GMAT PREP - SC - The fact of some fraternal twins

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The fact of some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely they vary considerably on a spectrum of genetic relatedness.

A. The fact of some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely they vary considerably
B. That some fraternal twins resemble each other greatly while others look quite dissimilar highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely that they vary considerably
C. With some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar, it highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely considerable variation
D. With some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar, it is a fact that highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely a considerable variation
E. Because some fraternal twins resemble each other greatly and others look quite dissimilar, this fact highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely they vary considerably

OA:[spoiler]B
Why E is wrong?[/spoiler]
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by ceilidh.erickson » Mon Jan 02, 2017 5:45 pm
This question is primarily testing IDIOMS and LOGICAL MEANING.

I'll examine each of the answer choices:

A. The fact of some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely they vary considerably
- "fact of" is not idiomatically correct. It should be "fact that"
- when "namely" is followed by a clause, we should use "namely that"

B. That some fraternal twins resemble each other greatly while others look quite dissimilar highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely that they vary considerably
It always sounds funny to use a clause beginning with THAT as the subject of a sentence, but this is perfectly correct. Think of it like:
[the fact that _____] highlights an interesting...

C. With some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar, it highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely considerable variation
- "it" has no antecedent
- a "with..." phrase at the beginning of a sentence should modify what comes after it: "with great care, I wrote this example sentence."

D. With some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar, it is a fact that highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely a considerable variation

- same "it" and "with" issues as in C

E. Because some fraternal twins resemble each other greatly and others look quite dissimilar, this fact highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely they vary considerably
- same "namely" issue as in A
- the structure doesn't make logical sense: "because [some fact is true], this fact highlights..." It's like a modifier trying to modify itself. Think of it like:
Because I went to the moon, the fact that I went to the moon is cool.

The only answer choice without logical or idiomatic errors is B.
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by Ali Tariq » Tue Jan 03, 2017 2:53 am
There is a contrast between what appears before and and what appears after and.
and cannot be used to show contrast.
while is appropriate for this job.
only B has while.
The fact of some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely they vary considerably on a spectrum of genetic relatedness.

A. The fact of some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely they vary considerably
B. That some fraternal twins resemble each other greatly while others look quite dissimilar highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely that they vary considerably
C. With some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar, it highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely considerable variation
D. With some fraternal twins resembling each other greatly and others looking quite dissimilar, it is a fact that highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely a considerable variation
E. Because some fraternal twins resemble each other greatly and others look quite dissimilar, this fact highlights an interesting and often overlooked feature of fraternal-twin pairs, namely they vary considerably

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by ceilidh.erickson » Tue Jan 03, 2017 12:11 pm
Good point! I had eliminated the wrong answers without even noticing this difference. It just goes to show: there are always multiple issues in every SC problem, and no one right way to go about eliminating answers!
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by Ali Tariq » Tue Jan 03, 2017 4:44 pm
Cannot agree more...
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