One or it?

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hanky

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Good day,
Could you tell me which sentence below sounds better?
1/ For example, let us assume that one would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
2/ For example, let us assume that it would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
I go with the first one.
Thanks.
 
hanky said:
Good day,
Could you tell me which sentence below sounds better?
1/ For example, let us assume that one would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
2/ For example, let us assume that it would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
I go with the first one.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Both may be correct depending on who (one) or what (it) is carrying the experiment.
- If you refer to some researcher doing the experiment, then (one) is correct.
- If you mean that some changes have been made in the data, then (this change:it) is correct.
 
hanky said:
Good day,
Could you tell me which sentence below sounds better?
1/ For example, let us assume that one would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
2/ For example, let us assume that it would be able to increase the charge of electrons ... (what is 'it' anyway?)
I go with the first one.
Thanks.
Click to expand...

It's awkward to keep using 'one'.
Let us assume that the charge of the electrons can be increased.

not a teacher
 
hanky said:
Good day,
Could you tell me which sentence below sounds better?
1/ For example, let us assume that one would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
2/ For example, let us assume that it would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
I go with the first one.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Both can be correct.

"one" can refer to a person (or a group of people) or to one way/technique/attempt/etc.

"it" can refer to all the above except for people.
 
hanky said:
Good day,
Could you tell me which sentence below sounds better?
1/ For example, let us assume that one would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
2/ For example, let us assume that it would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
I go with the first one.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
2. is not good.
Let us assume that it would be possible to increase the charge of electrons ...
"It is able" doesn't mean "it is possible". With your sentence 2, you'd have to ask, "Is what able to increase the charge of electrons?"
 
Raymott said:
2. is not good. I don't agree.
With your sentence 2, you'd have to ask, "Is what able to increase the charge of electrons?" "it" is a technique, method, machine, etc.
Click to expand...
2006
 
2006 said:
2. is not good. I don't agree.
With your sentence 2, you'd have to ask, "Is what able to increase the charge of electrons?" "it" is a technique, method, machine, etc.
Click to expand...
That's true, you can postulate a scenario in which 2. is good.

But the OP presented the two sentences and asked which was better - the implication being that the meanings were similar. I meant that 2. is not good if you are taking "it" to be the subject of an impersonal verb, as in "It is possible".

Certainly you are right if "it" has a concrete referent, and this does make them both correct.
 
Hi,
thank you all for your kind help. I have changed the second sentence a little bit as suggested.

1/ For example, let us assume that one would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
2/ For example, let us assume that it would be possible to increase the charge of electrons ...

Now, which sentence sounds better?

PS: The fact is that the charge of an electron cannot be changed so we are aware that the two sentences describe a thought experiment. "One" in the first sentence refers to the person who's doing this thought experiment. "It" in the second sentence, as I understood, play the same role as "It" in "It's know that ..." (quasi subject?).
 
hanky said:
Hi,
thank you all for your kind help. I have changed the second sentence a little bit as suggested.

1/ For example, let us assume that one would be able to increase the charge of electrons ...
2/ For example, let us assume that it would be possible to increase the charge of electrons ...

Now, which sentence sounds better?

PS: The fact is that the charge of an electron cannot be changed so we are aware that the two sentences describe a thought experiment. "One" in the first sentence refers to the person who's doing this thought experiment. "It" in the second sentence, as I understood, play the same role as "It" in "It's know that ..." (quasi subject?).
Click to expand...
Exactly.
But if you're going to make an assumption, you might be able to assume that "it is possible" rather than "it would be possible".
This would be my preference:
2/ For example, let us assume that it is possible to increase the charge of electrons ...
 
For example, let us assume that it is possible to increase the charge of electrons ...
Click to expand...

This is the same as

let us assume that the charge of electrons can be increased
Click to expand...

as I suggested.

I thought in science, you are only concerned with whether something can or cannot be done. Why bother with who or what (it) is going to do it?
 
Raymott said:
Exactly.
But if you're going to make an assumption, you might be able to assume that "it is possible" rather than "it would be possible".
This would be my preference:
2/ For example, let us assume that it is possible to increase the charge of electrons ...
Click to expand...
Hi Raymott,
I used "it would be possible" rather than "it's possible" because that I assumed is contrast with the truth (we are likely to say "If I were you" but not "If I am you"), am I right? To be safe, maybe I go with the first sentence.
Thank you.
 
hanky said:
Hi Raymott,
I used "it would be possible" rather than "it's possible" because that I assumed is contrast with the truth (we are likely to say "If I were you" but not "If I am you"), am I right? To be safe, maybe I go with the first sentence.
Thank you.
Click to expand...
If you assume something is true, you don't have to use the subjunctive. You'd say: "Let's assume I was you." or "Let's assume I am you". If you assume something for a mind exercise, you pretend it is true, and use the grammar for true things.

To give tedtmc his due, his correction of 2. is probably the simplest way of saying what you want.
 
Raymott said:
That's true, you can postulate a scenario in which 2. is good.

But the OP presented the two sentences and asked which was better - the implication being that the meanings were similar. I meant that 2. is not good if you are taking "it" to be the subject of an impersonal verb, as in "It is possible".

Certainly you are right if "it" has a concrete referent, and this does make them both correct.
Click to expand...
One problem is that we often don't know what the level of the poster's understanding is.
So when they ask something like 'Which one is (better)(correct)?', we may not be sure if the actual words the poster uses to ask the question is what they really mean.
Also, other students read the answers and that may cause us to answer in a more comprehensive way. (at a 'higher level') Of course, the most important person is the one who asks the question.

Interestingly, both of the first two responders answered that both can be correct. But no doubt, there can be more than one way to perceive and answer the question. :)
 
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