Present tense for past time

I heard the following sentence on a documentary.

You heard it on TV, on radio, but you heard it in a documentary.

What is your reasoning on the tenses?

This is a narrative style very common on documentaries. It's used to give currency to the story.

Sorry, Terry - "in."

Thanks.

Why is the present perfect used? Why not the present simple?

Before the decade is over, David has sent Mike's discovery over to researches and scientists for testing.

English 1b3 Why is the present perfect used? Why not the present simple?

Before the decade is over, David has sent Mike's discovery over to researches and scientists for testing. It's analogous to past perfect. It shows completion, but the reference event is in the present.

Hi, again



Before the decade is over, David sends Mike's discovery over to researches and scientists for testing.



And is this grammatical? Normal verbs (that is, verbs that are not non-continuous) usually require the present progressive tense to show an action happening now.

Your blue version is indeed grammatical.

Do you really want to "show an action happening now"? How long does it take to send something?

There may be a legitimate issue regarding when a present perfect event actually happens. I guess conventional wisdom is that it happened in the very recent past. But I don't think everyone agrees.

I think in this case the pres

AvangiDo you really want to "show an action happening now"?

Well, not in this sentence. I'm not concerned with this particular sentence--it's just an example.

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• It's just that I've been told that normal verbs (I assume you are familiar with this terminology) in the simple present express habituality: I kill. I walk hom

Hmmmm. I was afraid you were going to complain about my "Jack" examples expressing habitual behavior. ("Habituality" scares the heck out of me.)

My impression is that you need to shift gears for this documentary/narrative style.

We say things like, "finding the door locked, he will enter through the window." Even if you use the simple present, "he enters through the window,"

Avangi: could I suggest that you recommend the poster substitute 'fact' for 'habitual action'.

The Earth is round.
This is not a habit/ an habitual action - it is a fact.

I floss my teeth.
I either do, or I don't - statement of fact: I did in the past, I do now, and I will continue to do so in the future

AvangiI was afraid you were going to complain about my "Jack" examples expressing habitual behavior

I thought about it.. But I thought my post was long and boring enough without further words...

Avangi("Habituality" scares the heck out of me.)

At least you're honest. I have some habits that scare the bajeeze's out of me