134. Canadian scientists have calculated that one human being should be struck every nine years by a meteorite, while each year sixteen buildings can be expected to sustain damage from such objects. (A) one human being should be struck every nine years by a meteorite (B) a human being should be struck by a meteorite once in every nine years (C) a meteorite will strike one human being once in every nine years (D) every nine years a human being will be struck by a meteorite (E) every nine years a human being should be struck by a meteorite Choices A, B, and E can be faulted for using should in place of will to indicate future occurrences: should carries the suggestion, especially unwarranted in this context, that the Canadian scientists are describing what ought to happen. The phrase once in every nine years is needlessly wordy in B and C. Also, the language of C implies more than can reasonably be maintained: i.e., that a meteorite will strike one person, and no one else, exactly once during every nine-year period. Choice D is best: the phrasing is concise and free of unintended suggestions, and the use of the indefinite article in a human being is appropriate for describing what is expected to be true only on the average. |