---
title: Why zoos exist and what critics say — how Mova does on the tests · Biology
description: Lesson 115 of the biology course of Mova's primary school: 7 of 11 tests right, exam 1 of 4, every question with the options, the student's choice, the right answer and why it chose.
---

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# Why zoos exist and what critics say

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**Tests:** 7 of 11 right · **Exam:** 1 of 4 right · **Kind:** ★★ · **Understood:** 7 of 15 · **Run:** 2026-10-18, commit `f3c23ea72`

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Lesson 115 of the biology 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](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/).

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Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: [the lesson's questions in the corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/).

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### Test 1 · ★★ · right ✓ {#t1}

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«zoos are just prisons for animals, end of» How could a fair thinker answer?

- **1.** Zoos are really just big parks — no support
- **2.** Some zoos were cruel, but good zoos help save species; people still disagree — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 10
- **3.** No, every animal loves being in a zoo — no support
- **4.** Yes, every zoo in history is exactly the same — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 2 with score 10, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 115, line 9: «Zoos have helped save the Arabian oryx, the California condor and Przewalski's horse, and for some species the zoo population is the only safe group left.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «help» (+5); the same doer «zoos» (+5). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t1/)

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### Test 2 · ★★ · right ✓ {#t2}

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«my uncle says zoos were always about saving animals» What is right?

- **1.** Yes, from the very first day — no support
- **2.** Zoos began as hospitals for sick pets and farm animals — score 3
- **3.** Zoos began as farms for food — score 3
- **4.** Zoos began as kings' collections to show off power — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 6

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 6, against 3 for the next best. Its support: lesson 115, line 1: «Zoos began as collections for kings to show off their power: for about 600 years English kings kept lions, an elephant and even a polar bear at the Tower of Lo…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «begin» (+2); its «because» matches the remembered cause (+2); the same doer «zoos» (+1); the same circumstance (+1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t2/)

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### Test 3 · ★★ · right ✓ {#t3}

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Alex the lion in Madagascar can't hunt in the wild. What would happen to a real zoo-born lion set free?

- **1.** It would catch a bus back to the zoo by itself — score 0
- **2.** It might struggle to find food and survive — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 3
- **3.** It would live happily on wild fruit for years — score 3
- **4.** It would hunt perfectly well from the very first day — score 3

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 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 101, line 1: «At the zoo the African savanna area is one big grassy paddock where giraffes, zebras and antelopes wander together, just as they share the plains of Africa, wh…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «live» (+2); the same doer «lions» (+1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t3/)

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### Test 4 · ★★ · right ✓ {#t4}

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How could you tell a good zoo from a bad one on a visit?

- **1.** See if it sells the cheapest ice cream — score 5
- **2.** Check it is accredited and its animals have space and things to do — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 8
- **3.** Count how many animals do tricks — no support
- **4.** Check if you are allowed to touch and feed everything you see there — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 2 with score 8, against 5 for the next best. Its support: lesson 115, line 4: «You can judge a zoo yourself: is it accredited, do the animals have space and things to do, and does it say no to selfies with tiger cubs and to visitors tappi…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «space» (+4); the same doer «animals» (+2); its «because» matches the remembered cause (+2). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t4/)

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### Test 5 · ★★ · right ✓ {#t5}

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At a holiday resort a stall offers «hold a baby tiger for €10». What is the best thing to do?

- **1.** Say no, because such places breed and use cubs for money — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 3
- **2.** Feed it chocolate first — score 3
- **3.** Buy the cub to save it — score 3
- **4.** Hold it gently and pay double, so the cub gets lots more food — score 3

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. 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 115, line 12: «Paying to hold a tiger cub for a selfie often harms it: cubs are taken from their mothers early, bred for money and kept badly when they grow up, and good zoos…», 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 «cubs» (+2). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-2). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t5/)

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### Test 6 · ★★ · wrong ✗ {#t6}

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«bloke kept banging the glass at the gorillas, keeper went mad, bit much innit» Was the keeper right?

- **1.** Yes, but only because the glass is expensive — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** Yes, banging frightens animals that cannot get away — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **3.** No, glass blocks all sound — no support
- **4.** No, gorillas enjoy the noise — no support

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**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](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t6/)

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### Test 7 · ★★ · right ✓ {#t7}

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Which animal would be the hardest to keep well in a zoo?

- **1.** An orca, which swims huge distances in the ocean — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** A stick insect — no support
- **3.** A tortoise — no support
- **4.** A meerkat — no support

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**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](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t7/)

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### Test 8 · ★★ · wrong ✗ {#t8}

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The Tower of London polar bear fished in the Thames on a chain. What would people think today?

- **1.** That polar bears like muddy city rivers better than the sea — **← Mova's choice** · score 6
- **2.** That it was cruel and far from what a polar bear needs — **✓ the right answer** · score 6
- **3.** That it should be done again — no support
- **4.** That it was the perfect home — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what it is done to. 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 115, line 6: «For about 600 years English kings kept lions, a polar bear and an elephant at the Tower of London; the polar bear was allowed to fish in the River Thames on a…», reached through a sentence linked to the one the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+4); the same thing acted on «lions» (+3). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). The right option, 2, scored 6. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t8/)

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### Test 9 · ★★ · right ✓ {#t9}

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Why might some things be easier to learn about in a zoo than in the jungle?

- **1.** Animals can be watched and checked up close, day after day — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 1
- **2.** Zoo animals tell the scientists all their secrets in the end — no support
- **3.** Jungles are closed to all scientists — no support
- **4.** Animals in the jungle do not exist — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 with score 1, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 114, line 4: «That is why we cannot simply open all the cages: a release works only when the wild home is protected and the thing that killed the animals in the first place…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same thing acted on «animals» (+2). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t9/)

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### Test 10 · ★★ · wrong ✗ {#t10}

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«4 elephants in the old zoo picture, how many trunks and how many tails altogether»

- **1.** 4, the trunk is counted as a tail — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** 12, two trunks and one tail each — no support
- **3.** 8, four trunks and four tails — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** 16, two trunks and two tails each — no support

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**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](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t10/)

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### Test 11 · ★★ · wrong ✗ {#t11}

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«Madagascar zoo had a lion, a zebra, a hippo and a giraffe, how many legs is that, no, add the 4 penguins»

- **1.** 16, four legs for each of the mammals — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** 20, four for each mammal and one for each penguin — no support
- **3.** 24, sixteen for the four mammals and eight for the penguins — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** 32, four legs for every animal — no support

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**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](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/t11/)

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### Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗ {#e1}

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Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the historical origins of zoological collections?

- **1.** They originated as agricultural establishments for the production of meat and milk — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** They originated as institutions for the reintroduction of species — no support
- **3.** They originated as collections kept by rulers as a demonstration of power — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** They originated as veterinary hospitals for domestic animals — no support

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**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](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/e1/)

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### Exam question 2 · formal language · right ✓ {#e2}

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Identify the principal objection advanced by critics of zoological institutions.

- **1.** Wild animals are deprived of their liberty, and many are neither endangered nor ever released — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **2.** Zoological institutions are insufficiently numerous — no support
- **3.** Animals in zoological institutions are excessively free — no support
- **4.** Zoological institutions charge excessive fees for admission — no support

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**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](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/e2/)

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### Exam question 3 · formal language · wrong ✗ {#e3}

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Select the response consistent with the established facts concerning accredited zoological institutions.

- **1.** They are exempt from all inspection — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** They are permitted to offer photographs with tiger cubs and with other young wild animals — no support
- **3.** They are inspected by associations for standards of care, safety and conservation — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** They are owned by the royal household — no support

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**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](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/e3/)

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### Exam question 4 · formal language · wrong ✗ {#e4}

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Determine the reason for which certain institutions have ceased to maintain orcas and elephants.

- **1.** Such species are legally classified as domestic animals — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** Such species are now extinct in the wild — no support
- **3.** Such species require extensive space and have frequently suffered in confinement — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** Such species are no longer of any interest whatsoever to the visiting public or to the press — no support

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**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](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/115-why-zoos-exist-and-what-critics-say/e4/)

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- ← previous: [114. Back to the wild: animals that zoos returned to…](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/114-back-to-the-wild/)
- next →: [116. Famous zoos in the USA and the UK](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/116-famous-zoos-in-the-usa-and-the-uk/)
- ↑ back to [Biology](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/)