The magician's trick explained

Tests: 3 of 11 right · Exam: 1 of 4 right · Kind: ★★ · Understood: 11 of 15 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 448 of the everyday 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 ✓

Owen, 6: «he really pulled money outta my ear, I'm gonna be rich». What's true?

1. Owen should check every day — score 2
2. It was a trick — the coin was in his hand — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
3. Ears do make coins sometimes — no support
4. Only magicians' ears make coins, because they practise — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 4, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 448, line 1: «At a birthday party in Leeds, a magician pulled a coin out of Owen's ear. Owen checked his ear for the rest of the day. Afterwards the magician showed him: the…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same place «hand» (+2); the same doer «coin» (+1); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Man on the street: «Find the ball, double your money! Look, that fella just won!» What's going on?

1. It's a fair game if you watch closely — score -2
2. The «winner» is likely his helper — walk on — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. It's safe because someone won — ← Mova's choice · score 7
4. You win if you pick the middle cup — no support

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 3 with score 7, against -2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 122, line 1: «When you see a friend, you say hi, use their name and smile; people feel happy when they are noticed and someone is glad to see them.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same doer «someone» (+2); a different action (counts against) (+2). The right option, 2, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · ★★ · right ✓

Fair stall: «Three hoops, a dollar! Easy win, folks!» What's the smart thing to do first?

1. Throw as hard as you can — no support
2. Ask the man to promise you'll win at least once — no support
3. Watch for a while to see if anyone wins — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score -1
4. Pay for three goes at once — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score -1, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 448, line 13: «Watching a game before paying shows whether anyone ever wins.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «win» (+3); the same doer «anyone» (+1). Against it: one says «not», the other does not (counts against) (-5). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Fortune teller: «Someone close is thinking of you.» Aisha's mum: «That's true of everyone.» What does she mean?

1. She's secretly a fortune teller too — no support
2. Everyone has the very same best friend — ← Mova's choice · score 5
3. The words fit almost anybody — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. The fortune teller can see the future — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 2 with score 5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 381, line 13: «Teachers and dinner staff are meant to apply school rules to everyone in the same way; if you think a rule was applied unfairly, you can say so calmly later.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same thing acted on «teachers» (+2). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Leo: «I saw him FLOAT, with my own eyes, on YouTube». What's the problem with this?

1. Only TV can show tricks — ← Mova's choice · score 4
2. A video can be edited or filmed from one angle — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. YouTube never has any tricks — score 4
4. If you see it with your own eyes, it must be true — score 2

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 1 with score 4, tied with another option at 4 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 424, line 2: «Theo plans team games with drawings: arrows, circles and a stick figure of himself with a cape. His team laughed at the cape and then won three matches in a ro…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same thing acted on «trick» (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). The right option, 2, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Park man: «Wrong again? Double or nothing, love!» What's he trying to do?

1. Teach you a clever maths trick — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Keep you paying so he wins — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Give you a free extra go at the end — no support
4. Help you win your money back — 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 7 · ★★ · wrong ✗

What would happen if a magician kept the girl's watch and walked off?

1. It would be a better magic trick — ← Mova's choice · score 3
2. It would be a gift for the magician — no support
3. It would be part of a normal show — no support
4. It would be stealing, not a trick — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: It took the question to ask what happens next. It chose option 1 with score 3, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 448, line 1: «At a birthday party in Leeds, a magician pulled a coin out of Owen's ear. Owen checked his ear for the rest of the day. Afterwards the magician showed him: the…», 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) (+2); the same thing acted on «trick» (+1). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · ★★ · right ✓

Magician: «Pick ANY card you like!» Which is true?

1. Your choice may have been steered — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5
2. Magicians never touch the cards — no support
3. Your choice is always totally free — no support
4. All the cards have the same picture — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 448, line 9: «A magician can steer a «free» choice, such as which card you pick, without you noticing.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «steer» (+3); the same thing acted on «free choice» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★★ · wrong ✗

In a cartoon, a wizard has real magic and makes a car vanish. What's the truth about stage magic?

1. Magicians use special glasses — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Some magicians have real powers — no support
3. It's practice and misdirection, not powers — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Stage magic is done by robots — 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 10 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Noah's baby cousin squeals at the «disappearing thumb». Is Noah being a liar?

1. Yes, and he should stop at once — ← Mova's choice · score 2
2. No — it's a loving game everyone enjoys — ✓ the right answer · score 2
3. No, because the thumb really goes — no support
4. Yes, he's conning his cousin — score 2

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 2, tied with another option at 2 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 404, line 3: «Every family is different. Theo's parents allow 12 games at ten, but only if they play the first hour with him. Zara's family has a rule that any new game live…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «stop» (+2). The right option, 2, scored 2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★★ · wrong ✗

TV magician: «Watch my right hand!» Where should a clever kid look?

1. At the magician's hat — ← Mova's choice · score 6
2. At the other hand — ✓ the right answer · score 6
3. At the people in the audience — score 6
4. At the right hand only — score 6

Why: It took the question to ask where. It chose option 1 with score 6, tied with another option at 6 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 325, line 6: «A boy in Cornwall stood near a cliff edge to look at the sea; the edge crumbled and he fell, and he was rescued by helicopter with broken bones.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «boy» (+4); the same action «look» (+2). The right option, 2, scored 6. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 1 · formal language · right ✓

Identify the principal distinction between a theatrical magic performance and a confidence trick.

1. The audience consents to be deceived and nothing is retained by the performer — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. The magician invariably performs without remuneration, whereas the confidence trickster is paid — no support
3. No distinction can be drawn between them — no support
4. The confidence trickster invariably works alone — 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 2 · formal language · wrong ✗

It is given that, in a street betting game, several bystanders are observed to win. Select the response consistent with the established facts.

1. Participation is advisable after observation — no support
2. The probability of winning is one in three — no support
3. The apparent winners may be accomplices, and ordinary participants generally lose — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. The game is evidently fair to all participants — ← Mova's choice · score 4

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 327, line 3: «Games are fun when they are fair: in a card game like Uno or Snap you shuffle well, deal fairly and do not look at others' cards; in a strategy game you think,…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same property (+3); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+1). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 3 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the technique termed «misdirection»?

1. The provision of incorrect directions to a location, so that the audience is led astray — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. The disclosure of the method prior to performance — no support
3. The performance of a trick at reduced speed — no support
4. The diversion of attention from the place where the concealed action occurs — ✓ 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

Exam question 4 · formal language · wrong ✗

Determine which of the following does NOT constitute a sound inference concerning a video depicting a person floating unsupported.

1. That the video proves the person can float — ✓ the right answer · score 2
2. That a support may be concealed from the camera — no support
3. That the video may have been edited — ← Mova's choice · score 5
4. That a single camera angle may conceal the method — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 5, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 88, line 15: «Many photos and videos online are edited or filtered, so they show bodies that do not really look like that.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «edit» (+3); the same thing acted on «many photos» (+2). The right option, 1, scored 2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

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