---
title: Identify the principal function of baleen in the feeding of the blue… — Antarctica: penguins, seals and the co… · tree and pragmatics
description: Identify the principal function of baleen in the feeding of the blue whale. Exam question 2 of lesson 7 «Antarctica: penguins, seals and the coldest place on Earth» of the biology course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choi
---

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# Exam question 2 · Antarctica: penguins, seals and the coldest place on Earth

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Identify the principal function of baleen in the feeding of the blue whale.

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 4 · **The right answer:** option 3 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** you, blue whale · **What happens:** identify, feed · **To what, where:** principal function, feeding

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 2 of lesson 7 «Antarctica: penguins, seals and the coldest place on Earth» of the biology course of Mova's primary school, asked in stiff, formal language. The page gives the question's syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause, then the 4 options as the student saw them, each with its tree and pragmatics. Every text is parsed by Mova itself. How the student answered it, with the score of every option and why: [the test at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/7-antarctica/#e2).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:7-antarctica:e2:1
# text = Identify the principal function of baleen in the feeding of the blue whale.
1	Identify	identify	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
3	principal	principal	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	4	amod	_	_
4	function	function	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	baleen	baleen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
7	in	in	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	9	det	_	_
9	feeding	feeding	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obl	_	_
10	of	of	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
11	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
12	blue	blue	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	amod	_	_
13	whale	whale	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	9	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **identify** | imperative | you *not said here* | the principal function of baleen |  | the feeding of the blue whale |  |  | vn characterize-29.2-1-1 «NP V NP S\_ING»: agent=Agent function=Theme |
| 2 | **feed** |  | the blue whale |  |  |  |  |  | nom feeding «act intransitive»: of=agent |

<!-- .note -->
One row per clause the reader finds. «not said here»: a role filled from the clause above. «roles by»: a VerbNet class and frame when one fits the verb, else the reader's rules on the tree.

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Baleen serves to produce sound for echolocation

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:7-antarctica:e2:o1:1
# text = Baleen serves to produce sound for echolocation
1	Baleen	baleen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	serves	serve	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	to	to	PART	TO	_	4	mark	_	_
4	produce	produce	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	xcomp	_	_
5	sound	sound	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
6	for	for	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
7	echolocation	echolocation	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **serve** | present | Baleen |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **produce** | to-infinitive | Baleen *not said here* | sound |  |  |  | for echolocation | vn create-26.4 «NP V NP PP.beneficiary»: agent=Agent sound=Result for echolocation=Beneficiary |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Baleen serves to pump air into the lungs

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:7-antarctica:e2:o2:1
# text = Baleen serves to pump air into the lungs
1	Baleen	baleen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	serves	serve	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	to	to	PART	TO	_	4	mark	_	_
4	pump	pump	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	xcomp	_	_
5	air	air	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
6	into	into	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	lungs	lung	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **serve** | present | Baleen |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **pump** | to-infinitive | Baleen *not said here* | air |  | the lungs |  |  | vn spray-9.7-1 «NP V NP PP.destination»: agent=Agent air=Theme into lung=Destination |

### Option 3 · ✓ the right answer {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Baleen retains the krill whilst permitting the expulsion of seawater from the mouth

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:7-antarctica:e2:o3:1
# text = Baleen retains the krill whilst permitting the expulsion of seawater from the mouth
1	Baleen	baleen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	retains	retain	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	krill	krill	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
5	whilst	whilst	SCONJ	IN	_	6	mark	_	_
6	permitting	permit	VERB	VBG	Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Part	2	advcl	_	_
7	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
8	expulsion	expulsion	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obj	_	_
9	of	of	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	seawater	seawater	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nmod	_	_
11	from	from	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
13	mouth	mouth	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	6	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **retain** | present | Baleen | the krill |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **permit** | gerund | Baleen *not said here* | the expulsion of seawater |  | the mouth |  |  | vn admit-64.3-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent expulsion=Theme |
| 3 | **expel** |  |  | seawater |  |  |  |  | nom expulsion «act transitive»: of=patient |

### Option 4 · ← Mova's choice {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Baleen serves to masticate large fish

```conllu
# sent_id = question:biology:7-antarctica:e2:o4:1
# text = Baleen serves to masticate large fish
1	Baleen	baleen	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	serves	serve	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	to	to	PART	TO	_	4	mark	_	_
4	masticate	masticate	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	xcomp	_	_
5	large	large	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	6	amod	_	_
6	fish	fish	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	4	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **serve** | present | Baleen |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **masticate** | to-infinitive | Baleen *not said here* | large fish |  |  |  |  | vn chew-39.2 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent fish=Patient |

<!-- div src -->

**Text:** the tests of Mova's primary school, written for Mova (`world/data/school/`), as the course runner gave them to the student. **Trees:** Mova's own parse — the `en` model on the CPU, when the site is built — not checked by a teacher; they may be wrong. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), each text read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

<!-- /div -->

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