Question

as a young boy, john pollack dreamed of building a full - size boat made entirely of bottle corks. a at the age of thirty - four, pollack sailed his dream down the douro river in portugal. it all began as pollack is likely to point out, with a single cork.
to amass the staggering number of corks needed to construct the boat, 165,231 in all. pollack convinced the staff of several restaurants in washington, dc, to donate discarded corks for his cause. b pollack eventually received cork donations from a cork - importing company based in portugal.
constructing the boat introduced a challenge of another variety. pollack finally tried gluing the corks together to create stackable logs, but he soon realized that this strategy was too time - consuming. c

16.
f. no change
g. began, as pollack is likely to point out,
h. began, as pollack is likely to point out
j. began as pollack is likely to point out

17.
a. no change
b. boat (165,231) in all, pollack convinced the staff of several restaurants,
c. boat—165,231 in all—pollack convinced the staff of several restaurants
d. boat, 165,231, in all, pollack convinced the staff of several restaurants

18.
f. no change
g. donations, from a cork - importing company.
h. donations, from a cork - importing company
j. donations from a cork - importing company.

19.
a. no change
b. next
c. first
d. also

Explanation:

Question 16

We need to choose the correct option for the sentence "It all began as Pollack is likely to point out, with a single cork." Let's analyze each option:

• Option F: "NO CHANGE" – The original sentence has a comma splice issue. The part "Pollack is likely to point out" is an interrupting phrase, and the way it's structured with the comma before and after (implied) needs to be checked. But let's check other options.
• Option G: "began, as Pollack is likely to point out," – This separates "began" from the rest, but the original structure is "It all began as...", so this might not be correct.
• Option H: "began, as Pollack is likely to point out" – Missing the comma after "point out" to properly set off the interrupting phrase.
• Option J: "began as Pollack is likely to point out" – Removes the comma, but the interrupting phrase "as Pollack is likely to point out" should be set off with commas. Wait, maybe I made a mistake. Wait, the original sentence is "It all began as Pollack is likely to point out, with a single cork." The correct structure for an interrupting phrase (parenthetical) is to have commas around it. So "It all began, as Pollack is likely to point out, with a single cork." Wait, but the options are structured as:

F: NO CHANGE (original: "began as Pollack is likely to point out,")
G: "began, as Pollack is likely to point out,"
H: "began, as Pollack is likely to point out"
J: "began as Pollack is likely to point out"

Wait, maybe the original sentence is "It all began as Pollack is likely to point out, with a single cork." The correct punctuation for the interrupting phrase "as Pollack is likely to point out" is to have commas before and after. So the sentence should be "It all began, as Pollack is likely to point out, with a single cork." So looking at the options, Option H is "began, as Pollack is likely to point out" – no, wait, the original has a comma after "point out" (before "with a single cork"). Wait, maybe the correct option is H? Wait, let's re - examine.

The original sentence: "It all began as Pollack is likely to point out, with a single cork." The phrase "as Pollack is likely to point out" is an adverbial clause that interrupts the main clause "It all began... with a single cork." To set off an interrupting clause, we use commas. So the correct structure is "It all began, as Pollack is likely to point out, with a single cork." So the part before the comma: "It all began," then the interrupting clause "as Pollack is likely to point out," then "with a single cork." So looking at the options, Option H is "began, as Pollack is likely to point out" – but the original has "It all began...", so maybe the subject "It" is already there, and the options are for the verb part. Wait, maybe the original sentence is "It all began as Pollack is likely to point out, with a single cork." The error is the lack of a comma before "as Pollack...". So the correct option would be H: "began, as Pollack is likely to point out" – because we need a comma after "began" to set off the interrupting clause. Wait, no, the interrupting clause comes after "began", so we need a comma after "began" and before "as Pollack...", and then a comma after "point out" (which is already there in the original). Wait, the original has a comma after "point out", so the correct option is H: "began, as Pollack is likely to point out" – because we need the comma after "began" to introduce the interrupting clause. Option F has no comma after "began", so it's a run - on. Option G has "is likely to point out," but the original has "with a single cork" after, so th…

We are to choose the correct option for the sentence "To amass the staggering number of corks needed to construct the boat, 165,231 in all. Pollack convinced the staff of several restaurants in Washington, DC, to donate discarded corks for his cause." Let's analyze each option:

• Option A: "NO CHANGE" – The original has a period after "165,231 in all", which makes it a sentence fragment. So A is incorrect.
• Option B: "boat (165,231) in all, Pollack convinced the staff" – The parentheses around 165,231 are used to give additional information about the number of corks, and the comma after "in all" properly connects the two parts of the sentence. This makes the sentence flow correctly.
• Option C: "boat—165,231 in all—Pollack convinced the staff" – The em dashes are used for a more abrupt interruption, but parentheses are more appropriate for giving additional numerical information. Also, the structure with em dashes is a bit more awkward here.
• Option D: "boat, 165,231 in all, Pollack convinced the staff of several restaurants" – The comma after "boat" and before "165,231" is not as clear as using parentheses for the numerical information. And the end "of several restaurants" is cut off in the option description, but even so, the parentheses in B are more appropriate for the additional number. So B is the correct option.

We need to choose the correct option for the sentence "received cork donations from a cork - importing company based in Portugal." Let's analyze each option:

• Option F: "NO CHANGE" – The original sentence is "received cork donations from a cork - importing company based in Portugal." The other options add unnecessary punctuation or changes.
• Option G: "donations, from a cork - importing company" – The comma after "donations" is incorrect as it disrupts the flow of the sentence. The phrase "from a cork - importing company" is a prepositional phrase modifying "donations", and no comma is needed there.
• Option H: "donations, from a cork - importing company" – Same as G, the comma is incorrect.
• Option J: "donations from a cork - importing company" – This is the same as the original, but wait, no, the original is "received cork donations from a cork - importing company...", and Option F is "NO CHANGE", which is correct. Wait, maybe I misread. Wait, the original sentence is "received cork donations from a cork - importing company based in Portugal." The options are about the phrase "donations from a cork - importing company". Option F is "NO CHANGE", which is correct because the original phrase is grammatically correct and the other options (G, H, J) either add incorrect commas or are not different in a way that improves the sentence. Wait, no, looking at the options again: Option F is "NO CHANGE", Option G is "donations, from a cork - importing company", Option H is "donations, from a cork - importing company", Option J is "donations from a cork - importing company". Wait, maybe there's a typo, but assuming the original is correct, the answer is F.

Answer:

H. began, as Pollack is likely to point out

Question 17