Please an Instructor Equivalent to

mundasingh123 wrote:A booming population center, the Asian continent is home to over 3.5 billion people, about equivalent to the residents of all the other areas of the world combined.

(A) equivalent to the residents of
(B) the equivalent of those residing in
(C) equal to those who reside in
(D) as many as the residents of
(E) as many as reside in

Could an Instructor please explain how do we arrive at the OA ? Why is D wrong ? why are A , B and C wrong ?
I came across this Sc in the veritas prep Sc book . I came across 1 such problem in the OG too. But inspite of having seen this problem before , i havnt been able to get this right . This is because i couldnt understand the concept that solving this Sc requires .

GMATGuruNY wrote:

mundasingh123 wrote:A booming population center, the Asian continent is home to over 3.5 billion people, about equivalent to the residents of all the other areas of the world combined.

(A) equivalent to the residents of
(B) the equivalent of those residing in
(C) equal to those who reside in
(D) as many as the residents of
(E) as many as reside in

Could an Instructor please explain how do we arrive at the OA ? Why is D wrong ? why are A , B and C wrong ?
I came across this Sc in the veritas prep Sc book . I came across 1 such problem in the OG too. But inspite of having seen this problem before , i havnt been able to get this right . This is because i couldnt understand the concept that solving this Sc requires .

In A and B, equivalent does not convey the intended meaning. EQUIVALENT means "of equal value". We cannot say that 3.5 billion people are "of equal value" to another group of people. Eliminate A and B.

In C, we cannot say that 3.5 BILLION PEOPLE are equal to THOSE who reside in all the other areas of the world. The PEOPLE themselves are not equal; the NUMBER of people is equal. Eliminate C.

In D, as is used to compare actions, but it is not clear what action is being performed by the residents of all the other areas of the world. Eliminate D.

The correct answer is E.

mundasingh123 wrote:

GMATGuruNY wrote:

mundasingh123 wrote:A booming population center, the Asian continent is home to over 3.5 billion people, about equivalent to the residents of all the other areas of the world combined.

(A) equivalent to the residents of
(B) the equivalent of those residing in
(C) equal to those who reside in
(D) as many as the residents of
(E) as many as reside in

Could an Instructor please explain how do we arrive at the OA ? Why is D wrong ? why are A , B and C wrong ?
I came across this Sc in the veritas prep Sc book . I came across 1 such problem in the OG too. But inspite of having seen this problem before , i havnt been able to get this right . This is because i couldnt understand the concept that solving this Sc requires .

In A and B, equivalent does not convey the intended meaning. EQUIVALENT means "of equal value". We cannot say that 3.5 billion people are "of equal value" to another group of people. Eliminate A and B.

In C, we cannot say that 3.5 BILLION PEOPLE are equal to THOSE who reside in all the other areas of the world. The PEOPLE themselves are not equal; the NUMBER of people is equal. Eliminate C.

In D, as is used to compare actions, but it is not clear what action is being performed by the residents of all the other areas of the world. Eliminate D.

The correct answer is E.

Hi GmatGuruNy Thanks for responding to my PM .

I agree that as is a conjunction used to compare clauses/actions
But isnt the idiom as many as used to compare number
For example
There were as many boys in the football field as there were in the tennis court .
The boys in the pub are as many as the girls in the disc.

Arent we comparing numbers in the above 2 sentences

Your second sentence -- The BOYS are...as many as the GIRLS -- does not make sense.