OFFICIAL EXPLANATIONHello again, everyone. I am not sure what the takeaway was from Day 2 of the Verbal challenge. On the one hand, roughly two-thirds of the test pool answered correctly, so the question seemed to be a success; on the other, there was very little acknowledgment to that effect, so maybe I am just telling myself what I want to hear. Anyway, back to another SC challenge. Since the whole sentence is underlined, I will jump straight to the answers.
Quote:
(A) To gamblers, upon winning, the sudden rush of adrenaline affects their brains and bodies much like the experience of opening a surprise gift.
One consideration that often eludes test-takers, and one that most guides do not touch on, is that the GMAT™ prefers right-branching sentences, those that spell out a clear subject and verb from the beginning, to their left-branching counterparts. Why? Because it is easier to follow a sentence that tells you exactly what it is about upfront. The longer the sentence delays that vital meaning, the more trouble the reader will have following the main thread. In this case, we encounter two phrases before we reach what forms the main clause,
rush (subject) +
affects (verb). It is not that you can never see back-to-back introductory phrases, but the construct is suboptimal, which is why I have
highlighted it above. In short, we already have a reason to doubt (A).
The bigger issue is that the comparison is off at the tail-end of the sentence.
The GMAT™ is downright draconian about comparing like elements in a comparison. If you have any doubts about X and Y matching, then it is probably a safe bet (speaking of gambling) to seek a cleaner iteration of the sentence. Here, in terms of the grammar, X is
the sudden rush of adrenaline affects, and Y is
the experience, with a couple of details attached. A rush of adrenaline affecting someone is NOT the same as an experience. We need a rush and an experience to be
affecting the body in similar ways. The comparison is off, so this answer can go.
Quote:
(B) Upon winning, gamblers experience the sudden rush of adrenaline that affects their brains and bodies much as opening a surprise gift.
Right idea, wrong execution. Now we have a clean introductory phrase that, within two words, leads to a main clause:
gamblers experience. The rest of the sentence acts as a direct object to tell us what gamblers experience, but this experience is again based on a comparison, so that comparison has to be airtight. Even though
as is generally used to compare actions—e.g.,
She spells as well as he does.—there is no action in the latter part of this particular comparison:
opening is used as a noun. If you were unsure, you could hang on to this option for now, but your gut reaction to the comparison is probably a sign that you should keep looking.
Quote:
(C) Upon winning, gamblers experience the sudden rush of adrenaline that affects their brains and bodies much like that of opening a surprise gift.
The key here is to ask yourself what
that is standing in for, and whether that comparison makes sense. We have to search for a noun, so
experience, a verb, is off the table. (The word was used as a noun in (A).) Since
gamblers is the subject, that leaves
rush as the only viable alternative. Test it out:
gamblers experience the sudden rush of adrenaline that affects their brains and bodies much like [the sudden rush] of opening a surprise giftThat might sound okay, but in terms of meaning, we have a problem. The sudden rush of adrenaline and the sudden rush of opening something are two different things. The sentence seems to want to compare the rush of adrenaline derived from two different experiences, but that is not the meaning conveyed by the comparison. We would not say
the sudden rush of adrenaline of opening a surprise gift, in any case.
Quote:
(D) To gamblers, upon winning, the sudden rush of adrenaline affects their brains and bodies much like experiencing opening a surprise gift.
Notice again that we are back to stacking introductory phrases. If we doubted it before, we should doubt it again. Toward the end of the sentence, the back-to-back -ing words ought to serve as a caution sign, but
experiencing could be cut entirely without the sentence losing anything. If a rush is to be compared with a rush, then neither
experiencing nor
opening will work; if an experience is to be compared with another experience, then the first part of the comparison is lacking. I would not bother trying to sort this one out any further.
Quote:
(E) Upon winning, gamblers experience the sudden rush of adrenaline that affects their brains and bodies much the way opening a surprise gift does.
Aha, we have finally landed on a clear and fitting comparison, one that comments on how one experience, winning at gambling,
affects gamblers in a similar manner to how another activity, opening a gift,
affects people in general. The verbs are properly compared:
to do enjoys a wide range of applicability in such comparisons. This answer may not sound the best, but it expresses the vital meaning of the sentence in the most straightforward manner, drawing on a comparison of like entities.
If you were on the fence about (B) from before, I would hope you would now be alert to the idea that that sentence is lacking a verb at the end, grounds for elimination compared to what we see in (E).
I hope you enjoyed this one. As always, if anyone has further questions, I would be happy to address them, and good luck with your studies.
- Andrew