There are several reasons to eliminate A and choose B.
so X as to Y implies that Y SEEMS TO BE TRUE.
Official examples:
Climatic shifts are so gradual as to be indistinguishable from ordinary fluctuations in the weather.The features of the idealized sculpture portrait are so unrealistic as to constitute what one scholar calls an "artificial face."
In each case, the blue portion is something that SEEMS TO BE TRUE about the preceding subject in red.
so X that Y implies that Y ACTUALLY HAPPENS.
An official example:
Everyday life is so brisk that it hampers the ability of some children to distinguishing discrete sounds.Here, the blue portion is something that ACTUALLY HAPPENS -- an action that is actually performed by the preceding subject in red.
A key difference between the two idioms:
Whereas in the second idiom Y can serve to express an actual action, in the first idiom it cannot.
In the first idiom, Y must serve to express not an actual action but something that merely SEEMS TO BE TRUE about the preceding subject.
A:
so saturated with water as to acquire a liquid's characterHere,
so X as to Y incorrectly serves to express the action in red.
As noted above, Y in this idiom must serve to express not an actual action but something that merely seems to be true about the preceding subject.
Moreover, the usage of
so X as to Y implies that the portion in red does not actually happen.
Not the intended meaning.
A person can DROWN in quicksand.
Thus, quicksand actually DOES acquire the character of a liquid.
To express this meaning, we should use
so X that Y, as in the OA:
"Quicksand"...is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid.
Another issue:
A dog's eyes can reveal much about its temperament.Here, the phrase in blue implies that every dog has UNIQUE eyes -- eyes that can reveal much about the dog's temperament.
A:
a liquid's character
This phrase seems to imply that every liquid has a UNIQUE character.Not the intended meaning.
The intention here is to discuss the general nature of any given liquid.
The OA correctly expresses this meaning:
"Quicksand"... is so saturated with water that it acquires the character of a liquid.
Here, THE CHARACTER of a liquid = the general nature of any given liquid.
Further:
The GMAT tends to frown upon applying an apostrophe to an inanimate object.
Inferior:
The TABLE'S legs are wobbling.Better:
The legs OF THE TABLE are wobbling.The wording D (
the character OF A LIQUID) Is preferable to that in A (
a LIQUID'S character).
For all these reasons, eliminate A.
Thank you very much for the nice explanation, Sir.
So, you are saying that with the term ''book's page'' it means ''every book has UNIQUE page'', right?