BREAKING: Target Test Prep releases Brand New 2026 On Demand GMAT prep course

Redeem

Nature of language and the process

This topic has expert replies
Post new topic Locked
Previous Topic Next Topic
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 193
Joined: Wed Dec 05, 2012 6:53 am
Thanked: 4 times
Followed by:5 members

Nature of language and the process

by amysky_0205 » Thu Jan 31, 2013 1:17 am
Research during the past several decades on the nature of language and the processes that produce and make it understandable has revealed great complexity instead of underlying simplicity.

A. that produce and make it understandable has revealed great complexity instead of underlying simplicity
B. of producing and understanding it have revealed not underlying simplicity but great complexity
C. by which it is produced and understood has revealed not underlying simplicity but great complexity
D. by which it is produced and understood have revealed great complexity rather than underlying simplicity
E. by which one produces and understands it have revealed great complexity instead of underlying simplicity


OA: A

can someone explain this one?
thank u.
Top
Source: — Sentence Correction |

GMAT/MBA Expert

User avatar
GMAT Instructor
Posts: 451
Joined: Thu Jan 21, 2010 11:58 am
Location: New York City
Thanked: 188 times
Followed by:120 members
GMAT Score:770

by Tommy Wallach » Fri Feb 01, 2013 2:27 pm
Hey Amysky,

Uh...where is this question from? I don't like it! : )

We start with a subject-verb agreement issue. "Research" is the subject of the sentence. It's singular, so we need "has revealed," not "have revealed". That kills off B, D, and E.

At this point, it gets iffy. (A) is active where (C) is passive, but the difference is so slight that I really doubt they'd build a question around it. The negative construction in (C) is also slightly weird without any commas, like saying "I have not ten but fifteen airplanes." So (A) definitely wins.

However, I really hate "underlying simplicity" here. "Underlying" isn't usually used that way. It means "The basis/origin of something." That's not correct here. Simplicity wouldn't be the basis or origin here. "simplicity" describes the relative complexity of the system, not how it came about.

In other words, you wouldn't say: "I found underlying simplicity." You'd just say: "It proved to be surprisingly simple."

Anyway, (A) wins, but I wouldn't marry it.

-t
Tommy Wallach, Company Expert
ManhattanGMAT

If you found this posting mega-helpful, feel free to thank and/or follow me!
Top
Post new topic Locked
• Page 1 of 1