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Difficulty: MediumShifts in Construction

Deep in the temperate rainforests, bioluminescent fungi emit a soft green glow that illuminates the forest floor at night. Researchers believe that this light attracts insects, which then spread the fungal spores throughout the ecosystem. While studying these organisms, scientists documented the chemical reactions that caused the glow and analyze how different temperatures affected the brightness.

Which choice most effectively maintains a consistent grammatical structure and verb tense throughout the final sentence?

  1. A
    analyze how different temperatures affected
  2. analyzed how different temperatures affectedAnswer
  3. C
    analyzing how different temperatures affect
  4. D
    have analyzed how different temperatures are affecting

Answer

The choice that uses the past-tense verb 'analyzed' to match 'documented' is correct because it maintains a consistent past-tense construction and parallel structure throughout the sentence.
The correct answer maintains a consistent past-tense construction in parallel with 'documented' and 'caused'. Since the sentence describes research that was completed in the past, the second verb in the compound predicate must also be in the past tense ('analyzed').

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the verbs in the sentence to determine the primary tense of the passage.
The main verb in the first part of the compound predicate is 'documented', which is in the past tense.
Verb tenses within a sentence must remain consistent unless there is a clear chronological shift.
2
Analyze the underlined portion to check for consistency with the rest of the sentence.
The underlined verb 'analyze' is in the present tense, which creates an illogical shift from the past-tense 'documented'.
This identifies the grammatical error in the original sentence.
3
Evaluate the choices to find the one that corrects the tense shift and maintains parallel structure.
The past-tense verb 'analyzed' matches the tense of 'documented' and forms a grammatical, parallel compound predicate.
This resolves the shift in construction and ensures grammatical correctness.

Key Concept

Shifts in Construction
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Shifts in Construction

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