Grammatical questions: The flavor of chocolate depends on the quality of the...

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
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There’re so many questions from grammar tests that I don’t understand and some are what I want to get it more clearly even though I chose the correct answer. And I don’t wanna make many threads on the forum that’s why they’re so many lol.

  1. Frederick Jones invented a refrigeration unit that ______ the transportation of frozen foods by truck.
    a) made possible b) possibly made
    What’s the different between them in meaning? Are both of them grammartically correct?

  2. _______ on differences in life spans among animal species become adequate for statistical analysis.
    a) Only recently the data have b) Only recently have the data
    c) Recently, only the data have d) The data have only recently
    Any given choices + question sentence = 2 main verbs(have,become) in full sentence. I don’t understand !?!?

  3. The flavor of chocolate depends on the quality of the cocoa beans and the complicated process of grinding, heating, and mixture.
    To correct this sentence must change mixture—> mixing. But if I want to use the word ‘mixture’ for its meaning(The flavor of chocolate depends on the complicated ingredients) in this sentence, how do I put it in ?

  4. The adult pygmy shrew measures only three and one-half inches in length and weighs one-eight of an ounce.
    -Is ‘measures’ already correct or it must be changed to ‘is measured’ ?
    -three and one half inches = three feet + 1.5 inches?
    -one eight of an ounce = ??? how exactly heavy is it?

  5. Of the 3,000 languages that were once spoken by Native American people, an estimated _______ today.
    a) 150 exist b) there are 150 c) existing are 150
    Choice a) would fit the sentence but could I use b) and c) ?

  6. ________ begun to understand that the air and the oceans act as a single fluid when they exchange heat and gases.
    a) In the past decade have only meteorologists
    b) Only in the past decade have meteorologists
    c) The only meteorologists in the past decade
    d) Only in the past decade meteorlogists
    Which one would fit the sentence?

  7. Billie Holiday’s reputation as a great jazz-blues singer rests on her ability to give emotional depth to her songs.
    Can I use ‘giving’ instead of ‘to give’ ?
    I always have much troubles with ‘infinitive’ and ‘gerund’. Do you have any suggestion or a URL about them for me?

  8. _______ 1895 did Cornell University begin to offer a degree in ornithology.
    a) Not Until b) Until c) In
    Which one is correct and why?

  9. Uniform acceleration occurs _________ the rate of change remains the same over successive and equal intervals of time.
    a) according b) if c) with d) under
    Any given choices seem to fit the sentence and therefore I cannot choose them.
    Please explain thoroughly. :smiley:

  10. Oil dispersed in water forms the most frequently occurring colloidal solutions.
    “most frequently occurring colloidal solutions” sounds a bit odd to me. Does ‘occurring’ need to be changed to ‘occurred’ ?

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  1. B is not possible here; it works neither grammatically nor semantically. B means ‘maybe made’.

  2. ‘Only’ causes the inversion of S and V, and ‘on differences…species’ modifies ‘data’. Only B fits.

  3. Chocolate does not have complicated ingredients; it is cacao + sugar.

  4. Measures is correct.
    Use your brain, or at least your dictionary: it is a pygmy shrew, so it measures 3.5 inches.
    One eighth of an ounce: 1 oz = about 30 grams.

  5. Only A is possible.

  6. As with #2, only B fits.

  7. Only ability to give is possible. The use of -ing form vs infinitive form after another verb is idiomatic. Most grammar books have a section listing the common verbs that take each (or both).

  8. Only A works, as for #2 and #6.

  9. Only B works. The other answers do not form a clause, which the finite verb ‘remains’ demands.

  10. No. Change ‘solutions’ to ‘solution’

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Thank you very much Mr.Micawber

  1. I didn’t mean about ‘chocolate ingredients’ for real. Presuming that it is ‘Lasagna’ instead. I just want to know how to put the word ‘mixture’ in that sentence for the meaning ‘The flavor of … depends on the quality of… and the complicated process of …ing ,…ing,and…’. I just don’t know where to put noun ‘mixture’ in it.

  2. Oh!! I thought Pygmy shrew = Pygmy (some kind of man between human and dwarf). But still, I don’t understand why it uses ‘measures’. Shouldn’t this pygmy shrew ‘be measured’ by someone else, should it be?

  3. Why can’t I use b) ?

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  1. The flavor depends on the quality and mixture (proportions) of the ingredients and the complicated process of …ing ,…ing,and…ing.

  2. No, some verbs work both ways, and this is the usual way: The table measures 3’ x 4’. The baby weighs 4 kg. This car seats four passengers.

  3. ‘An estimated there are’ makes no sense.

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Thanks