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Run On Sentence !! Can some one please help me out

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Run On Sentence !! Can some one please help me out

by Pratik Warrrior » Tue Oct 26, 2010 5:31 am
Hi,
If i have a sentence which is like

Until Antoine Lavoisier proved otherwise in the eighteenth century, many scientists had believed that combustion released phlogiston, an imaginary substance whose properties were not fully understood.

Why is'nt the boldfaced part a run on?,as far as i see it has a working verb(Were) and doesnt this need a conjuction to connect to the main sentence?

It will be great if someone can gimme a link where i can get some detailed explanation/examples of run on sentences!!


Thanks,
Pratik
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by gmat_perfect » Tue Oct 26, 2010 6:36 am
Pratik Warrrior wrote:Hi,
If i have a sentence which is like

Until Antoine Lavoisier proved otherwise in the eighteenth century, many scientists had believed that combustion released phlogiston, an imaginary substance whose properties were not fully understood.

Why is'nt the boldfaced part a run on?,as far as i see it has a working verb(Were) and doesnt this need a conjuction to connect to the main sentence?

It will be great if someone can gimme a link where i can get some detailed explanation/examples of run on sentences!!


Thanks,
Pratik
You should know the concept of appositive:

it is more commonly called "Presumptive Modifier":

A resumptive modifier picks up a word or phrase from a sentence that seems to be finished and then adds information and takes the reader into new territory of thought.

Example:
The Swiss watchmakers' failure to capitalize on the invention of the digital timepiece was both astonishing and alarming - astonishing in that the Swiss had, since the beginnings of the industrial revolution in Europe, been among the first to capitalize on technical innovations, alarming in that a tremendous industrial potential had been lost to their chief competitors, the watchmakers of Japan.


how to form a presumptive modifier:

Sentence + COMMA + Pick a key word from the previous sentence + that/who/whose...

Example:

We should give some message to the young generation, a message that will help them to avoid some crimes.

In your sentence the same type of structure has been used.

Run on sentence:

A sentence will be run if two clauses are run together without proper punctuation.

The following will create run on sentence:

1. Two clauses are joined only by comma.
Example:

I was watching TV, he was reading a book.

2. if two clauses are joined without any punctuation.

example:

I was watching TV he was reading.

Look at your sentence:
Until Antoine Lavoisier proved otherwise in the eighteenth century, many scientists had believed that combustion released phlogiston, an imaginary substance whose properties were not fully understood.

--> The bold face part is not a clause rather it is a modifier.

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by GMATGuruNY » Tue Oct 26, 2010 7:02 am
Pratik Warrrior wrote:Hi,
If i have a sentence which is like

Until Antoine Lavoisier proved otherwise in the eighteenth century, many scientists had believed that combustion released phlogiston, an imaginary substance whose properties were not fully understood.

Why is'nt the boldfaced part a run on?,as far as i see it has a working verb(Were) and doesnt this need a conjuction to connect to the main sentence?

It will be great if someone can gimme a link where i can get some detailed explanation/examples of run on sentences!!


Thanks,
Pratik
Here's a good rule to follow:

If the sentence has a comma that could replaced with a period, eliminate the answer choice.

For example:

I love my chocolate, it's my favorite dessert.

The sentence above is incorrect because the comma could be replaced with a period:

I love chocolate. It's my favorite dessert.

In the sentence that you cited, the comma cannot be replaced with a period:

Until Antoine Lavoisier proved otherwise in the eighteenth century, many scientists had believed that combustion released phlogiston. An imaginary substance whose properties were not fully understood.

When we replace the comma with a period, we create the sentence fragment an imaginary substance whose properties were not fully understood. This fragment cannot stand alone because it lacks a main verb. The phrase whose properties were not fully understood does not provide a main verb because it is functioning as an adjective describing the imaginary substance.

Since the comma cannot be replaced with a period, the sentence that you cited is not a run-on sentence.
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by Pratik Warrrior » Tue Oct 26, 2010 7:04 am
Thanks For the wonderful explanation!!........In this case if the sentence were

Until Antoine Lavoisier proved otherwise in the eighteenth century, many scientists had believed that combustion released phlogiston, properties of the imaginary substaance were not fully understood.

I think this would be a run on...Would'nt it?


Thanks,
Pratik
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by GMATGuruNY » Tue Oct 26, 2010 7:09 am
Pratik Warrrior wrote:Thanks For the wonderful explanation!!........In this case if the sentence were

Until Antoine Lavoisier proved otherwise in the eighteenth century, many scientists had believed that combustion released phlogiston, properties of the imaginary substaance were not fully understood.

I think this would be a run on...Would'nt it?


Thanks,
Pratik
Correct! The comma could be replaced with a period:

Until Antoine Lavoisier proved otherwise in the eighteenth century, many scientists had believed that combustion released phlogiston. Properties of the imaginary substance were not fully understood.

Thus, we have a run-on sentence, and the answer choice can be eliminated.
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by Pratik Warrrior » Tue Oct 26, 2010 7:15 am
Thanks a ton U guys have been awesome!!
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by GMATMadeEasy » Tue Oct 26, 2010 12:30 pm
@GMATGURUNY :
If the sentence has a comma that could replaced with a period, eliminate the answer choice.
that is amazing .

I did run few sentences based on this and :

This model explains all known subatomic particles, SOME OF WHICH WERE only recently discovered. (correct)
This model explains all known subatomic particles, SOME OF them only recently discovered. (correct)
This model explains all known subatomic particles, SOME only recently discovered. (correct)

This model explains all known subatomic particles, SOME OF WHICH only recently discovered. Is this correct ? please explain, i am bit confused with this.
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by Pratik Warrrior » Tue Oct 26, 2010 9:38 pm
I think the which construction mentioned in the last example needs a working verb were with it.

it should be framed as

This model explains all known subatomic particles, SOME OF WHICH were only recently discovered

I dunno the reson exactly but it will be great if someone can explain why the subgroup modifier some of which needs a working verb
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