IELTS READING LEVEL 5.5 – Tornado Scientists

Tornado Scientists

by ReadWorks

Tornadoes form when strong winds spin. Wind is invisible, but we can see tornadoes because the spinning wind picks up water, dust, and debris. The spinning wind forms a funnel that connects thunderstorm clouds with the ground.

When a tornado is close, watch out. They can spin over 200 miles per hour and cause a lot of damage. As they move across the land, they can easily pick up cars, trucks, and even houses, and then throw them very far. It is important to find a safe place to take shelter if a tornado gets close.

A safe place could be a basement or the lowest floor, depending on where you are. If you are in a home without a basement, try to find a first-floor closet or bathroom without windows in the middle of your house. You should curl up into a ball and cover your head and neck with your hands. Stay in a safe place until the tornado passes.

But there are some people who actually want to get close to tornadoes. They are scientists who want to learn more about tornadoes. One of the best ways to do this is to get as close as possible to these twisters. They use special equipment and instruments to measure what is happening in and around a tornado.

One special instrument these scientists use is called a tornado probe. It is about six inches tall and looks like a short, orange construction cone. Inside the tornado probe, there are sensors to measure wind speed, temperature, pressure, and direction. Some probes even have cameras, so the scientists can see and understand what it’s like to be in a tornado.

To be able to get these measurements, the scientists have to get a tornado probe near or into a tornado. Scientists will try to guess where a tornado will go next. Then they drive to that location and put down the probe. If they do not guess correctly, they pick up their probe and try another spot. If they are right, the tornado will go near or even right over the probe. Then they take all of the measurements from the probe and use them to predict where future tornadoes may form and travel.

Tornadoes are extremely dangerous, and the scientists who study them up-close are bold and brave. Their work is very important and has saved lives by giving people some warning to get out of the way of a destructive tornado.

Vocabulary

predict    pre · dict

Definition

verb

1. to say ahead of time that something will happen.

The general predicted an easy victory. They predicted that it would rain today.

Advanced Definition

transitive verb

1. to see or proclaim in advance (a future unplanned event); prophesy; foretell.

Can anyone really predict the future?

 In the famous opera, the gypsy, Carmen, predicts her own death.

2. to announce the coming of (a future event) based on particular evidence or inference.

His mother had predicted that his marriage would not last, and, unfortunately, she was correct.

 No one can predict when these political prisoners will be released.

The statistical model predicts that one in ten people will contract the disease.

The weather report predicted snow for this afternoon.

intransitive verb

1. to foretell events.

Spanish cognate

predecir: The Spanish word predecir means predict.

There are some examples of how the word or forms of the word are used:

1. Experts predict a shortage of 40,000 doctors by 2020 and 260,000 nurses by 2025.
2. Some people think that Brazil’s government is not doing enough to stop deforestation. Ranchers and farmers think it is unfair for others to tell them that they can’t use the rain forest for their own livelihood. Scientists predict that if deforestation continues at its current rate, the rain forest may survive only another 40 to 50 years.

3. “The tomatoes sure need a lot of attention!” Luke exclaimed one late afternoon. He had been double and triple tying the vines, because the weather forecaster had predicted wind and rain for that night.
4. Since the disaster, the world has reached out to help people rebuild their lives. Officials predict that it could take up to 10 years to help the region recover from the tsunami.

sensor    sen · sor

Advanced Definition

noun

1. anything that is capable of registering physical quantities, as of light or temperature, and sending signals that indicate the level of the stimulus.

Spanish cognate

sensor: The Spanish word sensor means sensor.

There are some examples of how the word or forms of the word are used:

1. At first, a faulty fuel sensor postponed the liftoff for several days.
2. Movers wanted to make sure that no additional harm was done to the bell’s famous During the move, scientists attached tiny sensors to the mostly copper bell. The sensors would sound an alarm if the bell’s famous crack got bigger.
3. When you smell something, “it’s basically like taking an interstate highway” from the nose to the limbic system, explains Wysocki. Sensory information from the eyes and ears, on the other hand, must travel farther to reach the limbic system-“like taking county roads.”
4. Live from Australia, it’s the Great Barrier Reef! Scientists are using special sensors, known as digital skins, to monitor changes in this underwater treasure.
5. The second part of the so-called black box is the flight data recorder, or FDR. This piece of equipment does not record the people onboard, but all technical aspects of a flight. Sensors all over the plane detect and send information to a flight data acquisition unit which, in turn, is hooked up to the FDR.

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