GMAT Sentence Correction: The growth of the railroads led to the abolition...

[rd_eastbay]

Thanks Erin. I understand now; looking at this with a fresh mind helps too.

 

So if © were

 

The growth of the railroads led to the abolition of local times, which were determined by when the sun reached the observer’s meridian and which differed from city to city, and to the establishment of regional times.

 

Then the sentence would be correct. Right??

 

Once again, thanks a lot!

 

The growth of the railroads led to the abolition of local times, which was determined by when the sun reached the observer’s meridian and differing from city to city, and to the establishment of regional times.

 

© which were determined by when the sun reached the observer’s meridian and differing

 

 

 

 

If C were correct as written (which is possible grammatically), it would mean this:

The growth of the railroads led to the abolition of local times,

which were determined by when the sun reached the observer’s meridian and

which were

differing

from city to city, and to the establishment of regional times.

 

 

 

 

In other words, which were determined would be parallel with which were differing; or, if it were "reduced," determined and differing would be parallel.

 

 

 

I think you'll agree that the verb tense of which were differing is incorrect, so C is out. :)

 

[rd_eastbay]

Answering my own question, having looked at Erin's pointer to an earlier thread. Indeed the sentence quoted below is correct.

 

Thanks Erin. I understand now; looking at this with a fresh mind helps too.

 

So if © were

 

The growth of the railroads led to the abolition of local times, which were determined by when the sun reached the observer’s meridian and which differed from city to city, and to the establishment of regional times.

 

Then the sentence would be correct. Right??

 

Once again, thanks a lot!

[khushi2020]

Nice job! It seems you've figured these things out for yourself, but feel free to ask again for clarification. :grad:

Thank you. I am truly complacent and wouldn't have taken the initiative to understand this better if you hadn't motivated me in the following sentence. (I hope this sentence is grammatically correct).

 

If that doesn't clear up your doubts, could you kindly explain to me in detail what's confusing you? It'll be a lot easier for me to explain if I know what's causing you trouble. :)

 

This is a great forum. I have learnt so much here....

[Erin]

So everybody's happy now? Wonderful. Let me savor the moment, LOL. :D

[rsr80]

hi cc2005,

 

thanks for your reply.

 

oh! so, should I understand that while "determined" is parallel with "differing" (based on "times" being object first and subject next), "which were determined" cannot be parallel with "differing" because it would then imply "which were differing" - a wrong usage.

[Erin]

So that nobody gets confused, I've merged the two threads we had going on this question, since I've answered a bunch of stuff in each. :)

[aspiremba]

I happened to land on this thread and wow, am I fortunate enough!! Erin, your explanations helped a lot - never understood this sentence even after taking a prep course and delving on this question for hours. Thanks doesn't even express an aorta of my gratitude.

[karlfurt]

The growth of the railroads led to the abolition of local times, which was determined by when the sun reached the observer’s meridian and differing from city to city, and to the establishment of regional times.

 

© which were determined by when the sun reached the observer’s meridian and differing

If C were correct as written (which is possible grammatically), it would mean this:

The growth of the railroads led to the abolition of local times,

which were determined by when the sun reached the observer’s meridian and

which were

differing

from city to city, and to the establishment of regional times.

In other words, which were determined would be parallel with which were differing; or, if it were "reduced," determined and differing would be parallel.

 

I think you'll agree that the verb tense of which were differing is incorrect, so C is out. :)

 

 

Hello Erin,

 

I've read all your impressive explanations about this SC which is still puzzling me after 6 months study and already one attempt few months ago.

I've read this sentence so many times. The problem is that every time I try to answer, I choose C! I simply cannot figure out why C is wrong. The quote above is the ultimate explanation I found for dismissing C.

 

So you say that C can simply be dismissed because 'which were differing' uses a wrong verb tense. When I look this sentence, I don't see what is wrong in the tense. For example :

'the people were thinking'. I suppose this is a correct sentence which uses an intransitive verb, like 'differ'.

 

So can you please explain a little more this point which seems to be so obvious but to me!

 

Thanks

[bmwhype]

Hello Erin,

 

I've read all your impressive explanations about this SC which is still puzzling me after 6 months study and already one attempt few months ago.

I've read this sentence so many times. The problem is that every time I try to answer, I choose C! I simply cannot figure out why C is wrong. The quote above is the ultimate explanation I found for dismissing C.

 

So you say that C can simply be dismissed because 'which were differing' uses a wrong verb tense. When I look this sentence, I don't see what is wrong in the tense. For example :

'the people were thinking'. I suppose this is a correct sentence which uses an intransitive verb, like 'differ'.

 

So can you please explain a little more this point which seems to be so obvious but to me!

 

Thanks

it's very simple. which refers to the noun in the noun + of + object construction. the abolition was not determined by when the sun reached the observer's meridian. it was the local time that was "determined by when..."

[bmwhype]

GMAT Club :: View topic - Brutal SC 70

[mitzi]

I studied Erin's explanation this afternoon, and encountered a question that tests the same concept. It was 'aha-moment'

 

Thank you very much Erin and guys!

the question is SC1000 - 767 as follows.

 

1.The increased popularity and availability of televisions has led to the decline of regional dialects, language variations which originate from diverse ethnic and cultural heritages and perpetuated by geographic isolation.

(A) which originate from diverse ethnic and cultural heritages and perpetuated

(B) that originated from diverse ethnic and cultural heritages and perpetuated

© originated from diverse ethnic and cultural heritages and perpetuated

(D) originating from diverse ethnic and cultural heritages and perpetuated

(E) originating from diverse ethnic and cultural heritages and perpetuating

 

Let me apply what I learned today.

 

without ellipsis the sentence was

language variations which were originated .... and which were penetrated by.....

 

-> compressed them into participial phrase.

language variations originating..... and penetrated.....

 

when why not 'penetrating?

language variations is not an agent of penetrating. it is receiving by graphic isolation.

so 'penetrated' is correct.

 

What do you think?

[micky2100]

Almost! You're right that we need a finite verb in here to make the elements parallel, but it's not determined and differed that are parallel; it's was determined and differed (they are both verbs/verb phrases).

 

in the above post erin has mentioned that was determined is a verb

but as we know be verb+participle is used in pasive voice and ws determined is also modifying times....as a result determined should be a participle in above context....

[samarpan_bschool]

Hi Mitzi

 

Is my explanation correct? Have i correctly made individual sentences from the question?

 

'Geographic isolations perpetuate language variations' ---> So 'perpetuate' modifies the object 'language variations'. So '-ed form' perpetuated

 

Language variations originate from various ethnic and cultural heritages' ----> So 'originate' modifies the subject 'language variations'. So '-ing form' originating

 

 

Thanks a ton!

[mitzi]

samarpan_bschool,

 

You are genious!!! It took me for a while to learn this, but you just got it..

Wow...

[samarpan_bschool]

Thanks mitzi. TM is an amazing forum because of amazing ppl like you :)

 

One more question TMians (am not supposed to post the question here, still i found some link to this thread)

 

The Baldrick Manufacturing Company has for several years followed a policy aimed at decreasing operating costs and improving the efficiency of its distribution system.

 

A) aimed at decreasing operating costs and improving

B) aimed at the decreasing of operating costs and to improve

C) aiming at the decreasing of operating costs and improving

D) the aim of which is the decreasing of operating costs and improving

E) with the aim to decrease operating costs and to improve

 

 

Removing ellipsis, 'The Baldrick Manufacturing Company has for several years followed a policy which was aimed at decreasing operating costs'. Since aimed at modifies policy which is an object, we use '-ed form'. Hence it is reduced to 'aimed at'

 

Second part of the sentence, 'improving the efficiency of its distribution system' Here we cannot write 'which was aimed at improving the efficiency of its system', since 'its' does not refer to policy.

 

'Efficiency of the company's distribution system is improved by the policy'. Here 'improve' modifies distribution system which is the subject, we use '-ing form'. Hence 'improving'.

 

By this logic, i find A as the correct answer.

 

Any thoughts?

 

Thanks a ton in advance...

[hsi5858]

 

Now, using these examples, and applying them to the rules I mentioned at the beginning, we will notice that if we made a sentence, person would be the subject of the verb speak and words would be the object of the verb speak. Using this procedure, we can figure out whether should use the -ing or -ed form of a participle that modifies a noun. And that's it!!

 

Of course, this is easy when the vocab is easy, and we often get confused when we are using difficult vocab because we sometimes don't know whether something is the subject or the object of the verb, but this procedure that I have explained is the only sure way to get the right answer.

 

In our sentence here, which replaces times, and times is the object of determined, but it is the subject of differed.

 

In other words, we have something like this:

 

...somebody determined times...

 

but

 

times differed...

 

I know some of you have learned that we should only use the -ing form only for actions that are ongoing/in progress in the present, but that's simply not true. We do occasionally use them correctly for past actions that were ongoing/in progress.

 

Finally, everybody gets confused simply because the -ed form appears in the second one, making people think the -ed form should appear again when it's reduced. We need to realize that there is truly no connection (for our purposes here in GMATland, anyway :D !!!!) between the two; it's pure coincidence that each has the -ed form in it!!!

 

If you stick to the rules that I just wrote, you'll be okay.

 

Hi Erin,

OG #42. Scientists have recently discovered what could be the largest and oldest living organism on Earth, a giant fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and rootlike tentacles spawned by a single fertilized spore some 10,000 years ago and extending for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.

correct answer is: extending rather than extended

 

Can I solve OG# 42 by using your method above?

Fungus here is the object: A fungus is spawned => reduced to "spawned"

Whereas, fungus here is the subject: A fungus extended => reduced to "extending"