How animals talk

Tests: 9 of 12 right · Exam: 3 of 4 right · Kind: ★★★ · Understood: 13 of 16 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 50 of the biology course of Mova's primary school, as Mova's small model took its tests: it had read this lesson and the ones before it and learned from their exercises. Each test shows the options in the order the student saw them, its choice, the right answer, the score of every option and why it chose. The lesson itself, sentence by sentence with trees and pragmatics: the lesson in the corpora.

Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: the lesson's questions in the corpora.

Test 1 · ★★★ · right ✓

«dog's wagging its tail so it's friendly, I'm gonna pet it» What is the best advice?

1. Fine, pet it on the head straight away, mate — no support
2. Only pet dogs that are not wagging — no support
3. Ask the owner first and look at the whole body; a stiff wag can mean tense — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 9
4. Fine, any wag means happy — score 9

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 9, tied with another option at 9 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 50, line 4: «Cartoon animals chat in full sentences and every dog with a wagging tail is happy; real messages are simpler but cleverer, and a stiff, high, fast wag can mean…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «stiff high fast wag» (+5); the same action «mean» (+4). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★★★ · right ✓

In a cartoon, two cats sit on a fence and meow a long chat to each other. What is more true of real adult cats?

1. They meow to each other all day long — score 8
2. They rarely meow to each other; meowing is mostly for people — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 11
3. They speak with their whiskers in words — score 9
4. They only talk by purring — score 9

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 11, against 9 for the next best. Its support: lesson 50, line 3: «Your cat meowing at the fridge door is talking to you, not to other cats: adult cats rarely meow to each other, so the meow is a language cats invented for peo…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same receiver «each» (+4); the same property (+3); the same action «meow» (+2); the same doer «adult cats» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · ★★★ · right ✓

«my parrot says hello so he knows what it means, obvs» What is the careful answer?

1. No parrot ever understands anything — no support
2. Parrots understand only if they speak quietly — no support
3. Every parrot understands all it says, they're as clever as people, obviously — no support
4. Most parrots just copy sounds; some, like Alex, understood some words — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 7

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 4 with score 7, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 50, line 15: «An African grey parrot named Alex, studied by Irene Pepperberg for 30 years, could name dozens of objects, colours and shapes and count up to six, though most…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «most talking parrots» (+4); the same action «copy» (+3); it fills the role the question asks for (+1). Against it: the same thing acted on «sounds» (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★★★ · wrong ✗

What would happen if you wiped your finger across a busy ant trail?

1. The ants would follow your finger home — score 3
2. Nothing, ants follow by sight — ← Mova's choice · score 4
3. The ants would all turn round, go back to the nest and never come out again — no support
4. The ants would get confused there until they found the scent again — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 2 with score 4, against 3 for the next best. Its support: lesson 50, line 13: «Ants that find food lay a scent trail of chemicals called pheromones on the way home, and other ants smell it with their antennae and follow it.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «follow» (+2); the same doer «other ants» (+2). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★★★ · wrong ✗

«why's that elephant just standing there with its ears out, it's deaf or what» What may be going on?

1. It is deaf and just waiting there for the others to come back and help it — no support
2. It is asleep standing up — score 2
3. It is cooling its ears only — ← Mova's choice · score 7
4. It may be listening for deep rumbles from elephants far away — ✓ the right answer · score 2

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 3 with score 7, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 24, line 13: «Dogs hardly sweat through their skin, so they cool down by panting: water dries off the tongue and takes heat with it, which is called evaporation, and it work…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «nose» (+4); the same action «cool down» (+3). The right option, 4, scored 2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · ★★★ · right ✓

A young vervet gives the eagle call when a harmless pigeon flies over. What happens next, in real life?

1. It never makes the call again in its life — score 0
2. All the vervets climb trees — no support
3. It learns the right use from adults over time — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
4. It is thrown out of the group for good — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 3 with score 6, against 0 for the next best. Its support: lesson 50, line 6: «Vervet monkeys have different alarm calls for leopards, eagles and snakes: at the leopard call they run up trees, at the eagle call they dive into bushes, and…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «learn» (+2); the same thing acted on «right use» (+2); the same circumstance (+2); the same property (+1). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★★★ · right ✓

«whale songs are just random noises» What did scientists find?

1. Males in one region sing nearly the same song, and new songs spread — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 3
2. Whales copy the songs of ships — score -1
3. Each whale sings a random noise every time — score 2
4. Only one whale in the whole world sings, and the rest just listen to it — score 3

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 1 with score 3, tied with another option at 3 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 50, line 10: «Male humpback whales sing long songs of repeated themes for hours; males in one region sing nearly the same song, and new songs can spread across the Pacific o…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «spread» (+2); the same doer «new songs» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · ★★★ · right ✓

In a game, all fireflies flash the same pattern. What is wrong, and what could a sneaky female do?

1. Each kind has its own code; some females copy another kind's to eat males — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 9
2. Fireflies make light with tiny fires — score 6
3. Nothing, they all flash the same — no support
4. Females never flash at all, so they sit in the dark and wait for a male to land — score 3

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 9, against 6 for the next best. Its support: lesson 50, line 14: «Fireflies are beetles that make cold light in their tails; each kind has its own flash code, and some females copy another kind's code to lure males and eat th…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «kind» (+5); the same thing acted on «own flash code» (+2); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★★★ · right ✓

«the bee's just dancing for fun, bees love a boogie» What is right?

1. She is showing the way and distance to flowers — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
2. Right, bees dance to have fun — no support
3. She is fanning to cool the hive — score 4
4. She is fighting another bee — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 6, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 50, line 5: «A honeybee forager dances a figure of eight on the comb; the direction of the waggle run shows the angle of the flowers from the Sun and its length shows the d…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «show» (+4); the same thing acted on «distance» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 10 · ★★★ · right ✓

«dolphins don't have names, they're animals» What did studies show?

1. Only captive dolphins have names — no support
2. Each bottlenose dolphin has a signature whistle, a bit like a name — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
3. Dolphins use human names they hear on boats — no support
4. Right, dolphins cannot tell each other apart at all, they all sound alike — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 50, line 16: «Each bottlenose dolphin has its own signature whistle, a bit like a name, which others can copy to call it, and dolphins seem to remember old companions' whist…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+4); the same doer «bottlenose dolphin» (+1). Against it: the same thing acted on «own signature whistle» (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★★★ · right ✓

A cat purrs loudly at the vet with a hurt paw. What could the purr mean?

1. Purring heals any wound instantly — no support
2. It means the paw does not hurt at all and the cat is perfectly happy — no support
3. Cats sometimes purr when hurt or unwell, not only when happy — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 8
4. It means the cat is angry at the vet — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 3 with score 8, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 20, line 13: «Cats knead soft things with their paws, as kittens knead their mother for milk, and purr when happy, but sometimes also when hurt or scared.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «hurt» (+4); the same doer «cats» (+4). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · ★★★ · wrong ✗

Why would one alarm call meaning just «danger» be worse for vervets than three different calls?

1. It would be better, because a simple call is quicker to give and the monkeys could all just run — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Three calls confuse the monkeys more — no support
3. They would not know whether to climb, hide in bushes or watch the ground — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. One call would be louder and scare the predator — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the waggle dance of the honeybee?

1. It announces the death of the queen — score 9
2. It is performed exclusively in order to cool the hive in the heat of the summer months — no support
3. It serves solely as a form of play among workers — ← Mova's choice · score 10
4. By the direction and length of the waggle run, it conveys the bearing and distance of food — ✓ the right answer · score 4

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 3 with score 10, against 9 for the next best. Its support: lesson 36, line 12: «A honeybee's waggle dance shows the direction of flowers compared with the sun and, by the length of the waggle, how far away they are.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+5); the same doer «waggle dance» (+4); a different action (counts against) (+1). The right option, 4, scored 4. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 2 · formal language · right ✓

Identify the principal reason for which vervet monkeys employ distinct alarm calls for different predators.

1. Each call is directed at a different group of monkeys — no support
2. Each predator attacks in a different manner, requiring a distinct escape — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 9
3. The calls serve to identify the individual making them — score 2
4. The predators are thereby informed that they have been observed and should withdraw — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 9, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 50, line 6: «Vervet monkeys have different alarm calls for leopards, eagles and snakes: at the leopard call they run up trees, at the eagle call they dive into bushes, and…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «predator» (+5); the same action «attack» (+4). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 3 · formal language · right ✓

Select the response consistent with the established facts concerning the meowing of the domestic cat.

1. Adult cats seldom meow to one another, meowing chiefly to humans — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. The meow is employed exclusively to warn of predators and other dangers — no support
3. The meow is produced only during sleep — no support
4. Adult cats communicate with one another chiefly by means of the meow — no support

Why: Nothing it remembers matched the question, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · right ✓

Ascertain the means whereby ants direct their fellows to a source of food.

1. By depositing a trail of chemical scent, termed pheromones — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. By means of loud calls audible at great distance — no support
3. By flashes of light emitted from the abdomen in a fixed sequence — no support
4. By a dance performed upon the comb — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

This page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/50-how-animals-talk/