Nikola Tesla, the inventor of alternating current,

[RonPurewal]

Hi Ron,

May I ask what's wrong with D?

Thanks

That choice creates false parallelism between excited (a modifier) and predicted (a verb).

As a shorter analogy, it's like Ron, tired from working all day and went to sleep. Not only does that sentence lack parallelism, but, because of the way the modifier is incorporated into it, it's not even a sentence.

[lindaliu9273]

In option (B) is the usage of 'and so' incorrect?

Can we use "and so" (both together or either one only)?

Hi instructors,

I have the same question. On page 195 of manhattan book : use only one connecting word at once.

I know that "because so" "although yet" cannot be used together. But is it true that any two connecting word(coordinating conjuction, subordinator) cannot be used together.

Besides, is there any other mistake with B?

I appreciate your reply.

[RonPurewal]

Some connecting words come in pairs (e.g., "If ... then ..."), so it's unwise to generalize in this way.

Also, "so" is sometimes a connector, and sometimes not. Sometimes it's an adverb, meaning, roughly, "(by doing) what was previously described".
E.g.,
James fantasizes about jumping from an airplane, but is too afraid to do so.
or
This value is too large to be reasonable, and so must be incorrect.
Here, "so" is not a connector; it can be replaced by "for that reason". The connector here is "and".

[lindaliu9273]

Some connecting words come in pairs (e.g., "If ... then ..."), so it's unwise to generalize in this way.

Also, "so" is sometimes a connector, and sometimes not. Sometimes it's an adverb, meaning, roughly, "(by doing) what was previously described".
E.g.,
James fantasizes about jumping from an airplane, but is too afraid to do so.
or
This value is too large to be reasonable, and so must be incorrect.
Here, "so" is not a connector; it can be replaced by "for that reason". The connector here is "and".

Then how can we eliminate B? Thanks!

[RonPurewal]

In B, prospects (plural) ... was (singular).

[aashu4uiit]

Ron ,

In the below example
Ron, tired from working all day and went to sleep.

if I say tired is a VERB ( expressing state of Ron) and went is also a verb hence parallel ?

So confusion is how to differentiate in such sentences between VERB and MODIFIER ?

Will appreciate your response

[RonPurewal]

you can't "say 'tired' is a verb" there, because it's not. in that context, it's an adjective.
(the use of "tire" as a verb--e.g., these tasks tire me--is something you're altogether unlikely to see, anyway.)

[RonPurewal]

analogy:

1/
A house built over 200 years ago...

2/
The carpenters built the entire house...

in #1, "built" is definitely a modifier of "a house". (houses don't build things, so it would be ridiculous as a verb.)

in #2, "built" is definitely a verb.

context is context. you can't override it—especially not with nonsense interpretations.

[naval.sheth]

I have a doubt with C. Isn't there a change of intended meaning.

Original sentence says "Because Nikola Tesla was excited about something he predicted.."

OA C : Excited about the prospects of harnessing Niagara Falls to produce electric power, Nikola Tesla, the inventor of alternating current, predicted...

But Option C does not show this relationship.

It just says Nikola Tesla (who was excited about something) predicted....

But we not allowed to change the meaning of the sentence right.!!
Will appreciate a response.

[RonPurewal]

there's nothing sacred about choice (a).

• any sentence with a reasonable meaning is ok.
• any sentence with an unreasonable meaning is wrong.

[RonPurewal]

also, i'm not seeing the difference you described.

in the problem (as posted in the first post of this thread), both choice (a) and choice (c) say that tesla was excited about "the prospects of xxxx".

sure, choice (a) uses an idiom that doesn't actually exist ("excited with"). but the source of tesla's excitement is the same in both versions.

are you looking at other choices?

[Crisc419]

Appositive / Noun Modifier , Adjective modifier , Subject - Is always WRONG..

nah, i can make correct sentences with that construction.

Already a renowned composer of symphonies, some of which have been performed by the world's best orchestras, Smith is now turning his attention to writing Broadway-style musicals.

in this example (which is correct), the difference is that the second modifier actually modifies the first modifier, so you basically have to keep those two stuck together.

the construction of choice (e) doesn't make the same kind of logical sense, because "excited about the prospects..." has no apparent connection to tesla's status as the inventor of alternating current.

(E) "excited with the prospects of harnessing Niagara falls for producing electric power" is put between "The inventory of alternating current" and " Nikola Tesla ", so it is not clear which one " ecited with .... " is modifying. Therefore, E should be eliminated. is this explanation right? If not, please correct me. many, many thanks !!

[RonPurewal]

that's not an issue, because "inventor of the alternating current" and "nikola tesla" are the same person.

[Crisc419]

that's not an issue, because "inventor of the alternating current" and "nikola tesla" are the same person.

OK, cause the meaning is clear,right? Ron, very appreciate your help.

[RonPurewal]

i'm not sure whether you're just saying "thank you", or asking another question. are you asking a question?