It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman

Question

It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman species in their ability to learn behaviors from one another, or  if, when other animals are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found.

(A) if, when other animals are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found.
(B) if other animals were studied with as much depth they would exhibit similar patterns.
(C) would similar patterns be found in other animals if they were studied in as much depth.
(D) whether similar patterns would be exhibited in other animals that were studied with as much depth.
(E) whether other animals would exhibit similar patterns if they were studied in as much depth.

parker · Accepted Answer

I agree with seekmba and temp33-- the most efficient split on this one is "if" versus "whether." If you cut out the fat between the structure words you can see the parallel structure needed: "whether...or....whether." Parallelism is really powerful and one of the fastest ways to slice through a wordy question.

Additionally, the meaning difference between "whether" and "if" dictates you use "whether." This distinction definitely comes up on the exam. Here the parallelism helps you out but that clue might not always be present.

* "if" is used to expression a condition--Ex: I will catch a cold IF I don't wear my hat. (IF something happens--in this case me not wearing my hat-- a CONSEQUENCE will occur)

*"whether" is used to indicate alternatives--Ex: I don't know WHETHER I like that hat. (Either I like it or I don't)

In this case the correct answer contains both "if" and "whether." The condition ("if they were studied") has two possible consequences--the other animals may exhibit similar patterns, or they may not. These alternatives are correctly shown by the usage of "whether.")

ExpertsGlobal5 · Answer

Dear Friends,

Here is a detailed explanation to this question-

Concepts tested here: Idioms + Grammatical Construction + Awkwardness/Redundancy

• “if” is used to refer to phrases that lead to a “then” clause, and “whether" is used for showing alternatives; "whether" generally wins over "if" on GMAT.
• Information vital to the core meaning of the sentence cannot be placed between commas.
• The correct, idiomatic construction is "in depth".

A:  This answer choice incorrectly uses "if" to show alternatives; remember, “if” is used to refer to phrases that lead to a “then” clause, and “whether" is used for showing alternatives. Further, Option A incorrectly places information vital to the core meaning of the sentence - the fact that other animals would exhibit similar patterns in the event that they are studied in as much depth - between commas; remember, information vital to the core meaning of the sentence cannot be placed between commas. Additionally, Option A uses the passive construction "similar patterns would be found", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

B:  This answer choice incorrectly uses "if" to show alternatives; remember, “if” is used to refer to phrases that lead to a “then” clause, and “whether" is used for showing alternatives. Further, Option B incorrectly uses the unidiomatic construction "with...depth"; remember, the correct, idiomatic construction is "in depth".

C:  This answer choice incorrectly uses "would" to show alternatives; remember, "whether" is used to show alternatives. Further, Option C uses the passive construction "would similar patterns be found", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

D:  This answer choice incorrectly uses the unidiomatic construction "with...depth"; remember, the correct, idiomatic construction is "in depth". Further, Option D uses the passive construction "similar patterns would be exhibited", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

E:   Correct.  This answer choice correctly and idiomatically uses "whether" to show alternatives. Further, Option E correctly uses the idiomatic construction "in...depth". Additionally, Option E avoids the grammatical construction error seen in Option A, as it does not place any information between commas. Besides, Option E is free of any awkwardness or redundancy.

Hence, E is the best answer choice.

To understand the concept of "If" versus "Whether" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VARhmMp4gY

To understand the usage of a pair of commas on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~4 minutes):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeYAQvFwbNs

All the best!
Experts' Global Team

GMAThopeful · Answer

Clear E 

If is used to present a condition. Whether is used to when there are alternatives available (often with yes or no as answer) 

So A and B are ruled out right away. C is also wrong as would has been incorrectly used. 

D is passive, "studied with" is incorrect

So E

seekmba · Answer

It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique...........or whether other animals would exhibit similar patterns --> parallel

It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman species in their ability to learn behaviors from one another, or  if, when other animals are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found .

A.  if, when other animals  are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found - if, when awkward
B.  if other animals were studied  with as much depth they would exhibit similar patterns - passive
C.  would similar patterns be found  in other animals if they were studied in as much depth - awkward
D.  whether similar patterns would be exhibited  in other animals that were studied with as much depth - passive
E.  whether other animals would exhibit similar patterns  if they were studied in as much depth -  CORRECT

parker · Answer

Oops almost forgot! Regarding the pronoun ambiguity Hussain15 mentioned--there is a little bit of wiggle room in terms of pronoun ambiguity on the GMAT. You want to stay as clear as possible, but here the power of parallelism not only dictates the structure of "whether chimpanzees...or whether other animals," but also points us in the right direction in terms of the antecedent for "they." "They" is in the subject position for its conditional clause ("THEY were studied")--the antecedent for "they" is also in the subject position ("OTHER ANIMALS would exhibit").

shank001 · Answer

It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman species in their ability to learn behaviors from one another, or if, when other animals are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found.

whether chimpanzees are unique or whether .......
whether should be used to make both parts parallel.
So A, B, and C are out

D. whether similar patterns would be exhibited in other animals that were studied with as much depth -  Incorrect. Parallelism issue and passive voice seems to indicate that similar patterns would be exhibited in other animals by someone.

E. whether other animals would exhibit similar patterns if they were studied in as much depth - Correct

pqhai · Answer

It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman species in their ability to learn behaviors from one another, or  if, when other animals are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found.

Split #1: Structure:  It is unclear WHETHER ........... or WHETHER............  
So, A, B, and C are out because they do not maintain parallel structure that is considered very important in GMAT. Please note that  GMAT tests your logic and structure more than vocabulary. 
A. if, when other animals are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found  --> WRONG. 
B. if other animals were studied with as much depth they would exhibit similar patterns  --> WRONG. 
C. would similar patterns be found in other animals if they were studied in as much depth  --> WRONG.

Split #2: idiom:  study  in depth   -OR-  study  with depth  .  
Definitely, the former is correct. It's awkward if you say "study something  with depth ".
Please note that:  passive voice is NOT a true reason to eliminate options in GMAT . In fact, GMAT often tricks you by adding some subtle errors in active voice sentences. 
D. whether similar patterns would be exhibited in other animals that were studied  with as much depth   --> WRONG. 
E. whether other animals would exhibit similar patterns if they were studied  in as much depth   --> CORRECT.

Hope it helps.

EducationAisle · Answer

Indeed, the usage of  if  vs  whether  is key to solving this question.

if  is used for a  conditional  sentence, whereas  whether  is used when the intent is to depict a  choice , an  alternative  or a  possibility .

An example:

If the currency depreciates, exports receive a boost. 
– This sentence has a  conditional  event being narrated and hence, the usage of  if  is appropriate.

After two successive cycles of recession, the question is whether the economy will finally improve. 
– This sentence expresses uncertainty vis-à-vis economy’s fate, with two possible  outcomes : Economy  may  or  may not  improve.

By the way, while it is not the case in  this  sentence, a handy recommendation is that when deciding on the usage of  if/whether  after a verb (for example,  is ) or a  preposition , the usage of  whether  is appropriate (the question is  whether ....).

p.s. Our book    EducationAisle Sentence Correction Nirvana    discusses  if  vs  whether , their application and examples in significant detail. If you can PM you email-id, I can send you the corresponding section.

TestPrepUnlimited · Answer

The correct answer is E

This question highlights the difference between "if" and "whether." "If" can only be used to state a conditional; "whether" is used to indicate uncertainty about two or more possible scenarios.

A. Incorrect use of "if." Also the verb "would" is incorrect given the present tense "animals are studied"; in this case it would need to be in the future tense, i.e. "will." 
B. Incorrect use of "if." Incorrect idiom "with" depth. 
C. No word to indicate the uncertainty; the sentence requires "whether" to indicate the other scenario. 
D. Incorrect idiom "with" depth. Incorrect comparison between chimpanzees and similar patterns. Also wordy.

mSKR · Answer

Known idiom: Whether A or B

I choose B because I applied idiom whether A or B
Whether A or B ( ,if); B with the condition as in following example:

Quote:

It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman species in their ability to learn behaviors from one another, or if, when other animals are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found.

i read it as :
It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman species in their ability to learn behaviors from one another, OR they(other animals) would exhibit similar patterns, if other animals were studied with as much depth

Shall I say the sentence construction is wrong beause A and B are clauses , NOT PHRASES ?

Example:
It is unclear whether clothes of shop A are unique or shop B has similar clothes, if Shop B is studied in details.

So the correct structure should be :
It is unclear whether clothes of shop A are unique or that of shop B, if Shop B is studied in details.
OR
It is unclear whether clothes of shop A are unique or whether shop B has similar clothes, if Shop B is studied in details.

Hence,
It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman species in their ability to learn behaviors from one another, OR WHETHER they(other animals) would exhibit similar patterns, if other animals were studied with as much depth.

So , it means whether A or whether B is also correct idiom.

please confirm the thought. EducationAisle AjiteshArun AndrewN ( you changed your profile name

)

AndrewN · Answer

Hello,  imSKR . I did indeed change my profile name. I no longer wish to associate my activities on this site with my business. When I say I do this for fun to assist the community, I want to put my money where my mouth is. Perhaps reaching 1,000 posts under my former alias made me feel comfortable with making a clean break. I will continue to provide answers I think are worth reading.

Looking at your analysis, I agree with the bottom line:  whether A or... whether B  is indeed an acceptable idiom. Such usage holds particularly when the distance between A and B increases—i.e. there are more words and/or punctuation, which might make the sentence more difficult to understand without a reminder. I see the issue as falling into a similar camp as the comma + "and" + phrase usage, or indeed as the    from A, to B  usage (note the comma), both of which once again crop up in a perfectly legitimate manner when dealing with lengthier phrases and clauses between points A and B.

Meanwhile, "whether" + "if" is a common if unidiomatic way of expressing the two sides of the coin. In your proposed  correct structure  sentences, only the second would work. The other would still need work.

It is unclear whether clothes of shop A are unique or  that of  shop B, if Shop B is studied in detail s .

To fix the sentence, we would need something more like the following:

It is unclear whether the clothes of Shop A are unique or  are similar to those of  Shop B, if Shop B were studied in detail.

That is a tough sentence to construct, not one that I would expect to appear on the GMAT™. You might think that it falls into shaky "whether" + "if" territory, but the  those of  precludes a second  whether they . If you used both, you would create a redundancy. The sentence structure, within the details, now appears different from that of the original sentence: placeholder + verb + predicate ("whether" + noun + verb + modifier A + "or" + modifier B + conditional "if" clause).

I hope that helps. Thank you for taking the time to look me up. As always, best of luck with your studies.

- Andrew

surendrasaini1 · Answer

It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman species in their ability to learn behaviors from one another, or  if, when other animals are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found.

(A) if, when other animals are studied in as much depth, similar patterns would be found.
(B) if other animals were studied with as much depth they would exhibit similar patterns.
(C) would similar patterns be found in other animals if they were studied in as much depth.
(D) whether similar patterns would be exhibited in other animals that were studied with as much depth.
(E) whether other animals would exhibit similar patterns if they were studied in as much depth.
 AndrewN

How could we eliminate option B? i couldn't find any error other than the wrong preposition with depth.Please help.

AndrewN · Answer

Hello,  sonusaini1 . Option (B) has a few problems, the first of which begins the entire answer choice,  if . Since  whether  appears earlier in the sentence, we need to look for a parallel  whether  later in the sentence: whether A or   B. That is, the second  whether  is not always explicit in the sentence, but it does appear when dealing with lengthier phrases or clauses between the two entities. For instance, we could say,  It is unclear whether John or Jim took the cookie.  There is a tight enough space between the two people named that the  whether  is understood to apply to both. In any case, we cannot pair  whether  and  if , so (B) is already out.

Another issue, as you have already pointed out, is the  with  in  studied with as much depth . The preposition should be  in  instead. Putting the two together, we have a sub-optimal choice against either (D) or (E) that fix the initial error. Yes, there is pronoun ambiguity in (E), but  they  can be understood to refer back to  animals  rather than  patterns .

I hope that helps. Thank you for thinking to ask me, and good luck with your studies.

- Andrew

gmatimothy · Answer

Solenja · Answer

Correct me if I'm wrong, but i have eliminated all other options by the clever method method told by none other than  GMATNinja  which is just by replacing the actual words in the place if or they in the sentence and just like that i got to the answer in 30 seconds

Anshul1223333 · Answer

Hi there,

in option B

(B) if other animals were studied with as much depth they would exhibit similar patterns.

''if'' really a problem here?

''animals studied with as much depth'': Isn't the meaning clear here?

souvik19 · Answer

Hi,
I am trying to understand the structure "Whether X or Whether Y" in the correct option. Isn't it true that the double "whether" used in the correct choice is redundant? I thought in choice B, the sentence structure is something like this "It is unclear whether C...., or (if modifier) they would..
I understand "they" is ambiguous here, but thought it should refer to "other animals" logically. 
I would appreciate some expert advice.|
My major concern is:
a. Is a "whether X or whether Y" construction correct and not redundant?
b. Can the "if phrase" in choice B act as a modifier?

thanks and cheers!

GMATNinja · Answer

Each "whether" is setting up multiple options. To see why you might need more than one "whether," consider a couple of simple examples:

1) Imagine that on Monday, Tim is choosing between going to the opera and going to a baseball game. That's one choice, so I could write, "Tim can't decide whether to go to the opera or to the game." One choice, one "whether."

2) But now imagine that the opera tickets are for Monday night, and the baseball tickets are for Tuesday. This time, Tim has two choices to make, so I might write, "Tim has to decide whether to go to the opera on Monday and whether to go to the baseball game on Tuesday." The second "whether" isn't redundant, because it represents a second set of choices. He can go to the opera on Monday, or not. And he can go to the game on Tuesday, or not.

Similar deal here. There are two sets of options.

1) Chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman species... or they're not unique

2) Other animals would exhibit similar patterns....or they won't

You might look at those options and think, "Wait a minute! If chimpanzees are unique isn't it implied that other animals wouldn't exhibit similar patterns?"

The problem is that this makes the entire second clause redundant, and every answer choice has some version of this clause. And grammatically, each clause introduces multiple options, so a "whether" in each one seems fine. At the very least, it's not a concrete error.

"If" sets up a conditional relationship -- an "if" portion and a "then" portion. Consider some examples:

1) If Tim goes to the store, he will buy 700 Twinkies.

In this case, we don't know if Tim is actually going to the store, but if he does, we know he'll buy lots of Twinkies. Perfectly logical construction.

2) If Tim goes to the store, it is unclear whether he will buy 700 Twinkies.

Now, we still don't know if Tim is actually going to the store, but we also don't know what he'll do in the event that he does go. Still perfectly acceptable.

3) It is unclear if Tim goes to the store, he will buy 700 Twinkies.

This one's not great, because of the placement of "it is unclear." Is it saying that the entire conditional relationship is unclear and Tim may or may not buy lots of Twinkies if he goes to the store? If that's the case, isn't option #2 a clearer way of expressing the same idea?

Or is it saying that it's unclear whether Tim will go to the store in the first place? And if that's the case, doesn't the "if" already convey this uncertainty, making the "it is unclear" redundant?

The construction in (B) is similar to #3 above. Is it saying that we're not sure if the animals were studied in the first place? Or is saying that we're not sure whether the patterns would be found in the event that the animals were studied?

(E), on the other hand, is closer to #2. We know exactly what's unclear: whether the animals would show similar patterns. Because (E) is simple and unambiguous, it's better.

I hope that helps!

GMATNinja · Answer

Yep. The "if" is a problem.

"If" needs to set up a conditional scenario:

"If Tim goes to the grocery store, he will buy 700 Twinkies."

Tim may or may not go to the store. But if he goes, a certain outcome is guaranteed: he will give his children diabetes.

"Whether", on the other hand, sets up multiple options:

"It is unclear whether Tim will eat 700 Twinkies."

Now there are two possible outcomes. Tim can lots of Twinkies. Or not. And we don't know which he'll choose.

Either of the above constructions could work. But this one really doesn't work:

"It is unclear  if  Tim goes to the grocery store, he will buy 700 Twinkies."

The problem is that we don't know what's unclear! Is the sentence saying there's uncertainty about Tim going to the store in the first place? Or is saying that we're not sure whether he'll buy the Twinkies once he's there?

Put another way, the construction, "It is unclear if," is itself unclear. That's the problem with (B). Is there uncertainty about the animals actually being studied? Or is it unclear whether they'll show certain patterns  if  they're studied?

Instead, we want to use the phrase "it is unclear  whether ", which indicates that multiple outcomes are possible, and we simply don't know which will happen. That's the construction we get in (E).

I hope that clears things up!

It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman

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

It is unclear whether chimpanzees are unique among nonhuman

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