When one blank controls verbs in nested clauses, solve each clause independently. Identify the subject local to the first verb, then return to the outer subject and apply the relevant agreement rule; finally, verify that every clause that needs a finite predicate actually has one.
Hints
- Hint 1
Separate the clauses
Identify the subject inside the relative clause beginning with “that,” then identify the subject of the larger “Although” clause.
- Hint 2
Find each head noun
Ignore nouns inside modifying phrases and determine which noun is closest to the outer verb.
- Hint 3
Check for a finite predicate
Make sure the dependent clause beginning with “Although” contains a complete finite verb, not only a participial form.
Step-by-step
- Step 1
Resolve the relative clause
Inside the phrase modifying “analyses,” the subject is “the laboratory director and her assistants.” Because this compound subject is plural, its present-perfect verb uses “have.”
- Step 2
Return to the outer clause
The main subject of the “Although” clause has two parts joined by “neither ... nor”: plural “inscriptions” and singular “series.” The relative clause inside the second part does not change the head noun.
- Step 3
Apply proximity agreement
When subjects of different numbers are joined by “neither ... nor,” the verb agrees with the nearer subject. The nearer head noun is the singular “series,” so the outer finite verb must also be singular.