Although there is still disagreement among the scientific community

Question

Although there is still disagreement  among the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is because doing so increases blood flow and cools  the brain.

A. among the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is because doing so increases blood flow and cools

B. among the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is that yawning increases blood flow, cooling

C. between the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is that yawning increases blood flow and cools

D. within the scientific community, some research suggests that people yawn because by doing so, blood flow increases, thereby cooling

E. in the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is because the act of yawning increases blood flow, thereby cooling

daagh · Accepted Answer

Let's appreciate that 'the reason .... because' expression is redundant. We must drop A, D, and E. Between B and C, the cooling of the brain is the result of the increase in blow flow. Hence the use of modification is the apt style. B is correct.

Max.MayankG · Answer

I also went with D but here is the OE for B as the correct answer.

Official Explanation:

(A) Notice that answer choice (B) changes the reason is … because to the reason … that. The structure the reason … because may sound fine, but it’s actually redundant: the reason already indicates that you’re about to hear a causal explanation; because conveys the same idea.
(B) CORRECT. This sentence changes the reason is … because in the initial sentence to the reason … that, removing the redundancy. Both and cools and cooling are correct; this split is a red herring.
(C) Between cannot be used to refer to the scientific community, which has more than two members.
(D) By removing reason, this sentence fixes the redundancy in the original sentence. However, the new construction introduces a modifier error. The modifier by doing so (yawning) must be followed by whoever is doing the yawning. For example, by exercising, Jim stays healthy. Jim is the person exercising. You could not say by exercising, a low heart rate keeps Jim healthy. This illogically implies that the low heart rate is doing the exercising. In answer choice (D), by doing so (yawning), blood flow implies that the blood flow is yawning.
(E) The reason … because is redundant. The reason already indicates that you’re about to hear a causal explanation; because conveys the same idea.

Experts please clarify more on the reasoning given for D as the incorrect answer.
Thanks.

chippoochan · Answer

My answer is "D" because I think that "among" is inappropriate here. It should be used when there are more than 2 parties but in this situation it's in "the scientific community". Can anyone explain what's wrong with D?

SonalSinha803 · Answer

I really don't think B as the answer. Answer should be D. Differences can only be between 2 people, among more than 2 and within a group or community.

Thus, use of among is clearly wrong in the above context. It should be D.

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US09 · Answer

Hi Sir, D doesn't use the said redundant expression. Is there any other reason to eliminate D?

arvind910619 · Answer

Although there is still disagreement among the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is because doing so increases blood flow and cools the brain.

A. among the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is because doing so increases blood flow and cools
B. among the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is that yawning increases blood flow, cooling
C. between the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is that yawning increases blood flow and cools
D. within the scientific community, some research suggests that people yawn because by doing so, blood flow increases, thereby cooling
E. in the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is because the act of yawning increases blood flow, thereby cooling

Verb-ing modifiers separated modify the preceding clause and depict the result of the preceding clause.
Here the yawning results in cooling , Option D suggests that cooling resulted from people.

daagh · Answer

D. within the scientific community, some research suggests that people yawn because by doing so, blood flow increases, thereby cooling

True. D does not contain 'the reason.' Hoverer in D, the modifier, 'thereby cooling' modifies the relative clause ' that people yawn'. This is not correct.

sumitgoyal2727 · Answer

I have one doubt here how "ämong" is used correctly in answer choice B.
Because it should be among scientific communities not scientific community.

Please explain??

daagh · Answer

I feel it is ok to use among for community since the word community stands for the members and we do not mean one community vis-a-vis another. Look at these examples about which one can't complain

Among the team, there is no co-operation. means among the team members 
Among the Indian community, there is more diversity than unity. We are not positing one Indian Community, say the US Indian Community vs. some other Indian community like the European Indian Community.

sumitgoyal2727 · Answer

Thanks for your explanation sir!!
I still have doubt regarding the example you have mentioned:
1. Among the team, there is no co-operation.

Suppose i really intend to say among the team (e.g. England, Pakistan, India) there is no co-operation.
I would express the sentence as:
2. Among the teams, there is no co-operation.

Now there are two sentences 1 and 2. From 1 and 2 how i would identify the sentence grammatically correct and with correct intention.
Because as per question author can also intend to say different communities and not the members of communities. Is not it creating ambiguity because as per your understanding "members of community" and as per my understanding "different community itself" and usage of communities instead of community.

Hope you get my point and further illustrate.

Srija221 · Answer

The question is missing the word 'members'.It should mention that among the members of the scientific community or among the scientific communities.Because if we specifically mention the community then it is quite obvious that we are indicating as a single community.

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daagh · Answer

When you say teams, that indeed makes it clear there is more than one team, and these teams are converged on some common issue. If there are only two teams, we will say there is no cooperation between the two participants. If there are more than two teams, then we will there is no cooperation among these teams. Context will make this clear. Won't it?

Similarly, if there are more than one scientist community, then it will be ok to say communities. However, when the community refers to all of the scientist members from Alaska and Antarctica, why should we see them as people with different intents?

manass · Answer

If we dont know the number of people in that community (it can be 2 also) why cant we eliminate both among and between.
I picked E need more help

Akshil · Answer

@ 
Actually, you can pick among here because we can assume that the community is large. We are not talking about any hypothetical community. We know for a fact that scientific community is more than two people.

Anyways, here is the official explanation from Manhattan :

(1) Take a First Glance (5 seconds)

The initial four-way split (among, between, within, in) is testing Idioms.

(2) Read for Meaning

The sentence says that there is disagreement among the scientific community about why people yawn. The difference between among and between is that between can only be used when discussing two things (between apples and oranges); among is used when discussing more than two things (among his peers). Since there are presumably more than two people in the scientific community, between the scientific community is incorrect. Eliminate choice (C). Note that in the scientific community and within the scientific community are also both correct idioms, but if you’re ever uncertain of the proper idiom, tackle the other splits first.

Some research suggests one explanation for the phenomenon of yawning: Yawning increases blood flow and cools the brain. Most readers will likely not hear a mistake in the initial sentence. When this happens, compare the remaining answer choices to see whether they can shed light on a possible mistake in the original sentence.

(3) Find a Starting Point

Start with any difference that seems easiest to you, then move to the next easiest issue, and so on. Stop when you have one answer or you aren’t sure how to address the remaining differences. All errors for each choice are detailed in the next section.

(4) Eliminate (and Repeat)

(A) Notice that answer choice (B) changes the reason is … because to the reason … that. The structure the reason … because may sound fine, but it’s actually redundant: the reason already indicates that you’re about to hear a causal explanation; because conveys the same idea.

(B) CORRECT. This sentence changes the reason is … because in the initial sentence to the reason … that, removing the redundancy. Both and cools and cooling are correct; this split is a red herring.

(C) Between cannot be used to refer to the scientific community, which has more than two members.

(D) By removing reason, this sentence fixes the redundancy in the original sentence. However, the new construction introduces a modifier error. The modifier by doing so (yawning) must be followed by whoever is doing the yawning. For example, by exercising, Jim stays healthy. Jim is the person exercising. You could not say by exercising, a low heart rate keeps Jim healthy. This illogically implies that the low heart rate is doing the exercising. In answer choice (D), by doing so (yawning), blood flow implies that the blood flow is yawning.

(E) The reason … because is redundant. The reason already indicates that you’re about to hear a causal explanation; because conveys the same idea.

harsh8686 · Answer

Hi  EMPOWERgmatVerbal

Can you please help me in understanding the usage of the present participle in choice B.

Here who is cooling the brain? The people are cooling the brain? their action (yawning ) is cooling the brain? or the increase in blood flow is cooling the brain?

EMPOWERgmatVerbal · Answer

Thanks for asking  harsh8686 !

Based on how this sentence is written, the -ing modifier "cooling the brain" is meant to show the RESULT of an action. In this case, it's the result of increased blood flow. Therefore, "cooling the brain" is modifying/adding more information to "increases blood flow."

We hope that helps!

Crytiocanalyst · Answer

A. among the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is because doing so increases blood flow and cools
because and reason together leads to redudancy therefore out

B. among the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is that yawning increases blood flow, cooling
The meaning is perfect therefore let us hang on to it

C. between the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is that yawning increases blood flow and cools
There are never 2 scientific communities it's always within or among therefore out

D. within the scientific community, some research suggests that people yawn because by doing so, blood flow increases, thereby cooling
Too many commas are distorting the meaning thererfore out

E. in the scientific community, some research suggests that the reason people yawn is because the act of yawning increases blood flow, thereby cooling
Similar reasoning as A

Therefore IMO B

Rainman91 · Answer

OFFICIAL SOLUTION

(1) Take a First Glance (5 seconds)

The initial four-way split (among, between, within, in) is testing Idioms.

(2) Read for Meaning

The sentence says that there is disagreement among the scientific community about why people yawn. The difference between among and between is that between can only be used when discussing two things (between apples and oranges); among is used when discussing more than two things (among his peers). Since there are presumably more than two people in the scientific community, between the scientific community is incorrect. Eliminate choice (C). Note that in the scientific community and within the scientific community are also both correct idioms, but if you’re ever uncertain of the proper idiom, tackle the other splits first.

Some research suggests one explanation for the phenomenon of yawning: Yawning increases blood flow and cools the brain. Most readers will likely not hear a mistake in the initial sentence. When this happens, compare the remaining answer choices to see whether they can shed light on a possible mistake in the original sentence.

(3) Find a Starting Point

Start with any difference that seems easiest to you, then move to the next easiest issue, and so on. Stop when you have one answer or you aren’t sure how to address the remaining differences. All errors for each choice are detailed in the next section.

(4) Eliminate (and Repeat)

(A) Notice that answer choice (B) changes the reason is … because to the reason … that. The structure the reason … because may sound fine, but it’s actually redundant: the reason already indicates that you’re about to hear a causal explanation; because conveys the same idea.

(B) CORRECT. This sentence changes the reason is … because in the initial sentence to the reason … that, removing the redundancy. Both and cools and cooling are correct; this split is a red herring.

(C) Between cannot be used to refer to the scientific community, which has more than two members.

(D) By removing reason, this sentence fixes the redundancy in the original sentence. However, the new construction introduces a modifier error. The modifier by doing so (yawning) must be followed by whoever is doing the yawning. For example, by exercising, Jim stays healthy. Jim is the person exercising. You could not say by exercising, a low heart rate keeps Jim healthy. This illogically implies that the low heart rate is doing the exercising. In answer choice (D), by doing so (yawning), blood flow implies that the blood flow is yawning.

(E) The reason … because is redundant. The reason already indicates that you’re about to hear a causal explanation; because conveys the same idea.

VerbalBot · Answer

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Although there is still disagreement among the scientific community

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Although there is still disagreement among the scientific community

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