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Economic Major Shifts

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Viswanathan.harsha
 Post subject: Economic Major Shifts
 Post Posted: Mon Aug 16, 2010 11:56 pm 
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Course Students


Posts: 43
Often major economic shifts are so gradual as to be indistinguishable at first from ordinary fluctuations in financial markets.

A. same
B. so gradual so that they can be indistinguishable
C. so gradual that they are unable to be distinguished
D. gradual enough not to be distinguishable
E. gradual enough so that one cannot distinguish them



OA A

I chose C, isn't So X that Y idiomatic as well? I know So and as is correct, but I had trouble choosing between A and C. Can someone please explain what other problems are with C for learning purposes?


Last edited by Viswanathan.harsha on Fri Sep 03, 2010 12:41 am, edited 1 time in total.

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abhishekirani
 Post subject: Re: Economic Major Shifts
 Post Posted: Tue Aug 17, 2010 12:56 am 
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Students


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they are unable to distinguished

if it were unable to be distinguished then it would make sense.
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Viswanathan.harsha
 Post subject: Re: Economic Major Shifts
 Post Posted: Tue Aug 17, 2010 11:01 pm 
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Course Students


Posts: 43
Sorry, that was a typo, it is supposed to be "unable to be distinguished"
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Viswanathan.harsha
 Post subject: Re: Economic Major Shifts
 Post Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2010 12:58 am 
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Posts: 43
Ron,

Can you please explain why C is incorrect?
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mschwrtz
 Post subject: Re: Economic Major Shifts
 Post Posted: Thu Sep 23, 2010 4:13 pm 
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ManhattanGMAT Staff


Posts: 506
It would be hard to use X is unable to be Y-ed correctly.

The passive voice and the past participle suggest that something is done (or not done) to X. But the able/unable suggest that X does (or does not) do something. Too abstract? OK, let's get down to the case at hand. Here's the wrong answer you asked about.

Often major economic shifts are so gradual that they are unable to be distinguished at first from ordinary fluctuations in financial markets.

This suggests that being distinguished from ordinary fluctuations is something major economic shifts are unable to do. But major economic shifts aren't doing or failing to do anything whatsoever.

Could you ever be un/able to have something done to you? How about this sentence describing a dancer who is able to follow her partners lead.

The dancer is able to be led.

Eh, maybe. Being led is plausibly grammatically passive, while also a real ability. Kind of an ugly sentence though. I'd prefer

The dancer is able to follow a lead.

Notice that though the passive voice is wrong, as it usually is wrong, it's wrong for a reason. No such reason? Not wrong.
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