To measure earthquakes, scientists use a tool called a seismometer (“size-MOM-uh-ter”). A seismometer senses the vibration and sends it to a machine called a seismograph (“SIZE-muh-graf”) that draws pictures of an earthquake’s movement. When Earth shakes, the pen in a seismograph moves back and forth on a piece of paper. Each picture is called a seismogram (“SIZE-muh-gram”). You may be thinking, “What’s with all this ‘seis’ stuff?” Well, ‘seismos’ is the Greek word for “earthquake”. Now that you know this, what do you think a scientist who studies earthquakes is called?

Answer: a seismologist (“size-MALL-uh-jist”)