Roots, stems and leaves

Tests: 9 of 12 right · Exam: 0 of 4 right · Kind: ★ · Understood: 12 of 16 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 57 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 · ★ · wrong ✗

Why does a dandelion grow back after you pull off its leaves?

1. Dandelions grow from their leaves — ← Mova's choice · score 4
2. The soil remembers the plant — no support
3. The deep taproot is still there with its food store — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. The wind blows new leaves on from all the other dandelions nearby — no support

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 57, line 4: «Plants change these parts for special jobs: a cactus turned its leaves into spines, a pea turned shoots into curly tendrils, an onion stores food in swollen le…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same circumstance (+3); the same action «turn» (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★ · wrong ✗

What would happen if you put a white flower in red water?

1. The flower would turn green — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Nothing at all would change — no support
3. The red water would slowly turn clear and white — no support
4. The petals would slowly turn pinkish-red — ✓ the right answer · 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

Test 3 · ★ · right ✓

Why should you be gentle with the roots when moving a plant to a new pot?

1. Breaking the tiny root hairs stops it soaking up water — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 2
2. Roots explode when touched — no support
3. The soil will fall off and the leaves will dry up in a day — no support
4. Roots feel pain like fingers — no support

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 with score 2, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 57, line 7: «Roots are covered with tiny root hairs, each a single long cell, which give a much bigger surface to soak up water and minerals; one rye plant was measured wit…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «soak up» (+2); the same thing acted on «water» (+1). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★ · right ✓

Why are most leaves flat instead of round like a ball?

1. Leaves are flat only because they are squashed in the bud — score 3
2. Round leaves would roll away — no support
3. Flat leaves are easier for insects to eat — score 4
4. Flat leaves catch more light and let gases in and out — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 4 with score 5, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 57, line 9: «Leaf veins carry water in and sugar out, and hold the leaf flat like the ribs of an umbrella; leaves are thin and flat to catch light and let gases in and out.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «catch» (+2); the same doer «leaves» (+2); the same thing acted on «light» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★ · right ✓

Why would a cactus open its stomata at night instead of during the day?

1. Cacti only breathe in the dark, just like bats do — no support
2. It is hiding from bees — no support
3. It loses much less water in the cool night — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
4. The hot Sun burns the tiny holes shut — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 6, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 57, line 11: «A cactus's spines are leaves changed into points; its fat green stem stores water and does the photosynthesis, and a thick waxy skin keeps water in; many cacti…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «lose» (+4); the same thing acted on «less water» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · ★ · right ✓

in my cartoon the plant drinks the rain through its leaves when it pours. that how it works?

1. No, plants don't need water — score 2
2. Yes, roots are just for holding on — no support
3. Not really, almost all its water goes in through the roots — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 3
4. Yes, leaves are like sponges and soak up every drop that lands — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 3 with score 3, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 57, line 5: «Cartoons show plants drinking through their leaves when it rains and roots as just a few strings; in real life almost all the water goes in through the roots,…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «go in» (+2); the same doer «water» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★ · right ✓

What would happen to a pea plant with nothing to climb?

1. It would sprawl on the ground and get less light — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 7
2. It would climb its own leaves — score 5
3. It would grow a thick woody trunk like a small tree — score 3
4. It would grow faster than ever — score 3

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 7, against 5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 57, line 12: «Pea plants climb with tendrils that wrap round whatever they touch, reaching the light without building a thick stem; ivy climbs with tiny gripping roots.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «light» (+5); the same doer «pea plants» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · ★ · right ✓

Why might many butterflies choose nettles for their caterpillars?

1. Nettles taste much sweeter than any of the other leaves in the hedge — no support
2. Butterflies cannot see any other plants — no support
3. Few animals eat nettles, so the caterpillars are safer there — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5
4. The sting makes caterpillars strong — no support

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 3 with score 5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 57, line 13: «Nettle hairs have glass-like tips that snap off and inject stinging chemicals; the sting stops grazing animals, so few animals eat nettles, and cooking destroy…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «eat» (+2); the same doer «few animals» (+2); the same thing acted on «nettles» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★ · right ✓

Is a carrot a root or a stem, and how could you tell?

1. A stem: it is orange inside — no support
2. A root: it has no buds or leaves along it and grows down — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 7
3. A leaf: it is fat and stored underground, away from the light — no support
4. A fruit: it has seeds — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 2 with score 7, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 57, line 6: «A dandelion has a thick deep taproot that stores food, so it grows back if you only pull off the leaves; grass has many thin fibrous roots near the surface; a…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «grow down» (+4); the same doer «carrot» (+3). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 10 · ★ · right ✓

Why do many trees drop their leaves in winter instead of keeping them?

1. The leaves get too heavy with snow to keep growing, so they break off the twigs — score 4
2. Birds pull them off for nests — no support
3. Thin leaves would be hurt by frost and lose water when the ground freezes — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5
4. Trees get bored of the same leaves — no support

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 3 with score 5, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 57, line 15: «In autumn trees stop making green chlorophyll, so hidden yellows and oranges show through, and some trees make new reds; they take back useful material before…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «hurt» (+2); the same doer «frost» (+2); the same thing acted on «thin leaves» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★ · right ✓

My mate says the sensitive plant has muscles like us. right?

1. No, plants have no muscles; water moving in cells makes it fold — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 9
2. Yes, tiny green muscles — no support
3. Yes, but only in the leaves and the stalks, not the roots — no support
4. No, someone blows on it to make it fold — score 9

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 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 57, line 16: «The sensitive plant, Mimosa pudica, folds its leaves within seconds when touched, as water rushes out of cells at the base of each leaf; plants have no nerves…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «nerves» (+5); the same doer «plants» (+2); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · ★ · wrong ✗

Why would a giant water lily leaf need spikes on its underside?

1. To help it swim — no support
2. To hold it down to the bottom of the pond in a storm — ← Mova's choice · score 3
3. To catch flies like a trap — score 2
4. To protect it from fish and other animals that would eat it — ✓ the right answer · score 3

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 2 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 1, line 18: «Koalas eat almost only eucalyptus leaves, which are tough, low in energy and slightly poisonous and need special gut bacteria to digest, so they rest or sleep…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «eucalyptus leaves» (+2); the same thing acted on «eucalyptus leaves» (+1). The right option, 4, scored 3. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗

Identify the principal function of the root hairs of a plant.

1. The production of seeds beneath the soil — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. The anchorage of the plant in the air — no support
3. The storage of sugar for winter — no support
4. The enlargement of the surface which absorbs water and minerals — ✓ the right answer · 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 2 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the phenomenon of transpiration?

1. The production of oxygen within the roots — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. The loss of water vapour through the stomata, drawing water upward — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. The descent of sap from the leaves into the soil — no support
4. The absorption of rain directly through the bark — 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 3 · formal language · wrong ✗

Select the response consistent with the established facts concerning the spines of a cactus.

1. They are hairs that conduct water into the plant — ← Mova's choice · score 9
2. They are modified roots, and photosynthesis is conducted in the spines — no support
3. They are modified leaves, and photosynthesis is conducted in the stem — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. They are seeds awaiting dispersal by wind — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 9, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 43, line 13: «An echidna is covered in spines that are thick hairs; it walks slowly and cannot run from danger, so when frightened it curls into a ball or digs straight down…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «spines» (+5); the same thing acted on «thick hairs» (+2); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · wrong ✗

Ascertain the cause of the autumnal reddening and yellowing of the leaves of deciduous trees.

1. The deposition of colour by frost upon the surface — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. The combustion of the leaf through the summer heat — no support
3. The breakdown of chlorophyll, revealing other pigments, some red ones newly made — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. The absorption of red light from the setting Sun — 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/57-roots-stems-and-leaves/