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RoadtoIVY · Tue Nov 10, 2009 10:36 pm

Could somebody please help? This problem is driving me nuts javascript:emoticon(' Evil or Very Mad

')

Costly X-rays often not needed, the OT rules were developed to aid in a doctor’s decision as to whether a patient with foot pain should be offered an X-ray, since only 5% of patients before the rules actually had fractures when X-rayed.

A. Costly X-rays often not needed, the OT rules were developed to aid in a doctor’s decision as to whether a patient with foot pain should be offered an X-ray, since only 5% of patients before the rules actually had fractures when X-rayed.
B. The OT rules were developed to aid in a doctor’s decision as to whether a patient with foot pain should be offered an X-ray, since only 5% of patients before the rules’ development actually had fractures when X-rayed, and these X-rays were costly and often not needed.
C. Since only 5% of patients before the rules’ development actually had fractures when X-rayed, and these X-rays were costly and often not needed, the OT rules were developed to aid in a doctor’s decision as to whether a patient with foot pain should be offered an X-ray.
D. Developed to aid in a doctor’s decision as to whether a patient with foot pain should be offered an X-ray, only 5% of patients, when X-rayed, actually had fractures before the OT rules were developed, and X-rays were costly and often not needed.
E. The OT rules were developed to aid in a doctor’s decision as to whether a patient with foot pain should be offered an X-ray; X-rays were costly and often not needed, and 5% of patients, when X-rayed actually had fractures before the rules’ development.

Source: 800 Score Verbal test 4 Evil or Very Mad

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capnx · Wed Nov 11, 2009 12:26 am

Man, went back and forth on this question and finally decided on A.

D is for sure wrong b/c the subject "5% of patients" cannot be "developed to aid..."

B and C is probably wrong b/c "these x-rays" cannot be properly traced to preceding references.

E is wrong because it changes the meaning (missing "only") and missing comma after "when x-rayed,"

A is explainable:

"Costly X-rays often not needed" is an independent structure,
"the OT rules were developed..." is the main clause,
"since only 5%" is subordinate clause modifying the main clause

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kiennguyen · Wed Nov 11, 2009 1:00 am

i don't understand the structure of A!?!

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2010gmat · Wed Nov 11, 2009 3:37 am

b...if correct i wud explain...is a real tough ques

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nervesofsteel · Wed Nov 11, 2009 3:51 am

btw b and c

i will go for B

IMO
OT rules are mentioned after "The rules" in C

"the rules" should come after OT rules

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RoadtoIVY · Wed Nov 11, 2009 7:16 am

I also don't know the correct anwer.

What do you guys think of this line "Costly X-rays often not needed" in option A? Is this sentence correct. If yes, I will go ahead with A because B uses "and these X-rays were costly and often not needed.", which I feel is wordy.

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2010gmat · Wed Nov 11, 2009 8:16 am

well that line is the only concern in choice A....it lacks a main verb...{atleast i think so}..

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capnx · Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:22 am

A begins with an independent structure.
"Costly X-rays often not needed, the OT rules were developed to..."

Structure:
With + noun + participle (verb+ed or verb+ing)
NOTE: "with" can be dropped

So for A: (With) X-rays not needed
"with" is dropped
X-rays = noun
needed = past participle

example:
With his homework done, Tom went out to play.
"With" can be dropped --> His homework done, Tom went out to play.

Another structure is:
With + noun + prep phrase
ie: With the book in his hand, Tom went to the library.
- "with" can also be dropped: The book in his hand, Tom went to the library.[/i]

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berserk · Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:45 am

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KapTeacherEli · Wed Nov 11, 2009 2:05 pm

A is incorrect. In English, clauses (subject-verb structures) must be linked to one another by exactly one connecting phrase. In A, there is no connector between the clause "X-rays aren't needed" and "the OT rules were developed." It needs a "because," "since," or "so," to be correct; as written, it's a run-on sentence.

D is incorrect because the initial descriptive phrase, "developed to...", describes the OT rules, but the phrase is adjacent to "5% of patients." This is a modification error, and is incorrect.

E looks good; replacing a comma with a semicolon is one way to correct a run-on. However, the very last bit is garbled. 'when tested' is a descriptive phrase the needs to be followed by a comma, and "before the rules development" at the end of this version is a dangling modifier.

B and C are almost identical. Literally the only difference between the two is the order of the clauses. However, B has the superior order. B introduces "patients with foot pain" and "the OT rules" in it's first clause, then clearly refers back to "patients" and "the rules" in the second clause. C, on the other hand, starts by talking about the ambiguous "patients" and "the rules," and not until the second clause does it actually clarify the specifics of its subjects.
B is correct.

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