Last visit was: 08 Jul 2025, 21:05 It is currently 08 Jul 2025, 21:05
Close
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track
Your Progress

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Close
Request Expert Reply
Confirm Cancel
User avatar
shridhar786
Joined: 31 May 2018
Last visit: 08 Feb 2022
Posts: 325
Own Kudos:
1,683
 [17]
Given Kudos: 132
Location: United States
Concentration: Finance, Marketing
Posts: 325
Kudos: 1,683
 [17]
Kudos
Add Kudos
16
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
User avatar
udaypratapsingh99
Joined: 12 Jan 2019
Last visit: 04 Mar 2025
Posts: 399
Own Kudos:
230
 [3]
Given Kudos: 372
Location: India
Concentration: Strategy, Leadership
GMAT 1: 660 Q47 V34
Products:
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
1
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
avatar
Bulla123
Joined: 28 Sep 2019
Last visit: 10 Oct 2020
Posts: 6
Own Kudos:
6
 [3]
Given Kudos: 19
Location: India
GMAT 1: 610 Q49 V24
GMAT 1: 610 Q49 V24
Posts: 6
Kudos: 6
 [3]
3
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
avatar
riyu44
Joined: 30 Sep 2019
Last visit: 30 Jul 2021
Posts: 10
Own Kudos:
4
 [1]
Given Kudos: 75
Posts: 10
Kudos: 4
 [1]
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Same here. I do not understand why Data in option C is considered as singular.
avatar
taniab0406
Joined: 29 Mar 2019
Last visit: 14 Feb 2021
Posts: 7
Own Kudos:
6
 [4]
Given Kudos: 46
Posts: 7
Kudos: 6
 [4]
3
Kudos
Add Kudos
1
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Option C is correct.
Nominal Clause "how the latest data from the research of a newly appointed professor at Hoffman University, Dr. J. Bennett, " is the subject. hence the correct to be verb 'is' -- satisfies S-V agreement
For example: what I need is a nice dress.
'what I need' is subject here.
avatar
twistedphoton
Joined: 19 Nov 2018
Last visit: 08 Sep 2021
Posts: 5
Own Kudos:
2
 [1]
Given Kudos: 174
Location: Canada
Concentration: Strategy, General Management
GPA: 3.33
WE:Project Management (Commercial Banking)
Posts: 5
Kudos: 2
 [1]
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Hi, can anyone help me understand why C is correct ?


(C) how the latest data from the research of a newly appointed professor at Hoffman University, Dr. J. Bennett, is beginning to elucidate the shaping of human behavior

--> i feel that it should be "research by" instead of "research of"
--> Doesn't "Research of" convey that research is being done on the professor ?
avatar
jeffarah
avatar
Current Student
Joined: 22 May 2018
Last visit: 22 Apr 2022
Posts: 5
Own Kudos:
7
 [1]
Given Kudos: 11
Location: United States (ID)
Concentration: Strategy, Marketing
GMAT 1: 480 Q30 V27
GMAT 2: 700 Q46 V40
GPA: 3.27
WE:Consulting (Advertising and PR)
Products:
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Regarding the concern with "data" being singular:

To clear things up for anyone else who was as confuse as I was - "data" is in fact plural BUT the sentence clearly states..

the "latest data". This is singular.

I like to rephrase these to make them sound more singular such as "The newest in a series of data" or "the most new submission of data" -> this emphasizes the fact that "data" is not the subject but the "single latest instance/submission of data" is the subject.

the suffix -est always means the "single most"

Hope this helps :)
User avatar
coinsy
Joined: 27 Aug 2019
Last visit: 03 Feb 2021
Posts: 14
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 5
Posts: 14
Kudos: 8
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
jeffarah
Regarding the concern with "data" being singular:

To clear things up for anyone else who was as confuse as I was - "data" is in fact plural BUT the sentence clearly states..

the "latest data". This is singular.

I like to rephrase these to make them sound more singular such as "The newest in a series of data" or "the most new submission of data" -> this emphasizes the fact that "data" is not the subject but the "single latest instance/submission of data" is the subject.

the suffix -est always means the "single most"

Hope this helps :)
I'm not sure this is correct. The latest or most recent release of something doesn't have to be singular:

[The newest] planes are more reliable than the oldest planes.
avatar
AnirudhChalla
avatar
Current Student
Joined: 12 Aug 2018
Last visit: 25 Jul 2023
Posts: 33
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 96
Location: India
GMAT 1: 700 Q50 V34
GMAT 2: 710 Q50 V36
GPA: 3.3
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
jeffarah
Regarding the concern with "data" being singular:

To clear things up for anyone else who was as confuse as I was - "data" is in fact plural BUT the sentence clearly states..

the "latest data". This is singular.

I like to rephrase these to make them sound more singular such as "The newest in a series of data" or "the most new submission of data" -> this emphasizes the fact that "data" is not the subject but the "single latest instance/submission of data" is the subject.

the suffix -est always means the "single most"

Hope this helps :)

I dont think your explanation is true.

'Latest Reports are misleading'

Latest can also be an adjective describing a plural noun.

Posted from my mobile device
avatar
Eminemmz
Joined: 21 Jul 2018
Last visit: 04 Mar 2021
Posts: 3
Given Kudos: 29
Location: India
Concentration: Finance, General Management
GMAT 1: 720 Q49 V40
GPA: 3.8
GMAT 1: 720 Q49 V40
Posts: 3
Kudos: -20
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
I think this is a high quality question.
Answer should be C.

Posted from my mobile device
User avatar
CrackverbalGMAT
User avatar
Major Poster
Joined: 03 Oct 2013
Last visit: 08 Jul 2025
Posts: 4,847
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 225
Affiliations: CrackVerbal
Location: India
Expert
Expert reply
Posts: 4,847
Kudos: 8,621
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
riyu44
Same here. I do not understand why Data in option C is considered as singular.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Hi,

I agree that there is some confusion regarding the usage of the word 'data'. Traditionally, 'data' was considered the plural form of the word 'datum'. However, if you look up the word in the dictionary, you will see that the word 'data' has its own usage. I give below the meaning given by the Merriam Webster dictionary.

data
noun, plural in form but singular or plural in construction, often attributive

da·ta | \ ˈdā-tə , ˈda- also ˈdä- \
Definition of data
1: factual information (such as measurements or statistics) used as a basis for reasoning, discussion, or calculation
the data is plentiful and easily available— H. A. Gleason, Jr.
comprehensive data on economic growth have been published— N. H. Jacoby

Is data singular or plural?: Usage Guide
Data leads a life of its own quite independent of datum, of which it was originally the plural. It occurs in two constructions: as a plural noun (like earnings), taking a plural verb and plural modifiers (such as these, many, a few) but not cardinal numbers, and serving as a referent for plural pronouns (such as they, them); and as an abstract mass noun (like information), taking a singular verb and singular modifiers (such as this, much, little), and being referred to by a singular pronoun (it). Both constructions are standard. The plural construction is more common in print, evidently because the house style of several publishers mandates it.


This question clearly indicates that the usage of the word 'data' is singular in this sentence (it conveys the meaning of information). There are clear reasons to rule out every other option.

I hope this helps:)

Jayanthi Kumar.
User avatar
CrackverbalGMAT
User avatar
Major Poster
Joined: 03 Oct 2013
Last visit: 08 Jul 2025
Posts: 4,847
Own Kudos:
8,621
 [1]
Given Kudos: 225
Affiliations: CrackVerbal
Location: India
Expert
Expert reply
Posts: 4,847
Kudos: 8,621
 [1]
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
twistedphoton
Hi, can anyone help me understand why C is correct ?


(C) how the latest data from the research of a newly appointed professor at Hoffman University, Dr. J. Bennett, is beginning to elucidate the shaping of human behavior

--> i feel that it should be "research by" instead of "research of"
--> Doesn't "Research of" convey that research is being done on the professor ?

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Hi,

To answer the first part of your question first, I agree that we do use the expression 'research by', but the more apt form of that is 'research done by'.

To answer the second part of your question, the expression 'research of' is correct because it means that the research belongs to the professor. To convey the meaning that research is being done on the professor, we would use 'research done on'.

Jayanthi Kumar.
User avatar
shivimonji
Joined: 15 Apr 2019
Last visit: 26 Dec 2021
Posts: 20
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 58
Location: India
Schools: IIMA PGPX'23
GMAT 1: 530 Q39 V27
Schools: IIMA PGPX'23
GMAT 1: 530 Q39 V27
Posts: 20
Kudos: 10
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
I was so happy to see the use of data and datum ( as I supposed I knew data is plural and hence I m going to be rewarded for my practice by answering 600-700 difficulty question in few seconds) but GMAT shocks us every now and then, nothing is enough. :---((((
User avatar
VerbalBot
User avatar
Non-Human User
Joined: 01 Oct 2013
Last visit: 04 Jan 2021
Posts: 18,439
Own Kudos:
Posts: 18,439
Kudos: 952
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Hello from the GMAT Club VerbalBot!

Thanks to another GMAT Club member, I have just discovered this valuable topic, yet it had no discussion for over a year. I am now bumping it up - doing my job. I think you may find it valuable (esp those replies with Kudos).

Want to see all other topics I dig out? Follow me (click follow button on profile). You will receive a summary of all topics I bump in your profile area as well as via email.
Moderators:
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
7349 posts
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
235 posts