How would we know? Asking experts and spotting tricks

Tests: 5 of 11 right · Exam: 0 of 4 right · Kind: ★★ · Understood: 9 of 15 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 30 of the myths 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 ✗

"my cat fell off the shed and was fine, she's on life 4 now lol" What's true?

1. Cats lose one of their lives every single time they fall — no support
2. She really has five lives left now — ← Mova's choice · score 6
3. Cats can't get hurt from any height — no support
4. Cats are good at landing, but they only have one life — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 6, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 30, line 6: «Cats have one life; they are agile (quick and good at balancing) and often survive falls and scrapes, which is where the saying comes from.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «one life» (+4); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Max says, "Red kit = win, a study proved it, so I'll win Saturday." What's the sensible view?

1. He's sure to win if he wears red — ← Mova's choice · score 3
2. The effect was small and argued about; training matters far more — ✓ the right answer · score 3
3. The study proved blue makes you lose — score 0
4. Red kit makes the other team lose — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. 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 30, line 2: «The magic question is "How would we know?" If a cat had nine lives, what would we count? If a study shows red wins, how big was the difference, and did anyone…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «study» (+2); the same property (+1). The right option, 2, scored 3. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Holly says, "Giant squid are real, so this photo must be real." What's wrong with her reasoning?

1. Giant squid aren't real, so it's fake — score 1
2. Photos of real animals can't be edited by anybody at all — no support
3. It's real only if the squid is moving — ← Mova's choice · score 5
4. A real animal can still be shown in an edited photo — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 5, against 1 for the next best. Its support: lesson 30, line 1: «Some claims you can't test with two seed trays in the kitchen: whether MSG is safe, whether a bridge is sound, whether a photo of a giant squid is real. For th…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same property (+3); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Gran says the wine in the stew "all burns off". What's fair to say?

1. She's right, every bit of it disappears — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Stew makes more alcohol the longer it cooks — no support
3. Some alcohol always stays, though long cooking removes most — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Alcohol turns into sugar when it's hot — 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 5 · ★★ · right ✓

Raj's uncle refuses takeaway because of MSG. What does the evidence say?

1. MSG is only dangerous in takeaways — no support
2. Nobody has ever studied MSG — score -3
3. It's safe for most people, and tomatoes have glutamate too — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 10
4. He's right, MSG makes everyone very ill — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 3 with score 10, against -3 for the next best. Its support: lesson 30, line 10: «Large studies found MSG (a powder added to food to make it taste savoury) safe for most people in normal amounts; tomatoes and cheese have natural glutamate to…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «tomatoes» (+5); it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same thing acted on «natural glutamate» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · ★★ · right ✓

"nah Macs can't get viruses mate, my sister said" What's the right correction?

1. Viruses only attack phones now — no support
2. Macs get more viruses than any computer — score 6
3. Only Windows computers can ever get a computer virus — no support
4. They can, they're just attacked less often — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 8

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 8, against 6 for the next best. Its support: lesson 30, line 11: «Macs can get viruses and other harmful software; they are just attacked less often than Windows computers.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «attack» (+5); the same property (+2); the same thing acted on «macs» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★★ · right ✓

A smoothie bottle says "SUPERFOOD — fights disease!" What should you think?

1. It's a selling word; it may be healthy but cures nothing — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5
2. It must cure illness, it says so on the bottle — no support
3. It's poison, because it's an advert — no support
4. It's medicine, so you need a doctor's note — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 1 with score 5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 30, line 13: «"Superfood" is a selling word, not a science word; blueberries are healthy, but no single food cures diseases.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «superfood» (+4); it fills the role the question asks for (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · ★★ · right ✓

Arthur ends every debate with "everybody knows it". What's the best reply?

1. How does everybody know? Let's check — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
2. Nobody knows anything, ever — no support
3. Let's vote and the majority is right — no support
4. Then it must be true, you win — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what it is done to. It chose option 1 with score 6, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 30, line 14: «"Everybody knows" is not evidence; many things everybody knew, like the Sun going round the Earth, were wrong.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «everybody» (+4); the same action «know» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Elsie's dad thinks the grape warning is "just another myth". What should she say?

1. He's right, it's like nine lives — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Raisins are fine, it's only fresh grapes that hurt — no support
3. Grapes are only bad for big dogs — no support
4. This one's true, vets have seen many cases — ✓ 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 10 · ★★ · wrong ✗

What would happen if no one inspected an old bridge for fifty years?

1. It would turn into a new bridge — no support
2. Weak spots could grow without anyone noticing — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. It would definitely be stronger than ever before — no support
4. Nothing, because bridges can't weaken — ← Mova's choice · score 1

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 1, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 30, line 12: «Old bridges and buildings can weaken over time, so engineers inspect them regularly.», reached through a sentence linked to the one the question matched. What matched: the same action «weaken» (+2); the same doer «old bridges» (+2). Against it: one says «not», the other does not (counts against) (-3). The right option, 2, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★★ · right ✓

Which source is best to check a giant squid photo?

1. A meme page with lots of followers — no support
2. A comment under the post — no support
3. A friend who saw it shared — no support
4. A real news outlet or a museum — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 7

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 4 with score 7, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 30, line 8: «Giant squid are real deep-sea animals, but photos of them can be edited; a giant squid on a British beach would be reported by real news outlets and museums, a…», 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 «real news outlets» (+2); the same property (+2). · 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 term "superfood"?

1. A legal classification of medicinal produce — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. A marketing expression lacking scientific definition — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. A scientific category of foods proven to cure disease — no support
4. A term denoting foods cultivated in orbit — 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 ✗

Identify the principal reason for which canine animals ought not to be given grapes or raisins.

1. They impair the canine sense of smell — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. They cause the fur to change colour — no support
3. They may cause failure of the kidneys in some dogs — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. They are invariably harmless to dogs of every breed — 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 that is consistent with the established facts concerning the cooking of food with alcohol.

1. The alcohol is entirely eliminated instantaneously — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. A proportion of the alcohol invariably remains — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. The alcohol content increases with heating — no support
4. The alcohol is converted wholly into water — 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 ✗

It is asserted that "everybody knows" a certain proposition. Determine the evidential value of such an assertion in itself.

1. It renders the proposition legally binding — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. It constitutes conclusive proof of the proposition — no support
3. It constitutes no evidence of the proposition's truth — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. It proves the proposition false — 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

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