as well as etc.

jiang · #1 04-Dec-2006, 09:01

Dear teachers,
I have five questions to ask:

No.1
The donor of the kidney doesn't want the young man to know what he has done for him and _____ why he did it.
a. still less b. as well as
The key is 'a', no problem. Since there is only key without explanation to the
key I'd like to explain it to see if I am right or not:

I can't choose 'b' because:
No.1 If this is not negative sentence, that is, if the sentence is ' It is The donor of the kidney wants the youngman to know what he has done for him' then I can write 'as well as why he did it'. Then the sentence is correct.
No.2
If I use 'as well as' then I can't use 'and'.

No.2
I did not know what to do with the dying cat except clasp it to my bosom. Here 'except' means 'but'. And the structure is similar to 'The boy could do nothing but cry'. Is that right?

No.3
Look at the delight a one-or two-yer-old takes in learning, and you see____.
a. how powerful the human will is to learn
b. how powerful is the human will to learn
The key is 'b' because 'to learn' is an attribute. 'a' doens't make sense because it is something like' The human will is to learn'. Is that right?

No.4
This is due partly to ______ telephone service is good, whereas postal service is less efficient.
a. the reason that b. the fact that
The key is 'b', no problem. Could you please explain why 'a' isn't correct?

No.5
__________ anyone can grow up in the world today without worrying about nuclear weapons is no tribute to the discoverers of radium.
a. That hardly b. Whether
'a' is the key, no problem. 'b' means 'no everyone worries about nuclear weapons. Is that right? But the grammar is OK. Is that right?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Thank you in advance.

Jiang

MikeNewYork · #2 04-Dec-2006, 09:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by jiang

Dear teachers,
I have five questions to ask:

No.1
The donor of the kidney doesn't want the young man to know what he has done for him and _____ why he did it.
a. still less b. as well as
The key is 'a', no problem. Since there is only key without explanation to the
key I'd like to explain it to see if I am right or not:

I can't choose 'b' because:
No.1 If this is not negative sentence, that is, if the sentence is ' It is The donor of the kidney wants the youngman to know what he has done for him' then I can write 'as well as why he did it'. Then the sentence is correct.
No.2
If I use 'as well as' then I can't use 'and'.

No.2
I did not know what to do with the dying cat except clasp it to my bosom. Here 'except' means 'but'. And the structure is similar to 'The boy could do nothing but cry'. Is that right?

No.3
Look at the delight a one-or two-yer-old takes in learning, and you see____.
a. how powerful the human will is to learn
b. how powerful is the human will to learn
The key is 'b' because 'to learn' is an attribute. 'a' doens't make sense because it is something like' The human will is to learn'. Is that right?

No.4
This is due partly to ______ telephone service is good, whereas postal service is less efficient.
a. the reason that b. the fact that
The key is 'b', no problem. Could you please explain why 'a' isn't correct?

No.5
__________ anyone can grow up in the world today without worrying about nuclear weapons is no tribute to the discoverers of radium.
a. That hardly b. Whether
'a' is the key, no problem. 'b' means 'no everyone worries about nuclear weapons. Is that right? But the grammar is OK. Is that right?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Thank you in advance.

Jiang

1. Yes, very good.
2. Yes, again.
3. Yes, a subject-verb inversion is needed there.
4. In this one "the reason that" doesn't fit with "this is due". The thing is due to a fact, not a reason.
5. It is difficult to equate a "whether" statement to a tribute. It is a choice.

jiang · #3 04-Dec-2006, 09:25

Dear Mike,

Thank you very much for your explanation. Now I see.

Jiang

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeNewYork

1. Yes, very good.
2. Yes, again.
3. Yes, a subject-verb inversion is needed there.
4. In this one "the reason that" doesn't fit with "this is due". The thing is due to a fact, not a reason.
5. It is difficult to equate a "whether" statement to a tribute. It is a choice.

MikeNewYork · #4 04-Dec-2006, 09:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by jiang

Dear Mike,

Thank you very much for your explanation. Now I see.

Jiang

You're welcome.

jiang · #5 08-Dec-2006, 07:26

Dear Mike,
I'd like to ask more about No.3.

Look at the delight a one-or two-yer-old takes in learning, and you see____.
a. how powerful the human will is to learn
b. how powerful is the human will to learn
The key is 'b' because 'to learn' is an attribute. 'a' doens't make sense because it is something like' The human will is to learn'. Is that right?
According to your reply a subject-verb inversion is needed. I memorized it as a rule but found there are examples that show they are not inverted.
For example, in my dictionary, there is a sentence:
I'll go and see what the children are doing. My guess is:
No.1
In my sentence there is an adjective following 'how' and the verb is 'is'. Are these the conditions that decide inverted sentences?
No.2
Inverted sentence is needed because 'to learn' modifies 'human will' so they can't be separated. Is that right?

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you in advance.
Jiang

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeNewYork

1. Yes, very good.
2. Yes, again.
3. Yes, a subject-verb inversion is needed there.
4. In this one "the reason that" doesn't fit with "this is due". The thing is due to a fact, not a reason.
5. It is difficult to equate a "whether" statement to a tribute. It is a choice.

MikeNewYork · #6 08-Dec-2006, 16:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by jiang

Dear Mike,
I'd like to ask more about No.3.

Look at the delight a one-or two-yer-old takes in learning, and you see____.
a. how powerful the human will is to learn
b. how powerful is the human will to learn
The key is 'b' because 'to learn' is an attribute. 'a' doens't make sense because it is something like' The human will is to learn'. Is that right?
According to your reply a subject-verb inversion is needed. I memorized it as a rule but found there are examples that show they are not inverted.
For example, in my dictionary, there is a sentence:
I'll go and see what the children are doing. My guess is:
No.1
In my sentence there is an adjective following 'how' and the verb is 'is'. Are these the conditions that decide inverted sentences?
No.2
Inverted sentence is needed because 'to learn' modifies 'human will' so they can't be separated. Is that right?

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you in advance.
Jiang

Yes, I think you're right. I think that another correct version is "how powerful the human will to learn is". The overriding factor is the association of "human will to learn". That cannot be separarted by the verb.

jiang · #7 09-Dec-2006, 00:08

Dear Mike,

Thank you very much for your explanation. So both 'how poerful is the human will to learn' and 'how powerful the human will to learn is'. Is that right?

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you very much.
Have a nice weekend.

Jiang

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeNewYork

Yes, I think you're right. I think that another correct version is "how powerful the human will to learn is". The overriding factor is the association of "human will to learn". That cannot be separarted by the verb.

MikeNewYork · #8 10-Dec-2006, 01:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by jiang

Dear Mike,

Thank you very much for your explanation. So both 'how poerful is the human will to learn' and 'how powerful the human will to learn is'. Is that right?

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you very much.
Have a nice weekend.

Jiang

You're welcome. You have a nice weekend also.