The patient's rare disease was treated using novel techniques developed at the medical school.

Here clearly the verb "was treated" is being modified by "using novel techniques". I don't understand what is wrong with this sentence.

The guide says that the modifier is dangling because there is no noun that is properly modified by using novel technique. It is true that there is no noun but using novel technique is modifying the verb and not the noun.

-Nish

Hi Nish,
This is a dangling modifier because *someone* was actually using the novel techniques. A human being used the techniques to treat the patient.

If you have access to the Verbal Review book, edition one, take a look at sentence correction #38 and you can see that the GMAT has a similar phrase involving "using" that is considered a dangling modifier because the actual person using the equipment is not in the sentence. The corrected sentence includes the person who is "using" the equipment, similar to what we see in this example.

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Jamie Nelson
ManhattanGMAT Instructor

So can we infer from this the general rule that Verb Modifiers always refer not only to the verb they modify, but also to the subject of that verb in a way? (and the subject therefore needs to be mentioned correctly?)

Until I came across this example, I thought the logic was: Verbal Modifier refers to the verb -> verb OK -> modifier OK. But following this logic, the above sentence would be correct, as nishank.pathak wrote.

Thank you for your response.

no, you cannot infer this at all! please understand when Jamie told us this was a noun modifier, that meant the original poster was wrong in assuming it was a verb modifier. it cannot be both!

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Tim Sanders
Manhattan GMAT Instructor

thank you for your response. From the way I understand the Manhattan SC guide a present participle phrase can be either a verb or a noun modifier, depending on whether it is set off by commas (noun m. w/o commas, verb m. with commas). Is that correct?

In the discussed sentence it would make sense.

Best,
Flo

to answer your question, that is correct.

_________________
Tim Sanders
Manhattan GMAT Instructor

1.)

Assume the sentence is:
I lifted the weight by concentrating.
Here, without comma by concentrating modifies lifted or I?
I think lifted. so it is verb modifier without comma.

2.)
If i say
They swam for 2 hours, after lunch
after lunch is prepositional phrase and it is modifying swam
http://www.beatthegmat.com/introductory ... 53789.html

you can't use commas in this sort of construction.

the only time i've ever seen a prepositional phrase AFTER a comma is when either
(1) the sentence is unreadable / confusing / ambiguous WITHOUT the comma (see your example about the Ukrainian election below), or
(2) that prepositional phrase is acting as an adjective to modify the proceeding noun.
for example:
Michael Beauregard, of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, received a Purple Heart today for his courage in battle

So why I lifted the weight , by concentrating is correct in Manhattan GMAT SC book?


3.) Some verb modifiers may apply to both verb and verb's subject(make sure such modifiers have sensible subject)
so a modifier can be a noun or a verb modifier in some cases? Is it?


4.) The weight was lifted by concentrating is wrong because sensible subject is missing
so as per the logic

fix the sentence, we can introduce an agent who
actually used the novel techniques (e.g., a doctor), or we can switch to a prepositional phrase, such
as through the use of novel techniques, that does not contain an -Ing verb form.

Will the sentence be correct?
I lifted the weight by concentration.

i think you're worrying too much about something that i can't recall showing up with any regularity in real GMAT questions. rather than asking a bunch of hypotheticals, can you find where this issue is actually tested on an actual problem so we can address it for real and in a real context?

_________________
Tim Sanders
Manhattan GMAT Instructor