Simple Present Vs Present Perfect

[abhishek.gupta]

GMAT Manhattan Sentence Correction Guide, Ch 13, pg 263 (Problem Set) question 10.

The original sentence: "Because evidence suggests that some tomatoes ARE contanimated with bacteria, Rachel suggested that Patrick make a salad without tomatoes."

I understand that original sentence is correct.

Now consider a slightly modified version of the above sentence:
"Because evidence suggests that some tomatoes HAVE BEEN contanimated with bacteria, Rachel suggested that Patrick make a salad without tomatoes."

In the clause following "that" , can "ARE" be replaced with "HAVE BEEN"? Would this be gramattically correct? Please advise.

[RonPurewal]

GMAT Manhattan Sentence Correction Guide, Ch 13, pg 263 (Problem Set) question 10.

The original sentence: "Because evidence suggests that some tomatoes ARE contanimated with bacteria, Rachel suggested that Patrick make a salad without tomatoes."

I understand that original sentence is correct.

Now consider a slightly modified version of the above sentence:
"Because evidence suggests that some tomatoes HAVE BEEN contanimated with bacteria, Rachel suggested that Patrick make a salad without tomatoes."

In the clause following "that" , can "ARE" be replaced with "HAVE BEEN"? Would this be gramattically correct? Please advise.

that would work too.
the difference is really small (much smaller than anything the gmat would ever test). basically, if the narrator writes "are contaminated", then he/she is looking at the contamination as a state in which the tomatoes exist -- i.e., they just ARE contaminated.
on the other hand, if the narrator writes "have been contaminated", then there's an emphasis on the actual moment of contamination (as it pertains to the present).

by the way, make sure you know that verb-tense differences are NEVER grammatical issues -- they are always issues of meaning/context.
as far as grammatical stuff is concerned, all verb tenses are equivalent.

[abhishek.gupta]

Thanks for explaination.

[RonPurewal]

Thanks for explaination.

sure.

more generally, remember that the gmat is NOT going to test small / subtle differences between tenses.
if tenses are necessary to solving a problem, then the differences are going to be huge -- like, say, using the past tense for an event that hasn't occurred yet, or using 2 different tenses for simultaneous actions.

if you see what appears to be a subtle difference between tenses -- i.e., not a rather large/obvious difference -- then look for a different basis for eliminating choices.