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The Environmental Protection Agency frequently puts mandatory controls 10 Oct 2022, 03:37
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Shivangisharmaa
In a similar sentence (similar in comparative form), the only divide between the correct option choice (c) and the incorrect options choice (d) is idiomatic usage of the idiom.
(c)- X as prominently as Y
(d)- as prominently X as Y
Here, the correct choice uses the latter construction, deemed incorrect in the sentence that I am referring to.
Kindly help with this seeming contradiction and guide.
Show more

Not an idiom issue. Idioms are acceptable pairings of words or phrases—NOT word orders.

You can decide between C and D on the linked problem on the basis of relative placement. There's really just one basic tenet of relative placement judgments: It's better to put paired elements closer together.
After you've eliminated any absolute errors (= issues of right/wrong) that you can find, you can use this simplistic-looking principle to eliminate choices that put paired elements unnecessarily farther apart than do other choices.

Two pairs of paired elements in that sentence are...
• advertise + the highest price (a verb and its object)
• as prominently + as (an idiomatic pairing)

Let's check the relative placement of these pairs in C vs. D:

(C) failure to advertise the highest price in a range of prices for a service or product as prominently as the lowest
—> BOTH pairings have OPTIMAL placement! The two elements in each relationship are directly adjacent, with nothing at all between them.

(D) failure to advertise as prominently the highest price in a range of prices for a service or product as the lowest
—> Objectively inferior placement x 2. This choice splits both pairs and spreads the two halves of each pair unnecessarily far apart, while gaining nothing in return.

C is thus objectively better, and D is objectively worse.


By the way—Going forward, if you have questions about another problem, please post those questions in a thread for the corresponding problem. (If that discussion relates to the current one, please feel free to link to that additional discussion from your posts here—but please do not post questions about any problem other than the one in the head of each thread.)
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The Environmental Protection Agency frequently puts mandatory controls 11 Oct 2022, 00:09
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Hi Experts,

AndrewN GMATNinja MartyTargetTestPrep AjiteshArun RonTargetTestPrep KarishmaB

I was down to Option (B) vs (D).

Shouldn't "a risk" be "as little as" and not "a risk as little as" since we are just showing the degree of the risk, how can we compare the risk itself to one in a million?

Thanks
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The Environmental Protection Agency frequently puts mandatory controls 11 Oct 2022, 04:50
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test9032
Hi Experts,

AndrewN GMATNinja MartyTargetTestPrep AjiteshArun RonTargetTestPrep KarishmaB

I was down to Option (B) vs (D).

Shouldn't "a risk" be "as little as" and not "a risk as little as" since we are just showing the degree of the risk, how can we compare the risk itself to one in a million?

Thanks
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Hello test9032,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, "one chance in a million" is an expression of probability, so it can logically be compared with "risk".

We hope this helps.
All the best!
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The Environmental Protection Agency frequently puts mandatory controls 11 Oct 2022, 13:33
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Shivangisharmaa
In a similar sentence (similar in comparative form), the only divide between the correct option choice (c) and the incorrect options choice (d) is idiomatic usage of the idiom.
(c)- X as prominently as Y
(d)- as prominently X as Y
Here, the correct choice uses the latter construction, deemed incorrect in the sentence that I am referring to.
Kindly help with this seeming contradiction and guide.

the sentence I am referring to:
https://gmatclub.com/forum/according-to ... 89303.html
Show more
When you're evaluating a comparison, you want to focus on two questions: 1) is the comparison clear? and 2) is the comparison logical? What we don't want to do is to try to remember if a construction is valid by comparing it to other constructions we've seen and getting into the weeds about what's idiomatic and what isn't. What works in one context may not in another.

That said, the correct answer for this question, and the option you cited in the other one are pretty different. First, take another look at the OA here:

Quote:
The Environmental Protection Agency frequently puts mandatory controls on toxic substances that present as little risk as one chance in a million.
Show more
How small is the risk? As small as one in a million. Perfectly clear and logical.

Now look at (D) from the question you mentioned:

Quote:
Failure to advertise as prominently the highest price in a range of prices for a service or product as the lowest violates the New York Consumer Protection Law.
Show more
Notice how much longer and messier this comparison is. The phrase "failure to advertise as prominently the highest price" is a problem. Something can be advertised as prominently as another item. But advertising as prominently the highest price? That's nonsense. It isn't clear or logical.

There's no rule this construction is violating. The issue is the incoherent meaning.

The takeaway: comparisons are hard! You can't memorize every scenario you might see. But you can always ask yourself whether what you're reading is clear and logical. If it is, keep it. If it isn't, get rid of it. If you're not sure, look for other issues.

For more on comparisons, check out this video or this one.

I hope that helps!
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The Environmental Protection Agency frequently puts mandatory controls 28 Oct 2023, 10:08
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The Environmental Protection Agency frequently puts mandatory controls on toxic substances that present as little risk as one in a million chances to cause cancer.

Option Elimination -
First, for clarity - "one chance in a million" is better than "one in a million chances." How?
Let's look at "one chance in a million" first. "one" - indicates the number or quantity. It signifies that there is only one instance or possibility. "Chance" refers to the probability of something happening. "In a million" is a phrase that signifies the context or magnitude of the probability. It emphasizes that the event is sporadic/infrequent/highly rare.
Now let's look at "one in a million chances" - When you read "one in a million," you already get a sense that this is something rare. So, adding "chances" now is a bit redundant.

Moreover, as Daagh already very beautifully pointed out, "the substances" don't possess any intention, so "to cause" and "for causing" are inferior.

(A) as little risk as one in a million chances to cause - "one chance in a million" is better than "one in a million chances." Moreover, "of causing" is better.

(B) as little risk as one chance in a million of causing - ok.

(C) as little risk as one chance in a million that it will cause - "it" has no antecedent. "toxic substances" is plural. "will cause" is inferior in this case to "of causing."

(D) a risk as little as one chance in a million for causing - "a" before risk means as if there are many risks. Not the intended meaning, which is "the substances have a low level of risk," and not multiple risks. "for causing" here is inferior to "of causing."

(E) a risk as little as one chance in a million for it to cause - the same issue of "a." No antecedent of "it." "to cause" here is inferior to "of causing."
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The Environmental Protection Agency frequently puts mandatory controls 13 Jul 2025, 12:19
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