neptune28 wrote:It seems that, in general, you have to look at the entire sentence and its meaning to see what a participial phrase at the end is really modifying.
Our concern here is the GMAT.
On the GMAT, COMMA + VERBing modifiers invariably refer to the nearest preceding SUBJECT and serve to express an action that happens as PART OF THE PRECEDING VERB.
Typically, the VERBing action happens AT THE SAME TIME as the preceding verb or AS A RESULT of the preceding verb.
From the OG12:
SC30:
ANIMAL-HIDE SHIELDS with wooden frames were essential items of military equipment, PROTECTING warriors against enemy arrows and spears.
Here, the ANIMAL-HIDE SHIELDS are PROTECTING warriors.
SC47:
FIVE FLEDGLING SEA EAGLES left their nests in western Scotland this summer, BRINGING to 34 the number of wild birds successfully raised since transplants from Norway began in 1975.
Here, the FIVE FLEDGLING SEA EAGLES are BRINGING to 34 the number of wild birds successfully raised.
SC65:
A BREAKWATER OF ROCKS that would rise six feet above the waterline and act as a buffer, ABSORBING the energy of crashing waves and PROTECTING the beaches.
Here, a BREAKWATER OF ROCKS is ABSORBING and PROTECTING.
SC94:
The recent surge in the number of airplane flights has clogged the nation's air-traffic control system, LEADING to a 55-percent increase in delays at airports and PROMPTING fears among some officials that safety is being compromised.
Here, the RECENT SURGE is LEADING to an increase in delays and PROMPTING fears.
From GMAT Prep:
Among lower paid workers union members are less likely than non-union members to be enrolled in lower end insurance plans that impose stricter limits on medical services and require DOCTORS to see more patients, SPENDING less time with each.
Here,
spending refers to
doctors, which serves not only as the direct object of
requiring but also as the SUBJECT of
to see.
Conveyed meaning: the DOCTORS are SPENDING less time with each patient.
In each case, the agent of the VERBing action is the nearest preceding subject.
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