Quasars 44

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real2008: Legendary Member; Posts: 527; Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 12:06 am; Thanked: 7 times

by real2008 » Fri Jul 03, 2009 2:27 am

Quasars are so distant that their light has taken billions of years to reach the Earth; consequently, we see them as they were during the formation of the universe.
(A) we see them as they were during
(B) we see them as they had been during
(C) we see them as if during
(D) they appear to us as they did in
(E) they appear to us as though in

why not D?

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Source: Beat The GMAT — Sentence Correction | Fri Jul 03, 2009 2:27 am

real2008: Legendary Member; Posts: 527; Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 12:06 am; Thanked: 7 times

by real2008 » Thu Jul 09, 2009 12:15 pm

:!:

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hk: MBA Student; Posts: 532; Joined: Wed Jan 28, 2009 1:39 pmFollowed by: 9 members; Location: Barcelona; Thanked: 33 times; GMAT Score:640

by hk » Thu Jul 09, 2009 12:52 pm

D is wrong because "as they did in the formation of the universe" changes the meaning slightly. This means that the Quasars appear as they did when they were involved in the formation of the universe. Quasars were not involved in the formation of the universe.

The correct meaning should tell us that they appear now as they appeared while or during the formation of the universe.

I'd go with A Whats the OA???

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dumb.doofus: Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts; Posts: 435; Joined: Sat Sep 27, 2008 2:02 pmFollowed by: 1 member; Location: San Jose, CA; Thanked: 43 times; GMAT Score:720

by dumb.doofus » Thu Jul 09, 2009 7:01 pm

I agree that D changes the meaning.. but the way it changes is that it is non-sensically suggesting by saying "they appear to us as they did". This means that we were present during the formation of the universe.. and we saw that.. this is non-sensical..
you can read it as "they appear to us as they did (appear to us)"

I would go with A too. Simple past tense.. you dont need past perfect in B coz there aren't two time periods..

C and E also change the meaning of the sentence as is the case with D.

hope this helps..

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real2008: Legendary Member; Posts: 527; Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 12:06 am; Thanked: 7 times

by real2008 » Fri Jul 10, 2009 3:19 am

dumb.doofus wrote:I agree that D changes the meaning.. but the way it changes is that it is non-sensically suggesting by saying "they appear to us as they did". This means that we were present during the formation of the universe.. and we saw that.. this is non-sensical..
you can read it as "they appear to us as they did (appear to us)"

I would go with A too. Simple past tense.. you dont need past perfect in B coz there aren't two time periods..

C and E also change the meaning of the sentence as is the case with D.

hope this helps..

thanks..... great explanations. OA is A

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[email protected]: Junior | Next Rank: 30 Posts; Posts: 11; Joined: Wed May 02, 2012 9:25 pm; Location: Lima - Peru

by [email protected] » Wed Nov 06, 2013 9:56 pm

Hello!

Sorry for bringing up such an old thread! But I'm really confused with this one! I think that this one shouldn't be that hard! But couldn't understand a couple of things from the meaning stand of view.

180. Quasars are so distant that their light has taken billions of years to reach the Earth; consequently, we see them as they were during the formation of the universe.

(A) we see them as they were during
(B) we see them as they had been during
(C) we see them as if during
(D) they appear to us as they did in
(E) they appear to us as though in

OA A.

My questions on the OA

Selected E, because we weren't at the formation of the universe? I'm confused here, how can we assure that "we see them as they were during the formation of the universe" Who was there to prove it? Just don't completely get it.

"as though in" in E signals an hypothetical situation, which I sort of think could be in this case, because we weren't at the formation of the universe.
What am I missing here?
What's wrong with my rationale in this problem?

Please any inputs advise for experts, Kaplan, E-gmat, dear members

Thanks in advance!

Ricardo

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AbhiS: Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts; Posts: 54; Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2013 12:50 pm; Thanked: 4 times

by AbhiS » Wed Nov 06, 2013 11:49 pm

[email protected] wrote:Hello!

Sorry for bringing up such an old thread! But I'm really confused with this one! I think that this one shouldn't be that hard! But couldn't understand a couple of things from the meaning stand of view.

180. Quasars are so distant that their light has taken billions of years to reach the Earth; consequently, we see them as they were during the formation of the universe.

(A) we see them as they were during
(B) we see them as they had been during
(C) we see them as if during
(D) they appear to us as they did in
(E) they appear to us as though in

OA A.

My questions on the OA

Selected E, because we weren't at the formation of the universe? I'm confused here, how can we assure that "we see them as they were during the formation of the universe" Who was there to prove it? Just don't completely get it.

"as though in" in E signals an hypothetical situation, which I sort of think could be in this case, because we weren't at the formation of the universe.
What am I missing here?
What's wrong with my rationale in this problem?

Please any inputs advise for experts, Kaplan, E-gmat, dear members

Thanks in advance!

Ricardo

This is not a hypothetical situation. It is a fact - this is how they appear to us in reality i.e. now

I hope it helps

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GMAT/MBA Expert

[email protected]: Elite Legendary Member; Posts: 10392; Joined: Sun Jun 23, 2013 6:38 pmFollowed by: 511 members; Location: Palo Alto, CA; Thanked: 2867 times; GMAT Score:800

by [email protected] » Thu Nov 07, 2013 1:03 am

Hi Ricardo,

This SC is based on some subtle "style" and "intent" rules.

First off, "active voice" (subject does action) tends to be preferable in SCs. While it's not a rule that is in effect 100% of the time, it tends to be the correct style in most cases. So "we seem them" is preferable to "they appear to us."

Second, "we" weren't around to see the formation of the universe, so the "intent" of the sentence is about what "we" see NOW and how it relates to the fact that light takes billions of years to reach the Earth (so we "see" something in the present that actually occurred in the past).

Answer A is the only one that combines the above 2 rules in the most direct fashion.

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

Contact Rich at [email protected]

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