A newly-designed missle spotting satelitte achieves its

riteshgupta1,

Which do you think is more correct? with or without "which"? It might be an important clue...

as it crosses the segments which it divides the world into

Lets break all the choices..

A) A newly-designed missle spotting satellite achieves its purpose by detecting the hot exhaust of a rocket, measuring the rocket's speed by timing the rocket as it crosses the segments it divides the world into, and is powered by solar panels.

- This one is clearly wrong, since the participle phrase is modifying the rocket....

B) A newly-designed missle spotting satellite achieves its purpose by detecting the hot exhaust of a rocket, measures the rocket's speed by timing the rocket as it crosses the segments it divides the world into, and is powered by solar panels

- This one is parallel but the sentence means totally different..

C) A newly-designed missle spotting satellite is pwoered by solar panels and achieves its purposes by detecting the hot exhaust of a rocket, measuring the speed by timing the rocket as it crosses the segments it divides the world into

- This one is also bad. Measuring the speed of WHAT???

D) A newly-designed missle spotting satellite, powered by solar panels, achieves its purpose by detecting the hot exhaust of a rocket, it divides the world into segments, and it measures the speed by timing the rocket as it crosses the segments

- This one is totally out. Mixing IC with IC with no conjunctions...

E) Powered by solar panels, a newly-designed missile spotting satellite achieves its purpose by detecing the hot exhaust of a rocket and measuring the rocket's speed by timing the rocket as it crosses the segments which it divides the world into.

- This one makes sense man.... and no grammatical errors...

Lets stay with E unless OE says something else..

I think E makes more sense, I am not sure about which. It clearly is not used to make a clause... it represents the segments. I would like to see "in" before which. But cant say man.....

All the other choices just have problems...

Our money is between C and E...


gmataquaguy, excellent questions and hats off to you...

Thanks, riteshgupta1, for the detailed breakdown. But I feel there is something wrong with C; it just doesn't read smooth... Let's wait for the official answer.

e looks good; it ends in preposition thats my only concern

What is the modifier problem with C? I was down to E and C too.

The OA is E. But i'd like to see where C breaks down. Dont have OE

Since E is correct, just look at the structure in C, they have different meanings...

In E, detecting and measuring are parellel after by. In C, is and achieves are parellel and measuring is modifying the subject "A newly-designed missle spotting satellite".

"measuring the speed by timing the rocket as it crosses the segments it divides the world into" is modifying a rocket.

If it were to modify the satellite, the sentence would had been fine. That was my only concern.

I think If you take that phrase and put it in the front of the sentence, the sentence will survive...

I see your point of C [and how measuring and detecting arent parallel]. But how are we to know [before the OA is known] whether these 2 participles are supposed to be parallel?

Why cant this phrase modify the entire IC, just like an absolute phrase. I was thinking well its modifying the entire IC and therefore is okay. Let me know your thoughts.

E too. C is in passive form and is not paralled too.

A newly-designed missle spotting satellite is pwoered by ............ and achieves its purposes by ................., measuring .....

E for me.

Agree with the explanation of riteshgupta1