Sentence Correction

Agricultural scientists have estimated that the annual loss by erosion of arable land caused by heavy rainfall and inadequate flood controls approaches two million acres per year.
A the annual loss by erosion of arable land caused by heavy rainfall and inadequate flood controls approaches two million acres per year
B the erosion of heavy rainfall and inadequate flood controls causes a loss of arable land approaching two million acres per year
C erosion caused by heavy rainfall and inadequate flood controls results in a loss of arable land
approaching two million acres per year
D an annual loss approaching two million acres of arable land per year results from erosion caused by heavy rainfall and inadequate flood controls
E annually a loss of arable land approaching two million acres per year is caused by erosion due to heavy rainfall and inadequate flood
controls

Can you help me find the correct answer? Explanations will be appreciated! Thanks in advance!

IMO C

annual and per year convey the same idea. So based on redundancy we can knock off A,D, and E.

In option B - erosion of heavy rainfall and inadequate flood controls is nonsensical.

C is the winner

Thanks, Smackmartine,

Nice!

Now the second one:

The Gatherers, a lecture series which discusses life among early human tribes, suggests that hunting and foraging groups be viewed as distinct from agricultural communities, rather than as part of a continuum.
A which discusses life among early human tribes, suggests that hunting and foraging groups be viewed as distinct from agricultural communities, rather than as part of a continuum
B discussing life in early human tribes, suggests hunting and foraging groups should be viewed distinctly from agricultural communities, rather than continuously
C that discusses life in early human tribes, suggest that hunting and foraging groups are distinct from agricultural communities, rather than as part of a continuum
D discussing life in early human tribes, suggests that early hunting and foraging groups and agricultural communities be viewed as distinct, rather than as parts of a continuum
E discussing life among early human tribes, suggested to view hunting and gathering groups as distinct from agricultural communities, rather than in a continuum

My answer is A. Because after suggests we cannot use 'Should' or 'are' (infinitive without 'to' should be used). So we eliminate B and C
D is changing the meaning of the original sentence thus, it's also out!
And I couldn't find grammaticall error in E but I still chose A.
Please help me on this.

This one was a bit time taking but ..let me know whats the OA

IMO D

1st to decide between suggest & suggests.

The Gatherers is surely some kind of book, so suggests is appropriate. Knock out C.

Knock out E because a book can still suggest something and suggested is a wrong tense.

A,B, and D remain.

Option A - life among early human tribes is definitely not intended, rather life in early human tribes sounds reasonable. A is out.

Between B and D , option D wins because it correctly uses suggests that+ be

Hmm interesting...

Well, thanks for clearing it out. I thought D was an incorrect answer but after your post I read it carefully and noticed there was only a structual change.

Anyways, here is another problematic question:

In the United States, less than $200 per capita is spent by the government each year to support arts and cultural institutions, such as the National Endowment for the Arts, although the amount in European countries is much greater.

A In the United States, less than $200 per capita is spent by the government each year to support arts and cultural institutions, such as the National Endowment for the Arts, although the amount in European countries is much greater.
B The United States government spends less than $200 per capita annually supporting arts and cultural institutions, like the National Endowment for the Arts, although European countries spend a much greater amount.
C Although European countries spend a much greater amount, in the United States, the government spends annually fewer than $200 per capita to support arts and cultural institutions, including the National Endowment for the Arts.
D Arts and cultural institutions, like the National Endowment for the Arts, are supported by the United States government spending less than $200 per capita each year, although the amount in European countries is much greater.
E Although European countries spend a greater amount, the United States government annually spends fewer than $200 per capita to support arts and cultural institutions, such as the National Endowment for the Arts.

What do you think?

IMO E
A & D out because of passive voice
B out because like is used in place of Such as to mention any example
C because of redundant much & use of word including in place of such as
E could not find any error, little bit confused about usage of fewer.

kindly suggest if anything wrong in explanation

ashg84 wrote:IMO E

E could not find any error, little bit confused about usage of fewer.

I thought the usage of 'fewer' was somewhat ungrammatical. So let's hope for the help of expert here...

smackmartine wrote:IMO C

annual and per year convey the same idea. So based on redundancy we can knock off A,D, and E.

In option B - erosion of heavy rainfall and inadequate flood controls is nonsensical.

C is the winner

Doesnt an annual loss approaching two million acres of arable land in D . convey a meaning different from "loss of arable land
approaching two million acres per year "

bek_gmat wrote:Thanks, Smackmartine,

Nice!

Now the second one:

The Gatherers, a lecture series which discusses life among early human tribes, suggests that hunting and foraging groups be viewed as distinct from agricultural communities, rather than as part of a continuum.
A which discusses life among early human tribes, suggests that hunting and foraging groups be viewed as distinct from agricultural communities, rather than as part of a continuum
B discussing life in early human tribes, suggests hunting and foraging groups should be viewed distinctly from agricultural communities, rather than continuously
C that discusses life in early human tribes, suggest that hunting and foraging groups are distinct from agricultural communities, rather than as part of a continuum
D discussing life in early human tribes, suggests that early hunting and foraging groups and agricultural communities be viewed as distinct, rather than as parts of a continuum
E discussing life among early human tribes, suggested to view hunting and gathering groups as distinct from agricultural communities, rather than in a continuum

My answer is A. Because after suggests we cannot use 'Should' or 'are' (infinitive without 'to' should be used). So we eliminate B and C
D is changing the meaning of the original sentence thus, it's also out!
And I couldn't find grammaticall error in E but I still chose A.
Please help me on this.

could someone throw some light on the difference between A)life among early human tribes and B) life in early human tribes

Also the difference between
A)rather than as part of a continuum and B) rather than as parts of a continuum

bek_gmat wrote:

ashg84 wrote:IMO E

E could not find any error, little bit confused about usage of fewer.

I thought the usage of 'fewer' was somewhat ungrammatical. So let's hope for the help of expert here...

E is wrong
Fewer can only be used for unit nouns but when the noun implies the underlying quantity , in this case money , less is supposed to be used
IMO A
I could eliminate the remaining option either on the basis of the difference between like and such as or on the basis of difference between less and fewer

mundasingh123 wrote:

bek_gmat wrote:

ashg84 wrote:IMO E

E could not find any error, little bit confused about usage of fewer.

I thought the usage of 'fewer' was somewhat ungrammatical. So let's hope for the help of expert here...

E is wrong
Fewer can only be used for unit nouns but when the noun implies the underlying quantity , in this case money , less is supposed to be used
IMO A
I could eliminate the remaining option either on the basis of the difference between like and such as or on the basis of difference between less and fewer

I agree with mundasingh123...
B and D can simply be removed based on "like". For examples always use "such as"
"Fewer" is always used for countable nouns, so C and E are wrong
IMO A