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What's wrong with this sentence?

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by sumitkhurana » Tue Feb 17, 2009 7:09 am
Is this sentence correct?

The pioneering research of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, accelerated the development of the first power plant, which opened in New York City in 1882.
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Re: What's wrong with this sentence?

by deepoe » Tue Feb 17, 2009 7:15 am
sumitkhurana wrote:Is this sentence correct?

The pioneering research of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, accelerated the development of the first power plant, which opened in New York City in 1882.
Hum, Isn't it whom became known for his invention of the light bulb?[/b]
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Provide more...

by hitmewithgmat » Tue Feb 17, 2009 7:20 am
The pioneering research of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, accelerated the development of the first power plant, which opened in New York City in 1882.

A. of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, (pronoun error)
B. of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, known for his invention of the light bulb, (pronoun error)
C. of Thomas Edison, known for his invention of the light bulb, and Lewis Latimer (Correct)
D. of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison became known for his invention of the light bulb and (pronoun error)
E. that was conducted by Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, and Lewis Latimer(passive voice)
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by Uri » Tue Feb 17, 2009 9:42 am
Given the options, (C) is obviously the best choice. But I doubt whether we can ignore (A) because of pronoun error. I think "who" after the comma modifies the noun immediately before it. So, in this case, "who became known for his invention of the light bulb" should modify Edison. I would choose (C) just because it makes the sentence clearer compared to option (A).

I would like to confirm whether my assumption on the modifier clause a valid one?
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Re: Provide more...

by griscomtestprep » Tue Feb 17, 2009 10:33 am
hitmewithgmat wrote:The pioneering research of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, accelerated the development of the first power plant, which opened in New York City in 1882.

A. of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, (pronoun error)
B. of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, known for his invention of the light bulb, (pronoun error)
C. of Thomas Edison, known for his invention of the light bulb, and Lewis Latimer (Correct)
D. of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison became known for his invention of the light bulb and (pronoun error)
E. that was conducted by Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, and Lewis Latimer(passive voice)
Unless there is a comma at the end of C, it is incorrect. Even then it's awkward. I think A is correct.
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Re: Provide more...

by Brent@GMATPrepNow » Tue Feb 17, 2009 11:20 am
hitmewithgmat wrote:The pioneering research of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, accelerated the development of the first power plant, which opened in New York City in 1882.

A. of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, (pronoun error)
B. of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison, known for his invention of the light bulb, (pronoun error)
C. of Thomas Edison, known for his invention of the light bulb, and Lewis Latimer (Correct)
D. of Lewis Latimer and Thomas Edison became known for his invention of the light bulb and (pronoun error)
E. that was conducted by Thomas Edison, who became known for his invention of the light bulb, and Lewis Latimer(passive voice)
This question uses our knowledge of history against us; we all know TE invented the lightbulb, so we assume that "who" refers to Edison.
Similarly, if the sentence read "Starsky and Hutch, who rid the town of criminals, recorded an new album," we would assume that "who" refers to both Starsky and Hutch.
So, in the case of compound subjects, "who" can refer to the noun that directly precedes it, or "who" can refer to the compound noun that precedes it.
In the original sentence it is unclear to whom "who" refers (how's that for an awkward, albeit grammatically correct, sentence? :) ).
Answer choice C removes that ambiguity.
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by Tomn » Tue Feb 17, 2009 1:13 pm
There doesn't need to be a comma at the end of C.
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by gmatgirl001 » Fri Jan 24, 2014 7:31 pm
Sorry for continuing the old thread, but I thought C was wrong and E was right because "known for his invention" in C signifies that Edison was known for his invention before/during the time he developed nuclear plant vs "who became known for his invention of the light bulb" in E which signifies that he later became known for his invention (much after development of nuclear plant) and retains this meaning from A.

Can experts comment on how "who became known for his invention of the light bulb" is similar to "known for his invention of the light bulb"? And are we not overlooking the time phase when we became known?
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by shinys » Fri Jan 24, 2014 11:27 pm
Shouldn't research 'of' talk about what the research is about?

And research 'by' talk about the people conducting the research?

This is my logic of leaning towards Answer choice 'E'.
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