---
title: Ascertain the principal reason for the adoption of the two-day weeke… — Light, machines and medicine: how the… · tree and pragmatics
description: Ascertain the principal reason for the adoption of the two-day weekend in the early twentieth century. Exam question 4 of lesson 65 «Light, machines and medicine: how the last 250 years changed a normal day» of the history course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of t
---

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# Exam question 4 · Light, machines and medicine: how the last 250 years chang…

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Ascertain the principal reason for the adoption of the two-day weekend in the early twentieth century.

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** you · **What happens:** ascertain, adopt · **To what, where:** principal reason, day weekend

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 4 of lesson 65 «Light, machines and medicine: how the last 250 years changed a normal day» of the history 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/history/65-light-machines-and-medicine-how-the-last-250-years-changed-a-normal-day/#e4).

## The question {#question}

```conllu
# sent_id = question:history:65-light-machines-and-medicine-how-the-last-250-years-changed-a-normal-day:e4:1
# text = Ascertain the principal reason for the adoption of the two-day weekend in the early twentieth century.
1	Ascertain	ascertain	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	reason	reason	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
5	for	for	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
7	adoption	adoption	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
8	of	of	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
9	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	13	det	_	_
10	two	two	NUM	CD	NumForm=Word|NumType=Card	12	nummod	_	SpaceAfter=No
11	-	-	PUNCT	HYPH	_	10	punct	_	SpaceAfter=No
12	day	day	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	compound	_	_
13	weekend	weekend	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	_
14	in	in	ADP	IN	_	18	case	_	_
15	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	18	det	_	_
16	early	early	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	18	amod	_	_
17	twentieth	twentieth	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	18	amod	_	_
18	century	century	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	13	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
19	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **ascertain** | imperative | you *not said here* | the principal reason |  |  |  | for the adoption of the day weekend in the early twentieth century | vn ensure-99 «NP V NP PP.beneficiary»: agent=Precondition reason=Theme for adoption=Beneficiary |
| 2 | **adopt** |  |  | the day weekend in the early twentieth century |  |  |  |  | nom adoption «act transitive»: of=patient |

<!-- .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 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Sustained campaigning by workers for reduced hours

```conllu
# sent_id = question:history:65-light-machines-and-medicine-how-the-last-250-years-changed-a-normal-day:e4:o1:1
# text = Sustained campaigning by workers for reduced hours
1	Sustained	sustain	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
2	campaigning	campaigning	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
3	by	by	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	workers	worker	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obl:agent	_	_
5	for	for	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
6	reduced	reduce	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	7	amod	_	_
7	hours	hour	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	1	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **sustain** | participle |  | campaigning |  |  | hour |  | vn sustain-55.6 «NP V NP PP.instrument»: agent=Agent campaigning=Theme |
| 2 | **reduce** | participle |  |  |  |  |  |  | vn limit-76 «NP V NP»: agent=Causer |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A decree of the Roman Empire revived by later kings

```conllu
# sent_id = question:history:65-light-machines-and-medicine-how-the-last-250-years-changed-a-normal-day:e4:o2:1
# text = A decree of the Roman Empire revived by later kings
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	decree	decree	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
4	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
5	Roman	Roman	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	6	compound	_	_
6	Empire	Empire	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
7	revived	revive	VERB	VBD	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Past|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
8	by	by	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	later	late	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	10	amod	_	_
10	kings	king	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	7	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **revive** | past | a decree of the Roman Empire |  |  |  |  | by later kings | vn other\_cos-45.4 «NP.patient V»: agent=Patient |
| 2 | **decree** |  | the Roman Empire |  |  |  |  |  | nom decree «communication intransitive»: of=agent |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
The invention of plastic and of household machines

```conllu
# sent_id = question:history:65-light-machines-and-medicine-how-the-last-250-years-changed-a-normal-day:e4:o3:1
# text = The invention of plastic and of household machines
1	The	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	2	det	_	_
2	invention	invention	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
3	of	of	ADP	IN	_	4	case	_	_
4	plastic	plastic	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nmod	_	_
5	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	8	cc	_	_
6	of	of	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
7	household	household	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	machines	machine	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	2	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **invent** |  |  | plastic |  |  |  |  | nom invention «cognition transitive»: of=patient |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A natural law of the calendar observed since antiquity

```conllu
# sent_id = question:history:65-light-machines-and-medicine-how-the-last-250-years-changed-a-normal-day:e4:o4:1
# text = A natural law of the calendar observed since antiquity
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	natural	natural	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	3	amod	_	_
3	law	law	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	0	root	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	calendar	calendar	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	_
7	observed	observe	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	3	acl	_	_
8	since	since	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
9	antiquity	antiquity	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **observe** | participle |  | a natural law of the calendar *not said here* |  |  | since antiquity |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |

<!-- 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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- ← previous: [Light, machines and medicine: how the…, exam 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/history/65-light-machines-and-medicine-how-the-last-250-years-changed-a-normal-day/e3/)
- next →: [From band to nation: families, tribes,…, test 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/history/66-from-band-to-nation-families-tribes-kingdoms-empires-and-countries/t1/)
- ↑ back to [Light, machines and medicine: how the last 250 years changed a normal day](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/history/65-light-machines-and-medicine-how-the-last-250-years-changed-a-normal-day/)