Sentence Correction

GMATGuruNY wrote:

stubbornp wrote:210. Scientists have recently discovered what could be the largest and oldest living organism on Earth, a giant
fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and rootlike tentacles spawned by a single fertilized
spore some 10,000 years ago and extending for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.
(A) extending
(B) extends
(C) extended
(D) it extended
(E) is extending

Parallelism is not the only issue.
Even when a verb functions as a modifier, it conveys tense.
In C and D, extended implies past action. Although the filigree was spawned 10,000 years ago (in the past), it is still extending for more than 30 acres (in the present). Eliminate C and D.

In B, spawned (adjective) and extends (verb) are not parallel. Eliminate B.
In E, spawned (adjective) and is extending (verb) are not parallel. Eliminate E.

The correct answer is A.

Hi Mitch,
I have a question on option B -
How can we be sure that spawned and extending are parallel. The below structure could make logical sense too .

, a giant fungus that
is an interwoven
and
extends for <> .

If we take "IS" to be parallel to "extend..." then we need a verb and "extends" fits and the sentence makes logical sense , in this case too .

Could you please let me know how to rule out option B , and what is wrong with my analysis ?

gmacforjyoab wrote: Hi Mitch,
I have a question on option B -
How can we be sure that spawned and extending are parallel. The below structure could make logical sense too .

, a giant fungus that
is an interwoven
and
extends for <> .

If we take "IS" to be parallel to "extend..." then we need a verb and "extends" fits and the sentence makes logical sense , in this case too .

Could you please let me know how to rule out option B , and what is wrong with my analysis ?

Hi Mitch, I had the same doubt. Can you please clarify.

iongmat wrote:

gmacforjyoab wrote: Hi Mitch,
I have a question on option B -
How can we be sure that spawned and extending are parallel. The below structure could make logical sense too .

, a giant fungus that
is an interwoven
and
extends for <> .

If we take "IS" to be parallel to "extend..." then we need a verb and "extends" fits and the sentence makes logical sense , in this case too .

Could you please let me know how to rule out option B , and what is wrong with my analysis ?

Hi Mitch, I had the same doubt. Can you please clarify.

This interpretation would require the repetition of that, as follows:
a giant fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and rootlike tentacles spawned by a single fertilized
spore some 10,000 years ago and THAT extends for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.
If the second that is omitted, a reader will find it too difficult to connect the red portion back to fungus, which appears 20 words earlier.

Moreover, the meaning conveyed by the sentence above is illogical.
The usage of and implies that the blue portion and the red portion are DISTINCT EVENTS: that being an interwoven filigree of tentacles is separate from extending for more than 30 acres.
Not so.
A filigree of tentacles is a complex pattern of long, thin arms.
Clearly, having this pattern of long, thin arms is not a separate action from extending for more than 30 acres in the soil.

A similar error of logic:
The book was written over 1,000 years ago and is very old.
Here, usage of and implies that the blue portion and the red portion are DISTINCT EVENTS: that being written over 1,000 years ago is separate from being very old.
Not so.
Clearly, the two colored portions are intrinsically connected.

The OA to the SC above avoids this error as follows:
a filigree of tentacles...extending for more than 30 acres in the soil.
Here, the conveyed meaning is that the complex pattern of long, thin arms is extending for more than 30 acres.
This meaning makes sense.

GMATGuruNY wrote:

iongmat wrote:

gmacforjyoab wrote: Hi Mitch,
I have a question on option B -
How can we be sure that spawned and extending are parallel. The below structure could make logical sense too .

, a giant fungus that
is an interwoven
and
extends for <> .

If we take "IS" to be parallel to "extend..." then we need a verb and "extends" fits and the sentence makes logical sense , in this case too .

Could you please let me know how to rule out option B , and what is wrong with my analysis ?

Hi Mitch, I had the same doubt. Can you please clarify.

This interpretation would require the repetition of that, as follows:
a giant fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and rootlike tentacles spawned by a single fertilized
spore some 10,000 years ago and THAT extends for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.
If the second that is omitted, a reader will find it too difficult to connect the red portion back to fungus, which appears 20 words earlier.

Moreover, the meaning conveyed by the sentence above is illogical.
The usage of and implies that the blue portion and the red portion are DISTINCT EVENTS: that being an interwoven filigree of tentacles is separate from extending for more than 30 acres.
Not so.
A filigree of tentacles is a complex pattern of long, thin arms.
Clearly, having this pattern of long, thin arms is not a separate action from extending for more than 30 acres in the soil.

A similar error of logic:
The book was written over 1,000 years ago and is very old.
Here, usage of and implies that the blue portion and the red portion are DISTINCT EVENTS: that being written over 1,000 years ago is separate from being very old.
Not so.
Clearly, the two colored portions are intrinsically connected.

The OA to the SC above avoids this error as follows:
a filigree of tentacles...extending for more than 30 acres in the soil.
Here, the conveyed meaning is that the complex pattern of long, thin arms is extending for more than 30 acres.
This meaning makes sense.

Hi Mitch - could you confirm what the core of the sentence is

Scientists have discovered a giant fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and rootlike tentacles spawned by a single fertilized spore some 10,000 years ago and extending for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.

The colors are all non essential and are not part of the core

or is it

Scientists have recently discovered a giant fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and root like tentacles spawned by a single fertilized spore some 10,000 years ago and extending for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.

jabhatta wrote:Hi Mitch - could you confirm what the core of the sentence is

Scientists have discovered a giant fungus that is an interwoven filigree of mushrooms and rootlike tentacles spawned by a single fertilized spore some 10,000 years ago and extending for more than 30 acres in the soil of a Michigan forest.

The blue portion constitutes the core of the sentence.
The green portion is a RESTRICTIVE modifier serving to describe a giant fungus.
Generally, a restrictive modifier is considered ESSENTIAL: it cannot be omitted without a loss of meaning.
If the green portion here were omitted, a reader would not know what type of giant fungus had been discovered by scientists.