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comma splice vs noun modifier : big help

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comma splice vs noun modifier : big help

by aditya.j » Tue Mar 20, 2012 8:57 pm
Wazup Gmat destroyers,

I just came across this sentence which I mistook for a comma splice sentence that is wrongly connected without a comma and conjunction.
for eg.
Agricultural advances have substantially increased peruvian population growth, a demographic change that will have serious social implications. (note that there are actually 2 independent clauses connected with a comma)

Now considering that we got to always keep an eye open for run on sentences, how do we differentiate between a run on sentence and one that has a summative modifier??

Any help would he appreciated...

best regards,

aJ


[Moderator Edit: Moved the post to a relevant forum - neelgandham]
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by neelgandham » Thu Apr 12, 2012 11:06 am
bumped to move the post to the top of the forum.
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by EducationAisle » Fri Apr 13, 2012 12:10 am
aditya.j wrote: Agricultural advances have substantially increased peruvian population growth, a demographic change that will have serious social implications. (note that there are actually 2 independent clauses connected with a comma)
Actually the second one is not a clause: a demographic change that will have serious social implications

a demographic change is a phrase and the rest of the words that will have serious social implications form a dependent clause modifying this phrase.
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by chris@magoosh » Fri Apr 13, 2012 8:57 am
Let's see if I can clear things up :).

First off, a comma splice occurs when two independent clauses are joined by only a comma (no accompanying FANBOYS or subordinating conjunction). In the following sentence, we have an independent clause joined to a dependent clause:

Agricultural advances have substantially increased peruvian population growth, a demographic change that will have serious social implications.

The bolded part is an independent clause. The non-bolded part is a dependent clause. Let's take a closer look at the latter:

A demographic change that will have serious social implications is composed of a subject, the relative pronoun 'that' and the relative clause. Nowhere is there a verb that connects to 'a demographic change.'

The original sentence is clearly an example of a summative modifier. It is important to note that a summative modifier does not connect two independent clauses. A summative modifier replaces what I call "the awkward which."

A decrease in the country's exports has hurt its GDP, which has caused the government considerable consternation.

A decrease in the country's exports has hurt its GDP, an occurrence that has caused the government considerable consternation.

In replacing 'which' with a word that captures the essence of the independent clause, I do not have an independent clause. Thus summative modifiers do not serve to join together independent clauses, but, with the help of a comma, connect the main clause to a dependent clause.

Hope that helps :)
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