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30 May 2021, 23:53
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Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
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85% (01:18) correct
15%
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wrong
based on 271
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One of the most recognizable features in the solar system, Saturn’s rings consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
A) Saturn’s rings consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
B) Saturn’s rings consist of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
C) Saturn’s rings consist of billions of individual particles, create waves, turbulence, and other effects and spreading over hundreds of thousands of miles.
D) Saturn has rings that consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
E) Saturn has rings made up of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
30 May 2021, 23:56
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OFFICIAL EXPLANATION
THE PROMPT
→ The modifying phrase at the beginning of the sentence mentions plural features, so the subject following the comma must be the plural Saturn’s rings and not the singular Saturn.
→ One of the most recognizable features in the solar system is an appositive.
Appositives are modifiers. Typically, appositives modify nouns, as is the case in this instance.
An appositive consists of a word or phrase (often noun + noun modifiers, as here) that is placed next to some other word or phrase and that is a synonym of that word or phrase. Often, the appositive can replace whatever it modifies—not always. (And not in this instance.)
THE OPTIONS
→ The plural subject Saturn’s rings does not agree with the singular verb consists.
ELIMINATE A
• The introductory phrase is correctly followed by Saturn's rings
• The plural subject rings agrees with the verb consist
→ sidebar: The word "Saturn's" is an adjective that describes the noun rings. Which rings? Saturn's rings.
KEEP
→ consist, create, and spreading are not parallel verbs for the subject rings
• meaning?
→ In option C, the rings carry all the action. They consist of. . . , create . . . , and [are?] spread . . .
In the other options, the planet or its rings do one thing (consist of particles), whereas the particles do two other things (they create something and they are spread over a certain area).
If the verbs in this option were correct, it would not matter that the rings took all the action (the verbs) and the particles took none, even though the prompt suggests such a setup. Option A does not determine intended meaning.
The parallelism error is fatal.
ELIMINATE C
→ the appositive One of the most recognizable features in the solar system mentions features, plural.
The subject that follows that introductory appositive must be the plural Saturn’s rings and not the singular Saturn.
• subject/verb agreement
The plural subject rings does not agree with the singular verb consists.
ELIMINATE D
Identical to the error in option D.
ELIMINATE E
The answer is B.
Notes
Active and passive voice?
In four of the options, the particles
→ [actively] create waves, turbulence and other effects, and
→ [passively] are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
Most of the time on the GMAT, the correct answer will not contain a switch from active to passive voice or vice versa.
What I just described is a guideline, not a hard-and-fast rule.
Option B is grammatical and better than the other four options.
True, questions of style come into play: concision is important, for example.
If you narrow the choices to two, and one option says exactly the same thing as the other but uses fewer words, choose the shorter option.
On the other hand, the switch from active to passive voice is not a decision point in this question.
The only option that does not contain the voice switch is (D), whose lack of verb parallelism is ungrammatical. Grammar trumps style.
COMMENTS
twoface07 ,welcome to SC Butler.
These analysis in these answers is very good.
Nice work! Kudos to all.
Project SC Butler: Sentence Correction (SC1)
THE PROMPT
Quote:
One of the most recognizable features in the solar system, Saturn’s rings consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
• Appositive agreement→ The modifying phrase at the beginning of the sentence mentions plural features, so the subject following the comma must be the plural Saturn’s rings and not the singular Saturn.
→ One of the most recognizable features in the solar system is an appositive.
Appositives are modifiers. Typically, appositives modify nouns, as is the case in this instance.
An appositive consists of a word or phrase (often noun + noun modifiers, as here) that is placed next to some other word or phrase and that is a synonym of that word or phrase. Often, the appositive can replace whatever it modifies—not always. (And not in this instance.)
THE OPTIONS
Quote:
A) Saturn’s rings consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
• subject/verb agreement→ The plural subject Saturn’s rings does not agree with the singular verb consists.
ELIMINATE A
Quote:
B) Saturn’s rings consist of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
• I do not see any errors• The introductory phrase is correctly followed by Saturn's rings
• The plural subject rings agrees with the verb consist
→ sidebar: The word "Saturn's" is an adjective that describes the noun rings. Which rings? Saturn's rings.
KEEP
Quote:
C) Saturn’s rings consist of billions of individual particles, create waves, turbulence, and other effects and spreading over hundreds of thousands of miles.
• parallelism→ consist, create, and spreading are not parallel verbs for the subject rings
• meaning?
→ In option C, the rings carry all the action. They consist of. . . , create . . . , and [are?] spread . . .
In the other options, the planet or its rings do one thing (consist of particles), whereas the particles do two other things (they create something and they are spread over a certain area).
If the verbs in this option were correct, it would not matter that the rings took all the action (the verbs) and the particles took none, even though the prompt suggests such a setup. Option A does not determine intended meaning.
The parallelism error is fatal.
ELIMINATE C
Quote:
D) Saturn has rings that consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
• modifier error→ the appositive One of the most recognizable features in the solar system mentions features, plural.
The subject that follows that introductory appositive must be the plural Saturn’s rings and not the singular Saturn.
• subject/verb agreement
The plural subject rings does not agree with the singular verb consists.
ELIMINATE D
Quote:
E) Saturn has rings made up of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
• modifier errorIdentical to the error in option D.
ELIMINATE E
The answer is B.
Notes
Active and passive voice?
In four of the options, the particles
→ [actively] create waves, turbulence and other effects, and
→ [passively] are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
Most of the time on the GMAT, the correct answer will not contain a switch from active to passive voice or vice versa.
What I just described is a guideline, not a hard-and-fast rule.
Option B is grammatical and better than the other four options.
True, questions of style come into play: concision is important, for example.
If you narrow the choices to two, and one option says exactly the same thing as the other but uses fewer words, choose the shorter option.
On the other hand, the switch from active to passive voice is not a decision point in this question.
The only option that does not contain the voice switch is (D), whose lack of verb parallelism is ungrammatical. Grammar trumps style.
COMMENTS
twoface07 ,welcome to SC Butler.
These analysis in these answers is very good.
Nice work! Kudos to all.
31 May 2021, 00:26
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Bookmarks
One of the most recognizable features in the solar system, Saturn’s rings consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.
A) Saturn’s rings consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.---Subject Verb agreement error
B) Saturn’s rings consist of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.--- Correct
C) Saturn’s rings consist of billions of individual particles, create waves, turbulence, and other effects and spreading over hundreds of thousands of miles---modifier error as the particles are creating the waves and turbulence and not the rings
D) Saturn has rings that consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.----The features of the rings are being referred to and not the planet Saturn
E) Saturn has rings made up of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.[/quote]---Same as D
A) Saturn’s rings consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.---Subject Verb agreement error
B) Saturn’s rings consist of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.--- Correct
C) Saturn’s rings consist of billions of individual particles, create waves, turbulence, and other effects and spreading over hundreds of thousands of miles---modifier error as the particles are creating the waves and turbulence and not the rings
D) Saturn has rings that consists of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.----The features of the rings are being referred to and not the planet Saturn
E) Saturn has rings made up of billions of individual particles, which create waves, turbulence, and other effects and are spread over hundreds of thousands of miles.[/quote]---Same as D
