How to Write Persuasive Essay Topics

The Importance of Context in Verb Tenses

In our last post, we looked at verb tenses and noted that there is no restriction on how many  tenses we can use and mix within a sentence, as long as  they are appropriate for the context of the sentence. The problem is that sometimes the context can be a  bit complicated to crack. We may  think that a tense shift is required when it is actually not. Let’s take a look at an official GMAT question to better understand this concept: A recent study has found that within the past few years, many doctors had elected early retirement rather than face the threats of lawsuits and the rising costs of malpractice insurance. (A) had elected early retirement rather than face (B) had elected early retirement instead of facing (C) have elected retiring early instead of facing (D) have elected to retire early rather than facing (E) have elected to retire early rather than face So the first decision point is have vs. had. What is correct here? We know that we use past perfect tense when there are two actions in the past. So do we have two actions in the past here â€Å"finding† and â€Å"electing† of which, it may seem, â€Å"electing† would have happened before â€Å"finding?† Sure, we have two actions but here is the catch we use past perfect only when the previous action takes place completely before the recent past action. Here, we know that â€Å"within the past few years† implies the recent years. The study shows that most probably, doctors are still electing early retirement. So the use of past perfect is incorrect here. In this context, we will use present perfect only. The other error that helps us to arrive at the right answer is lack of parallelism. â€Å"retire† and â€Å"face† need to be parallel while rising should not be parallel to them because it is a sub-list under â€Å"face†. They elected to retire †¦ rather than face A and B. A the threats B the rising costs â€Å"[R]ising† is a present participle that is modifying the noun â€Å"costs† in the non underlined part. So our verbs â€Å"retire† and â€Å"face† should not be in the -ing form. Answer choice E satisfies all these criteria and hence is the right answer. Note that the correct answer uses present perfect for both verbs since the context requires us to. Let’s look at a rewrite of this question: A recent article in The Economic Times reported that many recent MBA graduates had decided on taking a job rather than face the uncertainty of entrepreneurship. (A) had decided on taking a job rather than face (B) had decided on taking a job instead of facing (C) have decided to take a job instead of facing (D) had decided to take a job rather than facing (E) have decided to take a job rather than face How does the solution change now? Again we have two verbs â€Å"report† and â€Å"decide†. The reporting has already happened so the simple past â€Å"reported† has been used in the non-underlined part. Which tense will we use with â€Å"decide†? Again, the concept is still the same. We are talking about recent MBA graduates and it shows a trend. It is something that is not completely over, hence the use of past perfect is not justified. We should use the present perfect tense only though it may seem a bit counterintuitive since â€Å"report† is in the past tense. â€Å"take† and â€Å"face† should be parallel to each other so out of (C) and (E), (E) fits. This is the reason making sweeping statements in grammar is dangerous a lot depends on the context. Getting ready to take the GMAT? Check out one of our many  free GMAT resources  to get a jump start on your GMAT prep. And as always, be sure to follow us on  Facebook,  YouTube,  Google+, and  Twitter  for more helpful tips like this one! Karishma, a Computer Engineer with a keen interest in alternative Mathematical approaches, has mentored students in the continents of Asia, Europe and North America. She teaches the  GMAT  for Veritas Prep and regularly participates in content development projects such as  this blog!

Academic Subject Research Paper Topics

Academic Subject Research Paper TopicsAcademic subject research papers need to be accomplished with respect for the basics of your chosen subject. These same basic facts need to be presented clearly and concisely in order to be successful in an academic writing environment.The most important aspect of essay topics for a student who wants to be successful in academic writing is to have clear cut and simple ideas that are coherent and relevant to the subject matter at hand. Academic writing is all about communicating ideas through writing, and having a strong foundation to support this is essential. Good academic subject research paper topics are developed from your experiences in a specific area of study.To really understand the complexity of your subject, you will need to spend time researching the topic and the college that best suits your particular needs. It is also necessary to discuss your goals for the dissertation. You will need to find a topic that is specific to the goals yo u wish to accomplish. In order to be successful in your dissertation, you must keep your audience in mind.The goal of the student who wants to be successful in academic writing is to produce clear and concise essay topics that meet the criteria of academic subject research paper topics. These criteria include giving an outline of the topic and then developing the required topic analysis. When the focus of the essay is related to the topic, the essay can be a success.An outline of the essay helps the writer to stay on track and focused. It also assists the writer to develop the proper outline of the writing process, which includes key analysis, key passages, main body, conclusion, and one or more appendices. The use of an outline of the writing process can create a clearer outline of the essay topic and can make the essay very readable.To develop clear and concise subject research paper topics, you should consider using some type of outline for your topic. There are lots of outline f ormats available online that includes guidelines and other tips for this important project. The style and presentation of the outline are all dependent upon the needs of the individual writer.When writing an outline of academic subject research paper topics, you may find that it is better to utilize a schedule to assist you in outlining the topic. Once you begin, you will find that each day the topic will get bigger until you reach a point where you stop working on it and move onto the next one. This concept is often referred to as stop and go writing.The next step in developing outline of academic subject research paper topics is to pick out a main topic to write about it. You may begin to develop a clear outline of the topic when you start to use the main topic. Once the outline is complete, it will be easier to begin developing the ideas that support it and take you into the next step in your project.