OG128

Vickyliu

128.New hardy varieties of rice show promise of producing high yields without the costly requirements of irrigation and application of commercial fertilizer by earlier high-yielding varieties.

(A) requirements of irrigation and application of commercial fertilizer by earlier high-yielding varieties

(B) requirements by earlier high-yielding varieties of application of commercial fertilizer and irrigation

(C) requirements for application of commercial fertilizer and irrigation of earlier high-yielding varieties

(D) application of commercial fertilizer and irrigation that was required by earlier high-yielding varieties（E）

(E) irrigation and application of commercial fertilizer that were required by earlier high-yielding varieties

Choice E, the best answer, clearly and grammatically expresses the idea that two costly procedures, irrigation and the application of... fertilizer, were required by earlier high-yielding varieties of rice. In A, the placement of by earlier... varieties immediately after application of fertilizer suggests that the varieties applied the fertilizer. In B and D, the phrase application of... fertilizer and irrigation is ambiguous in meaning: it cannot be clearly determined whether applying fertilizer and irrigating are a single operation or two distinct operations. In C, only irrigation—not both irrigation and fertilization—is clearly associated with the earlier... varieties of rice.

想问问难道E中的
irrigation and application of commercial fertilizer  就把两个概念分的很清楚了吗。可能是{ irrigation and application }of commercial fertilizer 啊，是不是按逻辑上理解fertilizer不可能被irrigate?

还有点不是很明白的就是that， that是不是能指代隔得比较远的reference?或者main clause表达的idea?
在这个题里，that用来指代它紧紧follow的词和and之前的词。而which是不是多数情况下只能指代它紧跟的词。

还有一个解释力没提的就是that were required 里的were,为什么是were?因为是irrigation 和 application两个事情？

Vickyliu

感谢两位的回答。

现在还有个不明白的就是并列的几个单数/复数/单复数都有的名词（包括抽象名词）之后

的谓语或动词的单复数按什么原则使用？

例如本题中的application 和irrigation之后用复数were.

legnawen

同一1楼说的，without的后面的主语就是irrigation 和application,这两者是并列的，它们的对象都是 commercial fertilizer ，并列irrigation和application都是earlier high-yielding varieties 所要求的

A中的by earlier high-yielding varieties放在句尾，离开requirement很远，就变成了修饰 commercial fertilizer

B、C、D的话把irrigation和application分开了，变成了一个与 commercial fertilizer 有关，一个和 commercial fertilizer 没有关系
特别是C和D，变成一个内容和earlier high-yielding varieties有关系，另外一个和它没有关系
把一个很好的并列活生生拆散了

Vickyliu

也就是说恰恰是were才明确了irrigation 和application是独立的两个事情？

其实一直不是很明确，一系列用and连接的名词或动名词共同作为主语时，谓语是用单数还是复数？？照楼上的解释，就是用复数了?

jingjane222

之所以E正确，就是因为从句用了谓动"were", 就说明从句主语是复合主语"Irrigation and application". 如果是was, 就会产生和d一样的歧义。