On Earth, among the surest indications of sunspot cycles are

[calm.jing]

Yeah -- actually, "comma + __ed" can do both of those things.

* Subject (+ action):
Tanya collapsed onto the couch, exhausted from a 14-hour work shift.

* Nearest noun:
John showed me his collection of vinyl records, purchased mostly while vinyl was still the predominant medium for rock albums.

As long as common sense can distinguish which of the two is the intended noun, you're good.

Thanks.

Many thanks for your instant reply! :)

[jlucero]

Glad it helped.

[hr.nikkhah]

bump just means the person was posting to lift the problem in the queue.

Hei, just FYI, we work from oldest to newest. So don't bump the problem or you'll be later in the queue! :)
(Unless it falls to the second page - then do bump it or it will get lost.)

An inversion is when the subject of the sentence comes after the verb. In many of the choices, this occurs. If we look at A, we have the following prepositional phrases:
"on earth"
"among the surest indications"
"of sunspot cycles"

Prepositional phrases don't contain the main subjects of sentences, but these are the only words before "are believed to be" - so the subject must come after the verb.

What is or are believed to be? If I strip it down: The rate is believed to be among the indications...
I agree it sounds kind of weird, but it's grammatically correct.

As for C, it implies first that this belief is only true "on earth" - but maybe people living on other planets have different views. That's nonsensical. The ending "indications of sunspot cycles, as seen in the rings visible..." also implies that the rings are in the indications of sunspot cycles (the stuff after the comma modifies the stuff before the comma). That's also nonsensical - we see evidence of the tree growth rate in the rings, not sunspot cycles.

Dear Stacy,

Please let me know what the subject of this question is. because after reading the question for several times, I still think the subject is plural and the verb should be plural as well, however,according to the correct answer the verb is singular.

[RonPurewal]

Do you understand these sentences?
There is one car in the driveway.
There are two cars in the driveway.
In the driveway is one car.
In the driveway are two cars.

The subjects are, respectively, one car, two cars, one car, and two cars.
"There" and "in the driveway" are modifiers. They're not nouns (and not equivalent to nouns), and so can't be subjects.

This sentence is, in essence, just a much, much longer version of "In the driveway are two cars" (with the singular and plural roles reversed), with "among the _____" playing the role of "in the driveway".

[RonPurewal]

Dear Stacy,

Please let me know what the subject of this question is. because after reading the question for several times, I still think the subject is plural and the verb should be plural as well, however,according to the correct answer the verb is singular.

If you're going to write a personal address ("Dear Stacey"), you ought to check the time/date of the message to which you're responding. That one is almost six years old.

--

[thanghnvn]

[quote="Saurabh Malpani"]On Earth, among the surest indications of sunspot cycles are believed to be the rate that trees grow, as seen in the rings visible in the cross sections of their trunks.


A. On Earth, among the surest indications of sunspot cycles are believed to be the rate that trees grow
B. On Earth, among the surest indications of sunspot cycles are, it is believed, the rate of tree growth
C. On Earth, the rate at which trees grow is believed to be among the surest indications of sunspot cycles
D. Among the surest indications on Earth of sunspot cycles, believed to be the tree growth rate
E. Among the surest indications on Earth of sunspot cycles is believed to be the rate at which trees grow

I agree that E is best.

however,

"as seen..." is an eliptical subordinate clause (and not a idioms such as "compared to" or "as opposed to"). This subordinate clause must modify a main clause logically and can not modify a noun. Why dose this clause modify a noun in E. ?

[RonPurewal]

This subordinate clause must modify a main clause logically and can not modify a noun. Why dose this clause modify a noun in E. ?

E is the correct answer. The red statement is thus incorrect.

[JackyF923]

Can I say because the Choice A uses 'are', but Chice E uses 'is'?
The subject here is "the rate", so we should use 'is ' here.
I think this is the fastest way to pick out the correct answer.

[RonPurewal]

Can I say because the Choice A uses 'are', but Chice E uses 'is'?
The subject here is "the rate", so we should use 'is ' here.

this reasoning is valid ... and has also been discussed at great length in this thread.

please read the ENTIRE thread before posting on it. yes, it's a long thread, but we'll thank you to read through it anyway, just to avoid redundant discussion. (there's a benefit for you, too: if your issue is already addressed, then you don't have to wait for an answer!)

at the very least, you should read through all of the moderator posts (usernames in red).

[RonPurewal]

I think this is the fastest way to pick out the correct answer.

well, you still have to eliminate the other three wrong answers.

[HM537]

The rate at which trees grow is believed to be among the surest indications of sunspot cycles.
Among the surest indications of sunspot cycles is believed to be the rate at which trees grow.

what is the difference between thses two sentences? I just can't understand "among the surest indications" in choice E. "among" is a preposition. how can "among the surest indications" be the subject of the sentence?

[RonPurewal]

grammatically, those sentences are the same. they're exactly equivalent.
there are differences only in style/emphasis/rhetorical qualities, none of which falls under the purview of this exam.

Two cars are in the driveway.
In the driveway are two cars.

these sentences are also the same.

[RonPurewal]

how can "among the surest indications" be the subject of the sentence?

it isn't.

similarly, 'two cars' is the subject of both sentences above.

[aflaamM589]

Hello Ron,
Is following also an error in E?
E) among the surest indications is ___________--> in _____ the indication should come

[RonPurewal]

hm? E is the correct answer.