39.1 Editing misplaced, dangling, and disruptive modifiers

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39.1 Editing misplaced, dangling, and disruptive modifiers

The following paragraph contains various kinds of misplaced modifiers. (Note: all of the sentences are incorrect.) Recognize and revise the misplaced modifiers, the badly-placed limiting modifiers, and the squinting modifiers. You will have to reword several of the sentences. Click HERE for a sample answer.

Fixing dangling modifiers sometimes requires more than shifting words around. Revise the dangling modifiers in the following paragraph, and do not hesitate to rewrite sentences if necessary. Click HERE for a sample answer.

This activity contains 2 questions.

People who wake up in the middle of the night often are considered insomniacs. They may spend hundreds of dollars on therapy, sleeping pills, and other medications, which can replace one problem with another. New research, however, suggests that our ideal seven or eight-hour sleep pattern is a relatively recent, western phenomenon. Psychiatrist Thomas A. Wehr has found that the presence of artificial light affects our sleeping patterns. Wehr conducted experiments in which he deprived his test subjects of artificial light. The test subjects’ sleep patterns changed. Separated by a period in which they were awake, but relaxed, Wehr’s test subjects started sleeping in two shifts, of approximately four hours’ duration. Wehr theorizes that this period of quietude offered an opportunity to meditate and to ponder dreams, not available to those of us who sleep through the night. Wehr’s research illuminates the work of historian Roger Ekirch, who explains that sleeping straight through the night became a cultural norm in the nineteenth century only. Ekrich, in fact, tells us that the two shifts were known commonly as the “first sleep” and the “second sleep.” Today’s “insomniacs” may learn to appreciate their “problem,” if they consider this research.

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

Building on their success with The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook, a book focusing on dangerous travel was published by Joshua Piven and David Borgenicht. Presented in a similar format, readers of the travel book will find themselves prepared to tackle almost any crisis. In my opinion, the best section is “Getting Around.” Trapped in a car hanging over a cliff, Piven and Borgenicht suggest the best way out. If the rear of the car is hanging over the edge, the car’s weight is concentrated on the land, advising that you may have more time to escape. If the front end is hanging over the cliff, you need to escape quickly, but without sudden movements. Assuming they are over land, leave by the front doors. The rear doors are more dangerous, even moving carefully to the back.

To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

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