Plural / Singular with "Either..or / Neither...nor"

[nayanikag]

Hello,

If you're using "(n)either..(n)or" to connect two nouns that have different numbers, what determines whether the verb is singular or plural?

Which verb is correct to use in the following examples?

- Either the teacher or the students is/are going to Vegas.
- Either his parents or he is/are going to Vegas.

Thx!

[tim]

conventional wisdom is that you take the noun closest to the verb. i can't say for sure that the GMAT has ever tested this though..