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Difficulty: Very hardShifts in Construction

To maintain consistency in grammatical construction and mood throughout the passage, what form of the verb 'demonstrate' should be written in the blank?

Answer:During the initial phase of the clinical study, several anomalies emerged in the preliminary patient logs. In response, the lead investigator insisted that the raw data be compiled into a central database and that the research team 【demonstrate】 the validity of the results through a series of double-blind trials. This rigorous approach ensured that the final publication would withstand intense peer review.

Answer

The correct form of the verb is 'demonstrate', which maintains the subjunctive mood and parallel construction of the dependent clauses.
The correct answer is 'demonstrate' because the verb must remain in the subjunctive mood to parallel the clause 'that the raw data be compiled', both of which are governed by the demand verb 'insisted'.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the main verb and the grammatical mood established in the first part of the sentence.
The sentence uses the main verb 'insisted' followed by the subjunctive clause 'that the raw data be compiled' (indicated by the subjunctive form 'be compiled' instead of 'is compiled' or 'was compiled').
Determining the mood of the initial clause is necessary to maintain consistency across the entire construction.
2
Analyze the coordinate clause linked by the conjunction 'and'.
The second clause is 'that the research team [verb] the validity...', which must parallel the first subjunctive clause.
To avoid a shift in construction, both clauses dependent on 'insisted that' must share the same subjunctive mood.
3
Formulate the correct subjunctive form of the verb 'demonstrate' for the subject 'the research team'.
The subjunctive mood uses the base form of the verb, which is 'demonstrate'.
This completes the parallel subjunctive construction without introducing an ungrammatical shift to the indicative mood.

Key Concept

Maintaining grammatical consistency and mood in coordinate subjunctive constructions.
Estimated Time:1m 30s
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Topics

Shifts in Construction

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