The Zoologist
Vocabulary
The Zoologist
zoologist
I heard your mom is a zoologist.
A zoologist is a scientist that studies and cares for animals. Notice the following:
- As a child I wanted to be a zoologist.
- Not all zoologists work in a zoo.
focus on
Does she focus on a specific animal?
When you focus on something, you attend to it more closely than other things. Notice the following:
- This term we will focus on Eurepean History.
- He needs to focus more on his work than partying.
tortoise
Do you have any tortoises in your house?
A tortoise is a reptile similar to a turtle. Notice the following:
- A famous fable is the tortoise and the hare.
- We saw sea tortoises on our dive.
monitor
We need to monitor these eggs.
When you monitor something, you watch it carefully. Notice the following:
- My job is to monitor the students as they take tests.
- All babies are monitored closely by the nurses.
ultrasound scanner
She would monitor it with an ultrasound scanner
An ultrasound is an image created by sound waves. A scanner is a device that captures information. Notice the following:
- All pregnant woman get an ultrasound scan.
- An ultrasound scanner lets you see inside a person.
Audio Script
The Zoologist
Ana: Hey, Michael. I heard your mom is a zoologist. What is it exactly?
Mike: A zoologist. Well, that’s true. She is a zoologist. So a zoologist is someone who studies animals.
Ana: Oh, interesting. So does she study all animals or does she focus on a specific animal?
Mike: Well, she’s worked at universities studying animals for a long time. So she’s worked on many different kinds of animals. But at the moment, she is studying South African tortoises.
Ana: Oh, interesting. Do you have any tortoises in your house?
Mike: Yeah. Actually, we have more than 40 tortoises in our garden.
Ana: More than 40. Wow.
Mike: Yes. People are always very surprised when they visit and they see all our tortoises.
Ana: So, do you know a lot about tortoises as well?
The Zoologist
Mike: I don’t know very much about them but I mean, my mom has always got them around at the house or she’s often busy with some sort of tortoise’s related activity. And so sometimes, as a high school kid, I got home and she would have a tortoise that – a pregnant tortoise, a female tortoise with eggs inside. And in order to monitor these eggs, she would have it in a bath of water with an ultrasound scanner and a screen up on the dining room table.
Ana: Wow. That is really interesting.
Mike: I had a very interesting childhood with all of these animals and things around the house.
Ana: Oh, that’s great. Did you have any other pets?
Mike: Yes. We’ve always had a couple of dogs and I like cats. So I’ve got my pet cat at home.
Ana: Wow. That’s really interesting.