If you replace its with its logical referent, you get, light... is known to cause problems with sleep because of light's impacting. The possessive is completely unwarranted, and besides, impacting is just as awful as it was in (B). I would not spend too much time here.

There you have it. There are a couple good talking points, I think. Just keep in mind that not every split is a decisive one, and also remember to play it safe: do not be too quick to eliminate when you are unsure. Just count doubts if need be. (I do it all the time on harder, more nuanced questions.) The answer that is the hardest to argue against, the one with the fewest marks against it, is the one you should choose.

Good luck with your studies.

- Andrew

Crytiocanalyst · Answer

(A) emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause problems with sleep due to its impact on
The comparison between therays isn't clearly portrayed ,, bouncing off the right reasoning circle therefore out

(B) such as computer or phone screens emit, is known to cause sleeping problems due to impacting
that addition is required for the intended meaning , moreover the 'impacting' isn't the right usage therefore out

(C) such as that emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause sleeping problems because of its impact on
Even though wordy the meaning and comparison is perfect therefore let us hang on to it

(D) like computer or phone screens emit, is known to cause sleeping problems, with its impact on
like isn't right usage since the comparison shoould be between the rays emitted from the screens and the blue rays which might not be clearly indicated through like , in addition 'its' usage might refer back to sleep which is not the case , since the blue rays are creating the trouble and not sleep itself meaning error therefore out

(E) like that emitted by computer or phone screens, is known to cause problems with sleep because of its impacting
Similar reasoning as D

Therefore IMO C

VerbalBot · Answer

Hello from the GMAT Club VerbalBot!

Thanks to another GMAT Club member, I have just discovered this valuable topic, yet it had no discussion for over a year. I am now bumping it up - doing my job. I think you may find it valuable (esp those replies with Kudos).

Want to see all other topics I dig out? Follow me (click follow button on profile). You will receive a summary of all topics I bump in your profile area as well as via email.

High-frequency blue light, emitted by computer or phone screens, is

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards

GMAT Sentence Correction (SC - EA only) Questions

High-frequency blue light, emitted by computer or phone screens, is

Prep Toolkit

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards