According to one expert, the cause of genetic irregularities in many b

Question

According to one expert,  the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria  as that the breeds have relatively few founding members.

(A) the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria

(B) the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not as much their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much

(C) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog that they are being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much

(D) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria so much

(E) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog to be bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria

https://www.theatlantic.com/past/docs/issues/99jul/9907dogs3.htm

Guys I chose B because of the idiom as much as...please tell me why that is wrong..

the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not  as much  their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria  as  much

esledge · Accepted Answer

This tests the idiom "not so much X as Y." Some examples:

1. My poor grade is due  not so much  to my failure to do my homework  as  to my failure to submit it on time.
2. The root of our confusion is  not so much  combinatorics  as  factorials fundamentally.
3. They did  not so much  dance  as  float across the floor.

Parallelism is required between X and Y. In the examples above, the parallelism is between:
1. prepositional phrases
2. nouns
3. verbs

BarneyStinson · Answer

This is a idiom question. And the idiom in the question is correct. the cause of....is not so much that....as that... We might as well categorize this question as a so-as construct question.

My technique is to break the sentence with proper pauses to make logical constructs. If something sounds awkward, it needs a fix.

The given sentence itself makes complete sense, the intent is clear, concise, and active-voice actually.

zaarathelab · Answer

The correct idiom is   Not so much X as Y

Only A uses it correctly

jeeteshsingh · Answer

According to one expert,  the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria  as that the breeds have relatively few founding members.

(A) the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria
(B) the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not as much their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much
(C) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog that they are being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much
(D) it is not so much that the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria so much
(E) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog to be bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria

C, D, E have it which has no antecedent and the pronoun is not required.... also the sentences make little sense with being and to be in them

Between A and B... A is clear winner for the idiom... so much as... used correctly....

Therefore A...!

sudish · Answer

Hi

Please find the explanation below:

According to one expert, the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria as that the breeds have relatively few founding members.
A. the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria --> This has the correct idiom usage and structure - the cause of genetic ... is not so much X .... as Y. Here both X and Y should have a parallel structure. We can notice that the Y portion has the structure that begins with 'that the breeds ...' so the X portion should also begin with 'that dogs are ....' This alone can be used to rule out the other answer choices.
B. the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not as much their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much --> the structures are not parallel i.e the X portion begins with 'their being bred ...' which is incorrect as it should begin with 'that ... '.
C. it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog that they are being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much --> structure not parallel and the use of the pronoun 'it' in the begin makes the sentence confusing. What is 'it' referring to?
D. it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria so much --> structure not parallel and the use of the pronoun 'it' in the begin makes the sentence confusing. What is 'it' referring to?
E. it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog to be bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria --> structure not parallel and the use of the pronoun 'it' in the begin makes the sentence confusing. What is 'it' referring to?

Hence the correct answer is option A.
Hope this helps.

Cheers!

shikhar · Answer

Q. According to one expert,  the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria  as that the breeds have relatively few founding members. 
A. the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria
B. the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not as much their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much
C. it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog that they are being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much
D. it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria so much
E. it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog to be bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria

I marked B thinking about the "not as much " "as much as that" structure ....please explain.

CrackverbalGMAT · Answer

This question is based on Comparison and Idiomatic Usage.

The appropriate idiomatic phrase is  not so much X as Y .

In Options B, C, and D, there is an error of idiomatic usage. The adjective ‘much’ at the end of the option is redundant. So, Options B, C, and D can be eliminated.

The construction of Option E distorts the meaning.  The “cause of genetic irregularities” is not being compared to the fact “that the breeds have relatively few founding members”.  
 The comparison is between the two causes of genetic irregularities -  “that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria”  and  “that the breeds have relatively few founding members”.   The intended meaning is distorted in Options C, D, and E. On the basis of this distortion in meaning, Options C, D, and E can also be eliminated.

Option A contains the appropriate idiomatic expression and conveys the intended comparison.  Therefore, A is the most appropriate option.

Jayanthi Kumar.

heyrohit · Answer

How I figured out without knowing the Idiom

According to one expert, the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria as that the breeds have relatively few founding members.

(A) the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that  dogs are being bred   for looks  or  to meet  other narrow criteria

(B) the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not as much  their being bred   for looks  or  meeting  other narrow criteria as much

(C) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog that they are being bred  for looks  or  meeting  other narrow criteria as much

(D) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is their being bred  for looks  or  meeting  other narrow criteria so much

(E) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog to be bred  for looks  or  to meet   other narrow criteria

It should be "bred for looks or to meet XYZ".

Thus only A and E remains.

In E, we don't have delayed subject i.e. if you try to replace IT then it is illogical.

"The cause of bla bla bla..." is not so much.

Only A remains

Nishantanand1992 · Answer

Hello experts
I cannot agree more for A as answer because of the correct idiom.
But in order to expand my understanding of the topic,
Can u please clarify on the following...
"bred for looks or to meet xyz" are both nouns in parallel ?

Posted from my mobile device

ExpertsGlobal5 · Answer

Hello  Nishantanand1992 ,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, in the phrase "bred for looks or to meet xyz", the parallel elements are "for looks" and "to meet xyz", which are both adverbial phrases acting upon the verb "bred".

We hope this helps.
All the best!
Experts' Global Team

Raman109 · Answer

According to one expert,  the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria  as that the breeds have relatively few founding members.

Option Elimination - 
The questions test the usage of an idiom - "not so much X as Y."
E.g., He is not so much a leader as a follower. Here, we compare two characteristics of someone," a leader" and "a follower," in grammatically parallel form. 
Not so much a strict teacher as a mentor, Professor Dutta encouraged his students to think critically and explore different perspectives. - Here, we are using "not so much X as Y" to contrast two qualities of Professor Dutta" - "a strict teacher" and " a mentor."

(A) the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not so much that dogs are being bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria - Here, the structure is "dog is not so much X (relative clause introduced by "that.") as Y (relative clause introduced by "that.") Ok.

(B) the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is not as much their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much - Wrong idiom structure.

(C) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog that they are being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria as much - Wrong idiom structure.

(D) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog is their being bred for looks or meeting other narrow criteria so much - Wrong idiom structure.

(E) it is not so much the cause of genetic irregularities in many breeds of dog to be bred for looks or to meet other narrow criteria - not parallel. After "not so much," we have a phrase - the cause ... and after "as" we have a relative clause - not parallel.

VerbalBot · Answer

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According to one expert, the cause of genetic irregularities in many b

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According to one expert, the cause of genetic irregularities in many b

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