To answer this question, let's go through each option to understand why it is correct or incorrect:
Option A) The query syntax is not valid - This option is correct because the given PROC SQL query contains invalid syntax. The issue lies with the use of single quotes around the column labels in the SELECT statement. In PROC SQL, column labels should be enclosed in double quotes, not single quotes. Therefore, this statement is false.
Option B) The outer query must pass values to the subquery before the subquery can return values to the outer query - This option is incorrect. In the given query, the subquery is used to retrieve the continent value based on the condition literacy.name = continents.country. The outer query then uses this value to filter the records from the world.literacy table. The subquery does not depend on the outer query for values.
Option C) PROC SQL will not execute this query when it is submitted - This option is incorrect. PROC SQL will execute the query when it is submitted, regardless of whether the syntax is valid or not. However, if there are syntax errors, the query may not produce the desired results.
Option D) After the query is submitted, the SAS log will indicate whether the query has valid syntax - This option is correct. After submitting the query, the SAS log will display information about the execution, including any syntax errors that may be present.
The correct answer is A) The query syntax is not valid because the single quotes around the column labels in the SELECT statement are incorrect.