qwerty12321 wrote:Can someone explain me why (B) is incorrect?

Thanks

More than 300 rivers drain into Siberia's Lake Baikal, which holds 20 percent of the world's fresh water, more than all the North American Great Lakes combined.

A. More than 300 rivers drain into Siberia's Lake Baikal, which holds 20 percent of the world's fresh water, more than all the North American Great Lakes combined.
B. With 20 percent of the world's fresh water, that is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined, Siberia's Lake Baikal has more than 300 rivers that drain into it.
C. Siberia's Lake Baikal, with more than 300 rivers draining into it, it holds more of the world's fresh water than all that of the North American Great Lakes combined, 20 percent.
D. While more than 300 rivers drain into it, Siberia's Lake Baikal holds 20 percent of the world's fresh water, which is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined.
E. More than all the North American Great Lakes combined, Siberia's Lake Baikal, with more than 300 rivers draining into it, holds 20 percent of the world's fresh water.

GMATGuruNY wrote:

More than 300 rivers drain into Siberia's Lake Baikal, which holds 20 percent of the world's fresh water, more than all the North American Great Lakes combined.

A. More than 300 rivers drain into Siberia's Lake Baikal, which holds 20 percent of the world's fresh water, more than all the North American Great Lakes combined.
B. With 20 percent of the world's fresh water, that is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined, Siberia's Lake Baikal has more than 300 rivers that drain into it.
C. Siberia's Lake Baikal, with more than 300 rivers draining into it, it holds more of the world's fresh water than all that of the North American Great Lakes combined, 20 percent.
D. While more than 300 rivers drain into it, Siberia's Lake Baikal holds 20 percent of the world's fresh water, which is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined.
E. More than all the North American Great Lakes combined, Siberia's Lake Baikal, with more than 300 rivers draining into it, holds 20 percent of the world's fresh water.

In B, that lacks a clear antecedent.
If that is standing in for 20% of the world's fresh water, we get:
With 20% of the world's fresh water, 20% of the world's fresh water is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined.
This meaning is nonsensical.
Eliminate B.
.
.
.

B: Siberia's Lake Baikal has more than 300 rivers.
A lake is a body of water.
A body of water does not HAVE rivers.
Another reason to eliminate B.

Hi GMATGuruNY - Please let me know whether the followings could be other reasons to eliminate B :

1. THAT is preceded by a COMMA. In GMAT, there should be NO COMMA before THAT. Right ?

2. Isn't the CONSTRUCTION in B AWKWARD ?

GMATGuruNY wrote:

Hi GMATGuruNY - Please let me know whether the followings could be other reasons to eliminate B :

1. THAT is preceded by a COMMA. In GMAT, there should be NO COMMA before THAT. Right ?

In the vast majority of cases, COMMA + that will constitute an error.
But there are exceptions.
An OA with COMMA + that:
Galileo did not invent the telescope, but on hearing, in 1609, that such an optical instrument had been made, he quickly built his own device.

GMATGuruNY wrote:

2. Isn't the CONSTRUCTION in B AWKWARD ?

Yes.
One error in B is the usage of a COMMA SPLICE: a comma incorrectly serving to connect two complete sentences.
In B, the following two sentences are connected solely by a comma:
That is more than all the North American Great Lacks combined.
Siberia's Lake Baikal has more than 300 rivers.
If a comma can be replaced by a period, eliminate the answer choice.

RBBmba@2014 wrote: (1) I think, in the SC you cited above (re Galileo), COMMA + that CONSTRUCTION comes into play ONLY because there is a (prepositional) PHRASE inserted before that with the help of TWO COMMAS. Am I correct ?

(2)On GMAT, could there be any OTHER reason for which COMMA + that STRUCTURE would be valid ?

(1) As for COMMA SPLICE - by complete sentences, did you mean INDEPENDENT CLAUSES ?

(2) And, could you please elaborate a BIT on your statement in RED in the above quote ? I don't think, I got this portion completely, so it'd be great if you could shed some light...

GMATGuruNY wrote: An independent clause is a group of words that could serve -- on its own -- as a complete sentence.
A comma cannot serve to link two independent clauses.
If a comma can be replaced by a period -- yielding two complete sentences, each of which can stand on its own -- then eliminate the answer choice.
This error is known as a COMMA SPLICE.

B: that is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined, Siberia's Lake Baikal has more than 300 rivers.
Here, the comma can be replaced by a period:
That is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined. Siberia's Lake Baikal has more than 300 rivers.
Each of the sentences above can stand on its own.
Since the comma can be replaced by a period, eliminate B.

RBBmba@2014 wrote: Not able to understand that how EXACTLY this sentence -- That is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined. -- is an INDEPENDENT CLAUSE ? What is the SUBJECT and how does it (re this sentence) stand on its own ?

In GENERAL, what are the different USAGES of THAT in GMAT ?

GMATGuruNY wrote:

RBBmba@2014 wrote: Not able to understand that how EXACTLY this sentence -- That is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined. -- is an INDEPENDENT CLAUSE ? What is the SUBJECT and how does it (re this sentence) stand on its own ?

That is more than all the North American Great Lakes combined.
The subject here is that.
On the GMAT, this sentence would not be viable because that lacks a clear antecedent.
On the GMAT, that may not serve as a stand-alone subject.

GMATGuruNY wrote:Outside the GMAT, however, one can find many such sentences.

Examples from the NY Times:
That is why a longstanding academic debate is now at the core of the Fed's policy debate.
That is not where the action is.
That is the default grade.

GMATGuruNY wrote:

In GENERAL, what are the different USAGES of THAT in GMAT ?

While I applaud your thirst for knowledge, it is unrealistic to ask for EVERY possible usage of a grammatical structure.
A grammar book could devote an entire chapter to the various usages of that.