---
title: Sam says a steeper ramp is always better because it is shorter. What… — Wheels, axles, ramps and screws · tree and pragmatics
description: Sam says a steeper ramp is always better because it is shorter. What's the catch? Test 2 · ★ of lesson 34 «Wheels, axles, ramps and screws» of the physics course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree and pragmatics of the question and of each option; Mova's choice was wrong.
---

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# Test 2 · ★ · Wheels, axles, ramps and screws

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
Sam says a steeper ramp is always better because it is shorter. What's the catch?

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 4 · wrong ✗ · **Who acts:** Sam, steeper ramp, ramp, catch · **What happens:** say, be · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is test 2 · ★ of lesson 34 «Wheels, axles, ramps and screws» of the physics course of Mova's primary school. 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/physics/34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws/#t2).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* Sam says a steeper ramp is always better because it is shorter.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:physics:34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws:t2:1
# text = Sam says a steeper ramp is always better because it is shorter.
1	Sam	Sam	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
2	says	say	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	5	det	_	_
4	steeper	steep	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	5	amod	_	_
5	ramp	ramp	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
6	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
7	always	always	ADV	RB	PronType=Tot	8	advmod	_	_
8	better	good	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	2	ccomp	_	_
9	because	because	SCONJ	IN	_	12	mark	_	_
10	it	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	12	nsubj	_	_
11	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	12	cop	_	_
12	shorter	short	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	8	advcl	_	SpaceAfter=No
13	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	2	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **say** *speech: assert* | present | Sam |  |  |  |  |  | vn say-37.7-1-1 «NP V that S»: agent=Agent |
| 2 | **is** | present | a steeper ramp |  |  |  |  | always, good *property* | tree rules |
| 3 | **is** | present | ramp |  |  |  |  | short *property* | tree rules |

<!-- .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.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* What's the catch?

```conllu
# sent_id = question:physics:34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws:t2:2
# text = What's the catch?
1	What	what	PRON	WP	PronType=Int	0	root	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	1	cop	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	catch	catch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	nsubj	_	SpaceAfter=No
5	?	?	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is a** | present | the catch |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A steeper ramp is always far too slippery

```conllu
# sent_id = question:physics:34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws:t2:o1:1
# text = A steeper ramp is always far too slippery
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	steeper	steep	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	3	amod	_	_
3	ramp	ramp	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	nsubj	_	_
4	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	8	cop	_	_
5	always	always	ADV	RB	PronType=Tot	6	advmod	_	_
6	far	far	ADV	RB	Degree=Pos	8	advmod	_	_
7	too	too	ADV	RB	_	8	advmod	_	_
8	slippery	slippery	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	0	root	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **is** | present | a steeper ramp |  |  |  |  | far, slippery *property* | tree rules |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A shorter ramp breaks more easily under weight

```conllu
# sent_id = question:physics:34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws:t2:o2:1
# text = A shorter ramp breaks more easily under weight
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	shorter	short	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	3	amod	_	_
3	ramp	ramp	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	breaks	break	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	more	more	ADV	RBR	Degree=Cmp	6	advmod	_	_
6	easily	easily	ADV	RB	_	4	advmod	_	_
7	under	under	ADP	IN	_	8	case	_	_
8	weight	weight	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **break** | present | a shorter ramp |  |  | weight |  | easily *property* | vn appear-48.1.1 «NP V PP.location»: agent=Theme under weight=Location |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
There's no catch at all, Sam is quite right

```conllu
# sent_id = question:physics:34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws:t2:o3:1
# text = There's no catch at all, Sam is quite right
1	There	there	PRON	EX	PronType=Dem	2	expl	_	SpaceAfter=No
2	's	be	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	no	no	DET	DT	PronType=Neg	4	det	_	_
4	catch	catch	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	nsubj	_	_
5	at	at	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	all	all	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	4	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
7	,	,	PUNCT	,	_	11	punct	_	_
8	Sam	Sam	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	11	nsubj	_	_
9	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	11	cop	_	_
10	quite	quite	ADV	RB	_	11	advmod	_	_
11	right	right	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	2	conj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **be** | present | no catch at all |  |  | there |  |  | vn exist-47.1 «NP V»: agent=Theme |
| 2 | **is** | present | Sam |  |  |  |  | right *property* | tree rules |

### Option 4 · ✓ the right answer {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
A steeper ramp needs a bigger push

```conllu
# sent_id = question:physics:34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws:t2:o4:1
# text = A steeper ramp needs a bigger push
1	A	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
2	steeper	steep	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	3	amod	_	_
3	ramp	ramp	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	nsubj	_	_
4	needs	need	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	bigger	big	ADJ	JJR	Degree=Cmp	7	amod	_	_
7	push	push	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **need** | present | a steeper ramp | a bigger push |  |  |  |  | vn want-32.1-1-1 «NP V NP ADV»: agent=Pivot push=Theme |

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**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.

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- ← previous: [Wheels, axles, ramps and screws, test 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/physics/34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws/t1/)
- next →: [Wheels, axles, ramps and screws, test 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/physics/34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws/t3/)
- ↑ back to [Wheels, axles, ramps and screws](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/physics/34-wheels-axles-ramps-and-screws/)