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In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure

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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   13 Aug 2021, 13:45
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Thank you AjiteshArun & saipk. It makes more sense this way .
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   02 Sep 2021, 08:48
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parth2424 wrote:
GMATNinja wrote:
parth2424 wrote:
Hi i chose e but i have a question regarding the use of had here.
had can be used when 2 events happen and end in the past and the event attached with had starts & ends before the other event

So how can the humidity rise before the moisture was exhaled ???
Am i missing something here . Please help

The verb in the past perfect just needs to come before something else in the past.

Also, notice that the main verb of the clause is "were closed." The chambers were closed in the past and the humidity rose some time before the closing. This makes sense -- if the humidity hadn't yet risen, there'd be no reason to close the chambers!

Because "had raised" comes before "were closed," the past perfect is perfectly logical here.

I hope that helps!




Thanks for that. But in this question over here the event that happened after "had" in the past is not explicitly mentioned with past tense but is implied. What are your views on that?

https://gmatclub.com/forum/according-to-some-analysts-the-gains-in-the-stock-market-reflect-grow-70645.htmlhttps://gmatclub.com/forum/according-to-some-analysts-the-gains-in-the-stock-market-reflect-grow-70645.html[/url]


According to some analysts, the gains in the stock market reflect growing confidence that the economy will avoid the recession that many had feared earlier in the year and instead come in for a 'soft landing', followed by a gradual increase in the business activity.
A is correct
(A) that the economy will avoid the recession that many had feared earlier in the year and instead come

Sequence of events
people had feared --> gains in stock market -->according to analysts gains reflect confidence --> economy will avoid recessions & instead come in .......
PAST PAST PRESENT FUTURE
I know why the other choices are wrong but
I dont understand that when the simple past event is not explicitly mentioned is it fine if it is implied??

I feel your pain here. It's certainly more challenging to see why the past perfect is called for when the other past element isn't spelled out for us explicitly. But we want to make sure we're never just going on autopilot, looking for grammar issues without thinking about context.

So when we see "had feared", we have to ask ourselves: what other past thing in the sentence could have come before the fear? And you nailed it. It's the gains in the stock market. Because, logically, the gains had to have begun in the past, right? How could investor sentiment have changed if the gains are happening right now?

Well, if the gains began in the past, then it makes sense to write that the fear of the recession occurred before these gains, so "had" is okay, even though we don't get an explicit date or past tense verb.

The takeaway: usually, when the past perfect is used, we'll get either a past tense verb or a date that the earlier action came before. On rare occasions, like this one, we have to use context and engage with the logic of the sentence to see that the action occurred before some other past event. If there's a good argument for the use of the past perfect, or if you're not sure, don't treat it as a concrete error.

I hope that helps a bit!
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In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   26 Dec 2021, 11:59
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MayankDimri wrote:
I have a small doubt, although I marked the correct answer. Can someone show on a timeline to justify the usage of past perfect tense 'had raised the humidity'? If the two actions compared are exhaled and raised, then ideally the cause (tourists exhaling) should come before effect (raise in humidity levels). But I believe the actions compared in the past are 'were closed' and 'had raised'? Please clarify.


Hi MayankDimri

Welcome to an important and tricky distinction in SC. "---ed" words, while always 'action' in some way, can serve two very different functions in a sentence depending on how they are use, EVEN IF THEY ARE THE SAME WORD.

My favorite (very tricky) example of this can be seen in these two sentenes:

"The dog walked past the barn."

"The dog walked past the barn fell."

Some people think that the second sentence must be wrong. The sentence must be "The dog walked past, and the barn fell." Or "The dog walked past; the barn fell." Some students ask if a 'barn-fell' is a thing they've just never heard of!

But actually, the second sentence is completely correct and unambiguous as written... It's just that the word 'walked' is no longer a verb, as it is in the first sentence. It is now a *modifier*. (We sometimes call them 'ed' modifiers--the official word is 'past participle.')

These look like verbs, come from verbs, and feel like verbs... But are really descriptions. You can add a 'that was/were' or 'that had been' in front of them to get the full meaning: "The dog [that was] walked past the barn fell." But it is conventional to not include the 'that was' in such a sentence.

(Aside: notice how the purpose of 'walked' isn't really clear until the sentence is complete! Words later in a sentence affect structure earlier in the sentence! By adding a single word, the verb 'fell,' we transform the role of 'walked' from verb to modifier! Tricky stuff).

The word 'exhaled' is such a word in this sentence. It is description of the air... It's not *really* a verb. And it's definitely not the verb that 'had raised' happened before (as you note, the cause must precede the effect)!

I think you are right that 'had raised' precedes 'were closed,' justifying the use of the past perfect.

But more generally, look out for -ed words and be thoughtful of how they are used. If you can add a "That was/were" in front of them, they are *description*.
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   21 Sep 2022, 04:44
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sourabhgx wrote:
can we consider phrase "humidity within them" as referring to antecedent "chambers" only. Because, it is not meaningful to consider- "tourists raised humidity within them".
please give your opinion.


Hello sourabhgx,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, yes; there is no pronoun ambiguity in the usage of "them" because there is only one noun - "chambers" - that "them" can logically refer to.

To understand the concept of "Exceptions to Pronoun Ambiguity" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):



All the best!
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   18 Dec 2012, 22:09
In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure at Giza were closed to visitors for cleaning and repair due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing and fungus was growing on the walls.

a. due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which rised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing
b. due to moisture that tourists had exhaled, thereby raising its humidity to such levels that salt from the stone would crystallize
c. because tourists were exhaling moisture, which had raised the humidity within them to levels such that salt from the stone would crystallize
d. because of moisture that was exhaled by tourists raising the humidity within them them to levels so high as to make the salt from the stone crystallize
e. because moisture exhaled by tourists had raised the humidity within them to such levels that salt from the stone was crystallizing

Doubt 1:
In OE for options C and D, it is mentioned that "them" in C and D seems to refer to tourists. But OE for E says that "them" in E clearly talks about chambers.
My understanding for this is as below reasons can you please confirm if my analysis is correct ?

In E : "exhaled by tourists" is a modifier that is modifying moisture and so the sentence "moisture had raised the humidity within them" is the sentence and so it is more clear that "them" refers to chambers.

In D: "tourists raising the humidity within them" "raising the humidity with in them" modifies "tourists". Hence, it looks like "them" refers to "tourists".

Not sure of the case with C.

Doubt 2:
In option A, idiom "such levels so that" is used. Is this correctly used ?

Doubt 3:
It is mentioned that "due to" is used imprecisely to express causal relation. Can you please eloborate on how "due to" can be used effectively to express these relations?
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   25 Apr 2016, 23:34
In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure at Giza were closed to visitors for cleaning and repair due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing and fungus was growing on the walls.

"for cleaning and repair.." Is this phrase parallel? gerund and verb?


because moisture exhaled by tourists had raised the humidity within them to such levels that salt from the stone was crystallizing

Isn't the use of 'them' is somewhat ambiguous? As if it's referrin to tourists? Seemin to suggest that the tourists had raised the humidity within themselves?

If anybody can help me with these please!! Thanks. :)
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   29 Apr 2016, 09:26
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iliavko wrote:
Imagine the sentence

"The lady holding the little girl, who works in the supermarket, looks sad."

Is this correct? Or do we have ambiguity in the use of rel. pronoun "who" ? "holding" modifies "lady", "the little girl" refers to "holding" So here can the object of "who" be the lady? or it will be the girl?


I would keep it simple. The modifier "who works in the ....." touches "girl", hence it modifies "girl" without any ambiguity.
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   29 Jun 2016, 03:57
soaringAlone wrote:
I don't think anyone has given a satisfactory reply to the question posed below ?

Can anyone answer the question, please?:why "them" is correctly referring to the chambers in E and not to tourists as in C,D (as per explanation in OG 12)


Hi sayantanc2k,

Thank you so much for your response.

However, one of the objections that the official guide makes about answers C and D is that "the pronoun them seems to refer to tourists".

Therefore, I do not rely very much on your advice since what you are saying contradicts the answer explanation in the official guide.

Can anyone else give their view on the apparent contradiction outlined above?
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   17 Oct 2017, 23:30
In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure at Giza were closed to visitors for cleaning and repair due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing and fungus was growing on the walls.

(A) due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing
(B) due to moisture that tourists had exhaled,thereby raising its humidity to such levels that salt from the stone would crystallize
(C) because tourists were exhaling moisture, which had raised the humidity within them to levels such that salt from the stone would crystallize
(D) because of moisture that was exhaled by tourists raising the humidity within them to levels so high as to make the salt from the stone crystallize
(E) because moisture exhaled by tourists had raised the humidity within them to such levels that salt from the stone was crystallizing

For option E - can anyone explain -- how can HAD RAISED be correct here when there are no two past events occurring? My understanding was past perfect can be used when two events are in the past and the earlier event takes the past perfect form.

Can anyone please explain this?
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   11 Nov 2018, 07:14
sudeep wrote:
The Official Guide for GMAT Review 2017

Practice Question
Question No.: SC 698
Page: 687


As per the OG explanation, 'them' in C and D seems to refer to 'tourists', but in E 'them' clearly refers to chambers.
Can someone please explain the concept of the pronoun reference in this case?

What I understood is that:
in the case of E tourists is the noun in the modifier 'exhaled by tourists'. So, 'tourists' loose the significance as it is out of scope for the remaining main sentence/clause. But is is the right creteria to reject the pronoun reference to noun 'tourists'.

PS: I know why the OA mentioned is correct, but need clarification on the above concept of pronoun reference.[/spoiler]


GMATNinja Could you explain if "them" is actually an issue in C&D, because logically it can not refer to tourists and hence there is no ambiguity. Could you please elaborate on this?
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   18 Apr 2019, 21:56
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I don't think it is a matter of such hair-splitting worries about the reference of the pronoun 'them" in this case. The only criterion is to judge it by means of a rationale that the humidity cannot be raised in human beings such as visitors or tourists. Humidity can be raised within a building, in an atmosphere, in air, or in a coastal bet, etc. By this token, it will be prudent to take the plural pronoun to refer to the chambers. Please note that there is no other inanimate plural noun to compete with the chambers in this case. That makes the case that much simpler.

However, one of the objections that the official guide makes about answers C and D is that "the pronoun them seems to refer to tourists"

I think we should understand the full import of what the above explanation means. The OG only says that in C and D, the pronoun them seems to refer to tourists". OG does not say that in C and D, the pronoun refers to the tourists. This makes a critical difference that in sum, C and D are wrong for the seemingness of the pronoun reference due to its proximity rather than the reality of the context.

Beyond that, one can solve this question amicably through other worldly-wise means as has been explained by participants such as Chetan and Sayantan and Rashed. Kudos to them.
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   11 Jul 2019, 03:08
[quote="sudeep"]In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure at Giza were closed to visitors for cleaning and repair due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing and fungus was growing on the walls.


(A) due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing

(B) due to moisture that tourists had exhaled, thereby raising its humidity to such levels that salt from the stone would crystallize

(C) because tourists were exhaling moisture, which had raised the humidity within them to levels such that salt from the stone would crystallize

(D) because of moisture that was exhaled by tourists raising the humidity within them to levels so high as to make the salt from the stone crystallize

(E) because moisture exhaled by tourists had raised the humidity within them to such levels that salt from the stone was crystallizing

Is the use of "which" is correct here in (A). It seems like "which" is modifying "moisture". somewhere I have seen "which" can jump over a modifier. Here "exhaled by tourist' is a modifier of "moisture". Please help generis

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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   11 Jul 2019, 19:23
generis wrote:
RashedVai wrote:
sudeep wrote:
In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure at Giza were closed to visitors for cleaning and repair due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing and fungus was growing on the walls.


(A) due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing

(B) due to moisture that tourists had exhaled, thereby raising its humidity to such levels that salt from the stone would crystallize

(C) because tourists were exhaling moisture, which had raised the humidity within them to levels such that salt from the stone would crystallize

(D) because of moisture that was exhaled by tourists raising the humidity within them to levels so high as to make the salt from the stone crystallize

(E) because moisture exhaled by tourists had raised the humidity within them to such levels that salt from the stone was crystallizing


Is the use of "which" is correct here in (A). It seems like "which" is modifying "moisture". somewhere I have seen "which" can jump over a modifier. Here "exhaled by tourist' is a modifier of "moisture". Please help generis

Posted from my mobile device

RashedVai , yes, "which" can "jump over" the phrase exhaled by tourists in order to reach its noun moisture.
(In other words, although (A) contains other errors, which is not one of them.)

Your concern arises from the "modifier touch rule," which says that a noun modifier should be right next to the noun that it modifies.

As you note, the relative pronoun which modifies moisture.

Exceptions to the Touch Rule exist.**

An essential modifier trumps a nonessential modifier
-- nouns often have essential modifiers

• prepositional phrases
-- A prepositional phrase that follows the noun is the most common essential noun modifier that "trumps" nonessential modifiers such as [comma + which].

Correct: Russian theatre practitioner Konstantin Stanislavski developed a systematic approach to acting, which became the foundation for what is now known as The Method in actors' training.

(Sidebar: Robert de Niro, Daniel Day-Lewis, Angelina Jolie, and James Franco are a few of many actors who use some form of The Method.)
-- Acting did not become the foundation for The Method. The approach did.

-- The prepositional phrase to acting is essential and thus allowed to come in between approach and the nonessential which-clause modifier.

• essential modifiers in this sentence

Between which and moisture we have
-- participle (exhaled) + prepositional phrase (by tourists) trumps which
-- the phrase exhaled by tourists is also an essential modifier of moisture.

(1) The words are essential; (2) they can't really be placed elsewhere, and regardless, (3) they are more important than "which" and thus can come between which and its noun.
Correct: The decorator recommended only counter tops made of granite, which he thought were much sturdier than counter tops made of other materials.

Option A: . . . due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels
In option A, which permissibly "reaches back" over the essential modifier exhaled by tourists to reach its noun, moisture.

I hope that analysis helps. :)



** Other exceptions to the Modifier Touch Rule
• A short phrase that is set off by commas can come between a noun and its modifier.
The most common example is an example phrase

Correct: She especially liked colorful paintings, such as The Open Window, which reminded her of beautiful places she had visited.

• A short verb phrase (intransitive!) can come between a noun and its modifier, even if the modifier is essential, such as THAT in the that-clause below.

Correct: A new species has been discovered that is revolutionizing the way that scientists think about so-called "gaps" in Darwin's theory of evolution.
-- This short verb phrase is allowed because the modifier is long. If we place the short verb phrase has been discovered at the end of the sentence, it becomes hard to follow and jarring.
-- Rewritten: A new species that is revolutionizing the way that scientists think about so-called "gaps" in Darwin's theory of evolution has been discovered.
-- The second sentence is grammatical, just not as clear or accessible as the first sentence is.


generis
Quote:
My approach towards this question was to check the difference between "due to" and "because"


I was told that in such questions replace due to [b]WITH [/b] caused by and see whether the sentence makes a sense. If No, reject all options having "due to".

This is why I rejected A and B. Is it correct??
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   15 Aug 2019, 02:16
Concentrate on the parallel phrases (was crystallising and was growing) only A and E has this in parallel
so,BCD are out,since there are two actions in the past perfect tense makes sense ,as a result answer is E

Correct me if I am wrong
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   15 Aug 2019, 03:40
Quote:
In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure at Giza were closed to visitors for cleaning and repair due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing and fungus was growing on the walls.



(A) due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing

(B) due to moisture that tourists had exhaled, thereby raising its humidity to such levels that salt from the stone would crystallize

(C) because tourists were exhaling moisture, which had raised the humidity within them to levels such that salt from the stone would crystallize

(D) because of moisture that was exhaled by tourists raising the humidity within them to levels so high as to make the salt from the stone crystallize

(E) because moisture exhaled by tourists had raised the humidity within them to such levels that salt from the stone was crystallizing: Correct.
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   17 Aug 2019, 21:14
Hi

daagh GMATNinja egmat Souvik EMPOWERgmatVerbal

I have a question regarding option D.

(D) because of moisture that was exhaled by tourists raising the humidity within them to levels so high as to make the salt from the stone crystallize

Isn't the verb-ing modifier 'raising' incorrect ? It is being used as noun modifier where as it should be as a verb modifier ?
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   19 Aug 2019, 02:56
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Altair
In the interest of academic elucidation, could I seek a few clarifications?

1. Why do you think we cannot use "raising" as a noun modifier in this example…

2. If it were a verb modifier, there would have been a comma before the verbing; the logical follow up question then is as to what is the verb or action that the participle modifies and who is the doer of the action, because adverbial modifiers modify the entire previous clause meaning that there should be a legitimate subject and verb in the prior part.

3. To make life simple, who or what is raising the humidity within them.
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   23 Aug 2019, 12:53
daagh wrote:
Altair
In the interest of academic elucidation, could I seek a few clarifications?

1. Why do you think we cannot use "raising" as a noun modifier in this example…

2. If it were a verb modifier, there would have been a comma before the verbing; the logical follow up question then is as to what is the verb or action that the participle modifies and who is the doer of the action, because adverbial modifiers modify the entire previous clause meaning that there should be a legitimate subject and verb in the prior part.

3. To make life simple, who or what is raising the humidity within them.


Thanks a lot for your response/questions (they made me think hard).

These are my answers (laughable probably) based on my ,less than limited, understanding :

1. I think the meaning is that the result of tourists' action i.e exhaling is causing the problem, not the tourists. Modifier 'raising' however is modifying the noun and not its action, apparently.

2. The answer to this is probably in #1. The noun will remain as "tourists", however, the action will also come into play. (I think).

3. Who : Tourists , What : Exhaling (Action)

Am I stressing too much on distinction between tourists and their action as the cause of 'raising' ? Or, worse yet, am I forcing a distinction when there isn't one ?

I do realize that since tourists are the ones exhaling, the distinction might as well be irrelevant, but we have a modifier (subject + ing) that modifies subject directly and a modifier (subject + comma + ing modifier) that can express result / modify action. Will they both have the same effect in this case ?

Looking forward to your response please.
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   24 Aug 2019, 07:39
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altair
Therefore one may see that the word 'raising' that is being used as adjectival modifier doesn't work out in this case, as the verbal action that does the ultimate damage has to be done by a doer and there is no way one can separate the actor from the action.
Coming to the next point, why will a subject modifier be equal to action modifier? Obviously one is flying in the east and the other in the west and will they ever meet? GOK
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink] New post   22 Nov 2019, 06:27
PUNEETSCHDV wrote:
(A) due to moisture exhaled by tourists, which raised its humidity to such levels so that salt from the stone was crystallizing
1: Modifier Error - which refers to tourists
2: Pronoun Number - "its" should refer to "chambers" - thus number error.
3: Meaning - Use of "due to" implies that the closure of chambers was caused by moisture. This is not correct because closure was caused by the effect of the moisture as explained in choice E.

(B) due to moisture that tourists had exhaled, thereby raising its humidity to such levels that salt from the stone would crystallize
1: Verb tense - had exhaled is incorrect verb tense.
2: Parallelism - "salt would crystallize" is not parallel to "fungus was growing".
3: Meaning - Use of "due to" implies that the closure of chambers was caused by moisture. This is not correct because closure was caused by the effect of the moisture as explained in choice E.

(C) because tourists were exhaling moisture, which had raised the humidity within them to levels such that salt from the stone would crystallize
1: Verb Tense - " were exhaling" is incorrect verb tense; "had raised" is incorrect verb tense.
2: Parallelism - "salt would crystallize" is not parallel to "fungus was growing".

(D) because of moisture that was exhaled by tourists raising the humidity within them to levels so high as to make the salt from the stone crystallize
1: Modifier Error - "raising humidity" appears to modify "tourists" - incorrect
2: Parallelism - "salt crystallize" is not parallel to "fungus was growing".

(E) because moisture exhaled by tourists had raised the humidity within them to such levels that salt from the stone was crystallizing
Correct.


Hi,

Can someone please explained why had raised for C is incorrect but not in E?
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Re: In late 1997, the chambers inside the pyramid of the Pharaoh Menkaure [#permalink]
22 Nov 2019, 06:27
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