If you're asking whether it's possible that "which" violates the touch rule in this question the same way it violates the touch rule in the Emily Dickinson question, the answer is sure. The touch rule isn't absolute, and when it's violated, there tends to be another modifier in between "which" and the noun it refers to. So I wouldn't be comfortable eliminating A,B,C solely on the grounds that "which" doesn't touch "photographs." All of those options have more concrete errors.

That said, there are some differences that could be clarifying. Here's the relevant clause from the OA in the Emily Dickinson example: "Emily Dickinson’s letters to Susan Huntington, which were written over a period beginning..." You've already noted that "which" doesn't touch "letters." That really isn't a problem because "which" can't logically refer to Susan Huntington. First, we'd have to use "who" to refer to a person. And the verb associated with "which" is "were," telling us that the antecedent must be plural. The only plural noun "which" could possibly refer to is "letters." So there's no ambiguity. More importantly: all of the other options have definitive mistakes!

In this example, for (A) we have "In July 1965 Mariner IV passed by Mars and took the first-ever close-up photographs of another planet, which showed..." Again, I don't think the usage of "which" is a definitive mistake here, but this example introduces some ambiguity, as there's no grammatical reason that precludes "which" from referring to "planets" instead of "photographs." The use of "photos" in (D) and (E) clears up this ambiguity. So while I wouldn't use the "which" vs. "photos" as a decision point, it's a little different than the Emily Dickinson example, in the sense that there's a superior alternative.

I hope that helps!
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Split: "which" vs "photos"
If you're aware of the comma which rule, you'll notice that "planet, which showed" doesn't make sense. The author's intentional meaning of this sentence is the PHOTOS showed the martian surface etc... A, B, C are out.

D
1 reason - Ask yourself what is "it" referring to - the Martian surface or the Moon's surface? This is ambiguous so I would mark C wrong.
Tip: If you are pressed for time and you need to make a quick decision, memorize MGMAT's deadly 5 pronouns It, Its, They, Them, Their. Choose the answer choice that doesn't have one of these pronouns in it.
2 reason - Answer D also has the word "showing", which makes the sentence a run-on sentence. Read the whole sentence again including the non-underlined portion and you will see the sentence is not complete.


E
1 reason - They added "that showed" which actually makes a whole new clause so the whole sentence sounds complete.
2 reason - Also E shows correct parallel structure: craters like (parallel marker) those on the Moon


A. which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.
B. which showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface, and it was pockmarked by craters like the Moon has
C. which showed the Martian surface as a dry, apparently dead one, which was pockmarked with craters such as the Moon’s
D. photos showing the Martian surface to be like that of the Moon’s, dry and apparently dead, and it was pockmarked by moonlike craters
E. photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon

I choose E as the ans. My reasoning:

A) which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moon like craters and was dry and apparently dead. -

The relative pronoun 'which' modifies the noun 'photographs' which is correct but the problem comes when the clause after 'and' (and was dry and apparently dead) tries to modifies the noun photographs
- Incorrect


B) which showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface, andit was pockmarked by craters like the Moon has. - the highlighted clause tries to modifies the noun photographs which is wrong. Mars's surface is pockmarked not the photographs. - Incorrect

c) which showed the Martian surface as a dry, apparently dead one, which was pockmarked with craters such as the Moon’s - Here, second which tries to modify 'dead one' which is incorrect. Mars's surface is pockmarked not the dead ones. - Incorrect

D) photos showing the Martian surface to be like that of the Moon’s, dry and apparently dead, and it was pockmarked by moonlike craters - It seems that martian surface is not dry and dead rather the photos try to make the planet to look so. - Incorrect

E) photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon - Correct. no errors.

in-july-1965-mariner-iv-passed-by-mars-and-took-the-first-ev-155910.html

In July 1965 Mariner IV passed by Mars and took the first-ever close-up photographs of another planet, which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.

a. which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.
b. which showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface, and it was pockmarked by craters like the Moon has
c. which showed the Martian surface as a dry, apparently dead one, which was pockmarked with craters such as the Moon’s
d. photos showing the Martian surface to be like that of the Moon’s, dry and apparently dead, and it was pockmarked by moonlike craters
e. photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon

Hi Mike,

Can you analyze A ..I want to know all the reasons for which A is incorrect(besides being too wordy or unidiomatic)..like the use of possessive"Moon's and the use of in that..the use of which..though it seems quite logical to say that use of which connects better with the photos than the planet and hence should not be ambiguous.
(Tried to PM you..but it seems u have disabled it now)

Dear JusTLucK04
I'm happy to respond.

I don't believe that (A) violates any idiom rules. It is terribly wordy and indirect. That is, by far, the biggest problem with (A). The use of "which" is perfectly clear --- "of another planet" is a vital noun modifier, so it's perfectly clear that "which" refers to "photographs."
http://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/gmat-gramm ... modifiers/

There is a mistake in the phrase "that of the Moon's" --- it's redundant to use the possessive with "of." It would be correct to say either
". . . was like the Moon’s . . . "
or
". . . was like that of the Moon . . . "
See:
http://magoosh.com/gmat/2013/dropping-c ... -the-gmat/

Finally, the parallelism at the end is not definitely wrong, but it's awkward --- one parallel structure nested inside another
... in that it
// was pockmarked by moonlike craters
and
//was
\\dry
and
\\\apparently dead.
This is a wordy and awkward way to handle the parallelism. The point of parallelism is to introduce clean efficiency into the sentence, and this parallel construction falls short of that goal.

Does all this make sense?
Mike
_________________

In July 1965 Mariner IV passed by Mars and took the first-ever close-up photographs of another planet, which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.

a.which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.
b. which showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface, and it was pockmarked by craters like the Moon has
c. which showed the Martian surface as a dry, apparently dead one, which was pockmarked with craters such as the Moon’s
d. photos showing the Martian surface to be like that of the Moon’s, dry and apparently dead, and it was pockmarked by moonlike craters
e. photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon

Meaning Analysis :
1. M IV took photographs.
2. Photographs showed the details of Martian Surface.
3. Martian Surface is compared to Moon surface with multiple points.

Error in original Sentence.
1. Which - Modifier - As per original sentence photos showed something, but placement of which presents an idea that planet showed us something.
2. Redundancy - Comparison error " Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s" - Martian surface is compared to Moon's surface. But "that of the Moon’s" = Surface of Moon surface - redundant and Hence Incorrect.
3. Comparison Error - " it was pockmarked by moonlike craters" MoonLike craters - Unidiomatic it says Carters are like Moon it should say "Carter similar to carters on moon" (or something similar)

POE.

Option A - Explained Above.

Option B :which showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface, and it was pockmarked by craters like the Moon has - Incorrect
1. Which Modifier Error - Explained Above
2. Pronoun Reference - "it was pockmarked by craters" - Pronoun "It" has potential to refer to planet or MIV satellite.

Option C :which showed the Martian surface as a dry, apparently dead one, which was pockmarked with craters such as the Moon’s - Incorrect

1. Which Modifier Error - Explained Above

2. Use of "AS" ( incorrect )because
As is used to do below tasks
Comparison - Needs clause - "As dry" is not clause
Simultaneous Actions - Not a intended meaning So ruled out
Role - "the Martian surface as a dry" Does not seems to present an role


3. Modifier error (the Martian surface as a dry) - "which was pockmarked with craters such as the Moon’s"
Which is referring to dry one - "Surface" Noun - Should touch noun. So wrong (not sure about my reason)

4. Use of As (with craters such as the Moon’s) - incorrect (can be explained in lines of point 2

Option D :photos showing the Martian surface to be like that of the Moon’s, dry and apparently dead, and it was pockmarked by moonlike craters

1. " like that of the Moon’s "
Redundancy - Comparison error " Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s" - Martian surface is compared to Moon's surface. But "that of the Moon’s" = Surface of Moon surface - redundant and Hence Incorrect.

2. Pronoun Reference "it was pockmarked " - What is antecedent for "it", it can be planet or MIV

Option E :
photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon

1. Photos (Noun) + that showed blah blah (Noun Modifier) - Modifies entire clause of MIV taking photographs ---- Correct
2. "with craters like those on the Moon" - Proper comparison carters on martian surface are compared to those on moon , those correct refers to Plural carters.

Option E correct.


p.s : Bumping -- it may help someone

In July 1965 Mariner IV passed by Mars and took the first-ever close-up photographs of another planet, which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.

a. which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.
b. which showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface, and it was pockmarked by craters like the Moon has.
c. which showed the Martian surface as a dry, apparently dead one, which was pockmarked with craters such as the Moon’s.
d. photos showing the Martian surface to be like that of the Moon’s, dry and apparently dead, and it was pockmarked by moonlike craters
e. photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon.


Doesn't "which" correctly refer to "photographs"?
"Photographs of another planet" = "another planet's photographs"
It's redundant to use which, but it's grammatically correct.
(There was another example on the SC sub-forum recently where "which" correctly follows and modifies "reduction" in "reduction of perks"... so noun modifiers can follow the possessed noun... same idea, right? Here's the link to that question: the-previous-director-has-had-a-very-difficult-time-during-201489.html

In that example, how does one account for the reduction of perks? You don't actively check to see that perks are reduced... the reduction of perks is a consequence of accounting for the perks themselves...I think it makes more sense for "which" to refer to "perks" but others state to the contrary, which is making this question confusing as far as the "which" rule is concerned)

e.g. The car of George, who parked next to the fire hydrant, was towed.
e.g. The car of George, which was parked next to a fire hydrant, was towed.

From the examples above, the correct one depends on what the actual rule is, and we can't allow for both, unless there are exceptions (if so, then what are they?), means that it's ambiguous, thereby "which" must modify the closest noun.

So, there seems to be contradictory rules... I bet I'm just missing something.


(A) is wrong because "those of the Moon's" is redundant ("of" and possessive Moon).
(D) is wrong for the same reason as (A)

(B) is wrong because "it" refers to surface but "it" is structurally referring to photographs


That leaves us with (C) and (E).

(C) "One" refers to surface, followed by "which" (wants to refer to surface). One example of a pockmarked surface (relatively general category) is the moon's surface (specific example of that category).

However, the first "which" modifies "photographs" (assuming it's not ambiguously modifying two nouns...) followed by the second "which" that wants to continue the original thought, referring back to "photographs".

"such as" wants to refer to "surface" and not "crater" to justify its use (general to specific = such as; specific to specific = like = similar in category), but it can refer to either due to its placement. And, "one" is redundant (e.g. a basketball that is a round one), unless its sole purpose is there for the noun modifier "which" to make sense. Then, why not just use "and" to simplify it instead of making it unnecessarily wordy?


(E) The use of "like" is correct because the craters are similar to that of the Moon, as opposed to being an example of a more general pockmarked surface.

However, (E) seems to be two complete thoughts without a connector... as opposed to an absolute clause following a complete thought because "showed" is a finite verb. If this sentence began with "photos showing..." I'd pick this in a heartbeat.


(E) would get my vote - someone please address the two bold points above. Thanks in advance.

In July 1965 Mariner IV passed by Mars and took the first-ever close-up photographs of another planet, which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.

a.which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.
b. which showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface, and it was pockmarked by craters like the Moon has
c. which showed the Martian surface as a dry, apparently dead one, which was pockmarked with craters such as the Moon’s

Which refers to the planet and the planet cannot show anything.

d. photos showing the Martian surface to be like that of the Moon’s, dry and apparently dead, and it was pockmarked by moonlike craters incorrect tense.

e. photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon Correct choice.

In July 1965 Mariner IV passed by Mars and took the first-ever close-up photographs of another planet, which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.

(E) photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon ------------ Correct
"Like is comparing"Martian surface craters to crates on moon. Hence Martian surface pockmarked with craters like "those" on the Moon
Answer (E)...

In July 1965 Mariner IV passed by Mars and took the first-ever close-up photographs of another planet, which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.

(A) which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead
Use of WHICH to modify an idea presented in earlier sentence is incorrect. Use of THAT leads to Redundancy. Other errors exist as well in this sentence. Hence Incorrect.
(B) which showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface, and it was pockmarked by craters like the Moon has
Use of WHICH to modify an idea presented in earlier sentence is incorrect. Use of HAS leads to Redundancy. Other errors exist as well in this sentence. Hence Incorrect.
(C) which showed the Martian surface as a dry, apparently dead one, which was pockmarked with craters such as the Moon’s
Use of WHICH to modify an idea presented in earlier sentence is incorrect. Other errors exist as well in this sentence. Hence Incorrect.
(D) photos showing the Martian surface to be like that of the Moon’s, dry and apparently dead, and it was pockmarked by moonlike craters
Use of THAT leads to Redundancy
Surface to be like SURFACE of the Moon's
or
Surface to be like SURFACE of the Moon's surface
Hence Incorrect.
(E) photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon
Correct

Hi,

Can someone explain why the sentence construction in option E is correct. Why is there not connector needed after ' of another planet,' and before ' photos that showed a dry'? This looks like a run on sentence to me.

Thanks for your help.

Hi Lionila,

Let's look at E

In July 1965 Mariner IV passed by Mars and took the first-ever close-up photographs of another planet, which showed that the Martian surface was like that of the Moon’s in that it was pockmarked by moonlike craters and was dry and apparently dead.

(E) photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon - it is a construction of a 'Noun + Noun modifier'. Here 'that' is modifying the noun 'photos' and in the latter part there is a comparison between 'craters' on Mars and those(craters) on the moon.



hope it helps.

Hi Lionila, a run-on sentence is when there are two Independent clauses, connected by a comma.

Here photos that showed a dry, apparently dead ..... is not an Independent clause.

The structure is: Noun (photos) + Noun-modifier (that showed a dry, apparently dead..)

As Kchaudhary mentions, this kind of a structure is called an Absolute Phrase.

p.s. Our book EducationAisle Sentence Correction Nirvana discusses Absolute Modifier, its application and examples in significant detail. If someone is interested, PM me your email-id; I can mail the corresponding section.
_________________

GMATNinja can you share your thoughts about use of "which" in this question as compared to "Emily Dickinson's letters to Susan Huntington Dickinson" problem?
_________________

(D) photos showing the Martian surface to be like that of the Moon’s, dry and apparently dead, and it was pockmarked by moonlike craters

(E) photos that showed a dry, apparently dead Martian surface pockmarked with craters like those on the Moon

Between D & E, E is definitely better and hence I selected. But why D is not correct in grammatical terms ?
Experts, plz help.

For whatever it's worth, incorrect answer choices don't always have grammatical errors. If (E) conveys the intended meaning of the sentence in a clearer, better way than (D), that's enough to make your decision -- even if (D) doesn't have any definite mistakes in it.

In this case, though, (D) does have a legit grammatical problem. The singular pronoun "that" refers to "surface", so then (D) gives us "... photos showing the Martian surface to be like [the surface] of the Moon's..." It's that last possessive that causes a problem. If the possessive phrase "the Moon's" implies "the Moon's surface", then the whole mess is redundant, because it's basically saying "...photos showing the Martian surface to be like [the surface] of the Moon's [surface]..."

I hope this helps!
_________________

EducationAisle, GMATNinja
In the OA E, Isn't "those" ambiguous as it may refer to either "craters" or "photos"

No, notice that "those of the moon" is part of the modifier "like those of the moon" - which directly modifies "craters." Because it's part of that modifier for "craters," "those" refers directly to craters.

In a larger strategic context, be careful using "ambiguous pronouns" as a primary tool for eliminating answers. I've seen lots of students turn themselves into ambiguity seekers, but keep in mind that it's nearly impossible to write a 20+ word sentence without including multiple nouns. Just because there are multiple nouns doesn't mean that any pronouns in the sentence are ambiguous. For that reason I tend to recommend that you make pronoun ambiguity a second or third decision point (unless the pronoun ambiguity is just a glaring mistake)...they of course do test it, but it's not as absolute as some of the other error types (pronoun or subject-verb agreement, etc.) so be careful with it.
_________________

Hello Experts,

In Choice E, Shouldn't the 2 adjectives 'dry' and 'dead' be joined using 'and'?

a dry and apparently dead Martian surface,

But in the correct sentence they are joined by comma.
Is it acceptable on GMAT?

Thanks for your help.