真题4（大全42题）讨论总结

gemj

4.    According to a survey of graduating medical students conducted by the Association of American Medical Colleges, minority graduates are nearly four times more likely than are other graduates in planning to practice in socioeconomically deprived areas.
(A) minority graduates are nearly four times more likely than are other graduates in planning to practice
(B) minority graduates are nearly four times more likely than other graduates who plan on practicing
(C) minority graduates are nearly four times as likely as other graduates to plan on practicing
(D) it is nearly four times more likely that minority graduates rather than other graduates will plan to practice
(E) it is nearly four times as likely for minority graduates than other graduates to plan to practice

真题4经过长时间的讨论，在CD各路顶尖武林高手（声明我不是）的共同参与过招之中，在anchoret的所提供宝贵资料帮助之下，正确答案基本现出了原形，现在将这些讨论的成果总结如下：

1、首先,真题4的答案A中的第二个are多余。
答案A简化就是：
graduates A are 4 times more likely than graduates B are in doing something.
答案A中的第二个are 多余。从885中没有找到一题将第二个be动词补出的情况，但却找到2题在逻辑上类似，但都没有在第二个人称名词前/后补出be动词。请看：

Several studies have found that the coronary patients who exercise most actively are at least fifty percent less likely than those who are sedentary to die of a heart attack.
简化：patients A are 50% less likely than patients B to die of a heart attack

Studies show that young people with higher-than-average blood pressure whose families have a history of high blood pressure are more likely than others to develop a severe form of the condition.
简化：people A are more likely than people B to develop a condition

In the 1998 survey, blacks (34%) are nearly four times as likely as whites (9%) to fall into the most anti-Semitic category.

However, they were 14 to 23 times more likely than non-threateners to report having attacked someone with a knife and 17 times more likely to report having shot at someone.

〖小结〗
从语感的角度，A is xxx time more/less likely than B to do something比较顺畅；
从句子的有效性来看，A中如果省略are不会引起任何误解，不会丢失任何信息；
从句子的简洁性来看，A中应该省略are。至少B中省略are是完全没有任何问题的。


2、习惯用法是be likely to do，而非“be likely in doing”。
除了上面的众多例子外，再请看：

minority graduates are nearly four times more likely than are other graduates to plan to practice

People who visit a zoo in a given year are two times more likely to visit a pure aquarium that year than are people who do not visit a zoo.

那么可不可以将A中的in理解为“在某一方面”呢？
不可以！如果把in理解为“在某一方面”，那么句子的前半部分就没有了下文：
minority graduates are nearly four times more likely than are other graduates (in planning to practice in socioeconomically deprived areas)
minority graduates比other graduates更加可能什么呢？不知道！只知道在某个方面(in planning to practice in socioeconomically deprived areas)更可能。
换句话说，“minority graduates are nearly four times more likely”并不是一个完整的表达，它必须要带宾语，而这个宾语只能由TO来引导。
另外，如果理解为“在方面(in planning to practice in socioeconomically deprived areas)更可能”，逻辑也不通，至少很别扭。

当然，in的例子也有，看下面的：
Although the concentration of atmospheric methane is more than two orders of magnitude lower than that of carbon dioxide, it cannot be ignored: the radiative properties of methane make it 20 times more effective, molecule for molecule, than carbon dioxide in absorbing radiant heat.
但是，这个例子中的前半部分在意思上是完整的，也就是
the radiative properties of methane make it 20 times more effective
本身能说得通，effective已经把所要表达的意思都完整地表达了。


3、A is N times as adj as B的说法是地道规范的。
（谁以C中的four times as likely as排除C必会铸成大错，悔恨终身！）

Also, it was pointed out, milk-drinking English women get some kinds of cancer eighteen times as frequently as Japanese women who seldom drink milk.

In recent days, while the price of MEGA Corporation stock has been falling, the corporation’s officers and directors have bought up to nine times as much of it as they have sold.

Black Americans are, on the whole, about twice as likely as White Americans to develop high blood pressure.

An MRI is just as likely as an angiogram to identify an arterial blockage.

Legal principles are just as likely as legal rules to have terms that have both core and peripheral meanings.


4、“plan on doing/sth”和“plan to do something”的都是正确、规范、地道的英文用法：

I think we can plan on remaining here until Wednesday.

I was wondering who you were planning on rooming with next year.

When do you plan on going to Geneva?

The former president is planning a return to politics.

I plan on six kids.

He said he planned to write his essay tonight.


5、关于原来句子中的“几乎五倍”（nearly four times more likely than...）变成了“几乎四倍”（nearly four times as likely as...）是否可以接受的问题，一般认为保持原意不能作为100％的判定理由。不改变句子原意甚至不能算作原则，因为原句表达可能错误，不能说修改了原句的意思就错。如果要说的话，就应该说不改变句子最可能的意思，而不是原句的意思。

〖总结〗综上所述，正确答案是C。
【鸣谢】感谢所有参与讨论的武林英雄，江湖豪杰。

anchoret

实在是太厉害，太完整了！！！！

感动ing~~~~~~~~

gemj

感谢老安，我正想向你汇报。

anchoret

我已经更改了真题答案。

braveMBA

佩服，GEMJ

ballpark

牛

yzlinlin

如果gemj的最后得分<800，那我们就有充分理由怀疑ETS出题的科学性。

佩服ing!

不过我还是心仪我的A啊 。
看样子这题可真是一个硬骨头。

[此贴子已经被作者于2003-11-3 3:41:52编辑过]

cthd007

NIU but NIU.

sbbi

这就是菜牛和肉牛的区别呀.

czw69

one word: niu