Author: Jerry Thompson
Publisher: Catapult
ISBN: 1619020866
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 377
Book Description
A thrillingly rendered and level-headed look at the Cascadia Subduction Zone—the cause of over 30 monster earthquakes—and the devastating natural disasters it promises. There is a crack in the earth's crust that runs roughly 31 miles offshore, approximately 683 miles from Northern California up through Vancouver Island off the coast of British Columbia. The Cascadia Subduction Zone has generated massive earthquakes over and over again throughout geologic time—at least 36 major events in the last 10,000 years. This fault generates a monster earthquake about every 500 years. And the monster is due to return at any time. It could happen 200 years from now, or it could be tonight. The Cascadia Subduction Zone is virtually identical to the offshore fault that wrecked Sumatra in 2004. It will generate the same earthquake we saw in Sumatra, at magnitude nine or higher, sending crippling shockwaves across a far wider area than any California quake. Slamming into Sacramento, Portland, Seattle, Victoria, and Vancouver, it will send tidal waves to the shores of Australia, New Zealand, and Japan, damaging the economies of the Pacific Rim countries and their trading partners for years to come. In light of recent massive quakes in Haiti, Chile, and Mexico, Cascadia's Fault not only tells the story of this potentially devastating earthquake and the tsunamis it will spawn, it also warns us about an impending crisis almost unprecedented in modern history.
Cascadia's Fault
Author: Jerry Thompson
Publisher: Catapult
ISBN: 1619020866
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 377
Book Description
A thrillingly rendered and level-headed look at the Cascadia Subduction Zone—the cause of over 30 monster earthquakes—and the devastating natural disasters it promises. There is a crack in the earth's crust that runs roughly 31 miles offshore, approximately 683 miles from Northern California up through Vancouver Island off the coast of British Columbia. The Cascadia Subduction Zone has generated massive earthquakes over and over again throughout geologic time—at least 36 major events in the last 10,000 years. This fault generates a monster earthquake about every 500 years. And the monster is due to return at any time. It could happen 200 years from now, or it could be tonight. The Cascadia Subduction Zone is virtually identical to the offshore fault that wrecked Sumatra in 2004. It will generate the same earthquake we saw in Sumatra, at magnitude nine or higher, sending crippling shockwaves across a far wider area than any California quake. Slamming into Sacramento, Portland, Seattle, Victoria, and Vancouver, it will send tidal waves to the shores of Australia, New Zealand, and Japan, damaging the economies of the Pacific Rim countries and their trading partners for years to come. In light of recent massive quakes in Haiti, Chile, and Mexico, Cascadia's Fault not only tells the story of this potentially devastating earthquake and the tsunamis it will spawn, it also warns us about an impending crisis almost unprecedented in modern history.
Publisher: Catapult
ISBN: 1619020866
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 377
Book Description
A thrillingly rendered and level-headed look at the Cascadia Subduction Zone—the cause of over 30 monster earthquakes—and the devastating natural disasters it promises. There is a crack in the earth's crust that runs roughly 31 miles offshore, approximately 683 miles from Northern California up through Vancouver Island off the coast of British Columbia. The Cascadia Subduction Zone has generated massive earthquakes over and over again throughout geologic time—at least 36 major events in the last 10,000 years. This fault generates a monster earthquake about every 500 years. And the monster is due to return at any time. It could happen 200 years from now, or it could be tonight. The Cascadia Subduction Zone is virtually identical to the offshore fault that wrecked Sumatra in 2004. It will generate the same earthquake we saw in Sumatra, at magnitude nine or higher, sending crippling shockwaves across a far wider area than any California quake. Slamming into Sacramento, Portland, Seattle, Victoria, and Vancouver, it will send tidal waves to the shores of Australia, New Zealand, and Japan, damaging the economies of the Pacific Rim countries and their trading partners for years to come. In light of recent massive quakes in Haiti, Chile, and Mexico, Cascadia's Fault not only tells the story of this potentially devastating earthquake and the tsunamis it will spawn, it also warns us about an impending crisis almost unprecedented in modern history.
The Orphan Tsunami of 1700
Author: Brian F. Atwater
Publisher: University of Washington Press
ISBN: 0295998512
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 144
Book Description
A puzzling tsunami entered Japanese history in January 1700. Samurai, merchants, and villagers wrote of minor flooding and damage. Some noted having felt no earthquake; they wondered what had set off the waves but had no way of knowing that the tsunami was spawned during an earthquake along the coast of northwestern North America. This orphan tsunami would not be linked to its parent earthquake until the mid-twentieth century, through an extraordinary series of discoveries in both North America and Japan. The Orphan Tsunami of 1700, now in its second edition, tells this scientific detective story through its North American and Japanese clues. The story underpins many of today�s precautions against earthquake and tsunami hazards in the Cascadia region of northwestern North America. The Japanese tsunami of March 2011 called attention to these hazards as a mirror image of the transpacific waves of January 1700. Hear Brian Atwater on NPR with Renee Montagne http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4629401
Publisher: University of Washington Press
ISBN: 0295998512
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 144
Book Description
A puzzling tsunami entered Japanese history in January 1700. Samurai, merchants, and villagers wrote of minor flooding and damage. Some noted having felt no earthquake; they wondered what had set off the waves but had no way of knowing that the tsunami was spawned during an earthquake along the coast of northwestern North America. This orphan tsunami would not be linked to its parent earthquake until the mid-twentieth century, through an extraordinary series of discoveries in both North America and Japan. The Orphan Tsunami of 1700, now in its second edition, tells this scientific detective story through its North American and Japanese clues. The story underpins many of today�s precautions against earthquake and tsunami hazards in the Cascadia region of northwestern North America. The Japanese tsunami of March 2011 called attention to these hazards as a mirror image of the transpacific waves of January 1700. Hear Brian Atwater on NPR with Renee Montagne http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4629401
Cascadia
Author: H. W. Buzz Bernard
Publisher: Bell Bridge Books
ISBN: 1611946972
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 256
Book Description
EPIC Award Winner If you live in the Pacific Northwest, get ready to run for your life . . . In the face of a massive earthquake and tsunami in the Pacific Northwest, a respected geologist must make two gut-wrenching decisions. One could cost him his reputation, the other, his life. Is the Northwest overdue for a huge quake and tsunami, or will the region remain safe for hundreds of years yet to come? No one knows... or does someone? Dr. Rob Elwood, a geologist whose specialty is earthquakes and tsunamis, is having nightmares of "the big one" that are way too real to disregard. His friend, a counselor and retired reverend, does not think Rob is going nuts. To the contrary, he believes the dreams are premonitions to be taken seriously. No one else does, however, even after a press conference. Some live to regret it, most don't. Rob's drama becomes intertwined with others--a retired fighter pilot trying to make amends to a woman he jilted decades ago and a quixotic retiree searching for legendary buried treasure in the rugged coastal mountains of Oregon. All are about to live Rob's nightmare. "Riveting, scary, and entirely believable . . . a compelling, page-turning thriller with the ring of truth." Jerry Thompson, author of Cascadia's Fault H. W. "Buzz" Bernard, a native Oregonian born in Eugene and raised in Portland, is a best-selling, award-winning novelist. His debut novel, Eyewall, which one reviewer called a "perfect summer beach read," was released in May 2011 and went on to become a number-one best seller in Amazon's Kindle Store. Before becoming a novelist, Buzz worked at The Weather Channel in Atlanta, Georgia, as a senior meteorologist for thirteen years. Prior to that, he served as a weather officer in the U.S. Air Force for over three decades. He attained the rank of colonel and his "airborne" experiences include a mission with the Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunters, air drops over the Arctic Ocean and Turkey, and a stint as a weather officer aboard a Tactical Air Command airborne command post (C-135).
Publisher: Bell Bridge Books
ISBN: 1611946972
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 256
Book Description
EPIC Award Winner If you live in the Pacific Northwest, get ready to run for your life . . . In the face of a massive earthquake and tsunami in the Pacific Northwest, a respected geologist must make two gut-wrenching decisions. One could cost him his reputation, the other, his life. Is the Northwest overdue for a huge quake and tsunami, or will the region remain safe for hundreds of years yet to come? No one knows... or does someone? Dr. Rob Elwood, a geologist whose specialty is earthquakes and tsunamis, is having nightmares of "the big one" that are way too real to disregard. His friend, a counselor and retired reverend, does not think Rob is going nuts. To the contrary, he believes the dreams are premonitions to be taken seriously. No one else does, however, even after a press conference. Some live to regret it, most don't. Rob's drama becomes intertwined with others--a retired fighter pilot trying to make amends to a woman he jilted decades ago and a quixotic retiree searching for legendary buried treasure in the rugged coastal mountains of Oregon. All are about to live Rob's nightmare. "Riveting, scary, and entirely believable . . . a compelling, page-turning thriller with the ring of truth." Jerry Thompson, author of Cascadia's Fault H. W. "Buzz" Bernard, a native Oregonian born in Eugene and raised in Portland, is a best-selling, award-winning novelist. His debut novel, Eyewall, which one reviewer called a "perfect summer beach read," was released in May 2011 and went on to become a number-one best seller in Amazon's Kindle Store. Before becoming a novelist, Buzz worked at The Weather Channel in Atlanta, Georgia, as a senior meteorologist for thirteen years. Prior to that, he served as a weather officer in the U.S. Air Force for over three decades. He attained the rank of colonel and his "airborne" experiences include a mission with the Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunters, air drops over the Arctic Ocean and Turkey, and a stint as a weather officer aboard a Tactical Air Command airborne command post (C-135).
Quakeland
Author: Kathryn Miles
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0525955186
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
A journey around the United States in search of the truth about the threat of earthquakes leads to spine-tingling discoveries, unnerving experts, and ultimately the kind of preparations that will actually help guide us through disasters. It’s a road trip full of surprises. Earthquakes. You need to worry about them only if you’re in San Francisco, right? Wrong. We have been making enormous changes to subterranean America, and Mother Earth, as always, has been making some of her own. . . . The consequences for our real estate, our civil engineering, and our communities will be huge because they will include earthquakes most of us do not expect and cannot imagine—at least not without reading Quakeland. Kathryn Miles descends into mines in the Northwest, dissects Mississippi levee engineering studies, uncovers the horrific risks of an earthquake in the Northeast, and interviews the seismologists, structual engineers, and emergency managers around the country who are addressing this ground shaking threat. As Miles relates, the era of human-induced earthquakes began in 1962 in Colorado after millions of gallons of chemical-weapon waste was pumped underground in the Rockies. More than 1,500 quakes over the following seven years resulted. The Department of Energy plans to dump spent nuclear rods in the same way. Evidence of fracking’s seismological impact continues to mount. . . . Humans as well as fault lines built our “quakeland”. What will happen when Memphis, home of FedEx's 1.5-million-packages-a-day hub, goes offline as a result of an earthquake along the unstable Reelfoot Fault? FEMA has estimated that a modest 7.0 magnitude quake (twenty of these happen per year around the world) along the Wasatch Fault under Salt Lake City would put a $33 billion dent in our economy. When the Fukushima reactor melted down, tens of thousands were displaced. If New York’s Indian Point nuclear power plant blows, ten million people will be displaced. How would that evacuation even begin? Kathryn Miles’ tour of our land is as fascinating and frightening as it is irresistibly compelling.
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0525955186
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
A journey around the United States in search of the truth about the threat of earthquakes leads to spine-tingling discoveries, unnerving experts, and ultimately the kind of preparations that will actually help guide us through disasters. It’s a road trip full of surprises. Earthquakes. You need to worry about them only if you’re in San Francisco, right? Wrong. We have been making enormous changes to subterranean America, and Mother Earth, as always, has been making some of her own. . . . The consequences for our real estate, our civil engineering, and our communities will be huge because they will include earthquakes most of us do not expect and cannot imagine—at least not without reading Quakeland. Kathryn Miles descends into mines in the Northwest, dissects Mississippi levee engineering studies, uncovers the horrific risks of an earthquake in the Northeast, and interviews the seismologists, structual engineers, and emergency managers around the country who are addressing this ground shaking threat. As Miles relates, the era of human-induced earthquakes began in 1962 in Colorado after millions of gallons of chemical-weapon waste was pumped underground in the Rockies. More than 1,500 quakes over the following seven years resulted. The Department of Energy plans to dump spent nuclear rods in the same way. Evidence of fracking’s seismological impact continues to mount. . . . Humans as well as fault lines built our “quakeland”. What will happen when Memphis, home of FedEx's 1.5-million-packages-a-day hub, goes offline as a result of an earthquake along the unstable Reelfoot Fault? FEMA has estimated that a modest 7.0 magnitude quake (twenty of these happen per year around the world) along the Wasatch Fault under Salt Lake City would put a $33 billion dent in our economy. When the Fukushima reactor melted down, tens of thousands were displaced. If New York’s Indian Point nuclear power plant blows, ten million people will be displaced. How would that evacuation even begin? Kathryn Miles’ tour of our land is as fascinating and frightening as it is irresistibly compelling.
Get Ready!
Author: Deb Moller
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 1632173042
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
The definitive guide to getting ready for and staying safe after a major earthquake in the Pacific Northwest. FEMA recommends being prepared for two weeks of self-sufficiency after it occurs, and this handbook will show you how with clear, informative, and easy-to-implement steps. Recent seismic activity has made national headlines and underscored the fact that the Cascadia fault line off the coast of British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and Northern California is overdue for a major earthquake. And when it happens, living conditions could be akin to those in the mid-nineteenth century. This handbook covers the supplies you need to stay safely in place, including water, food (and food prep), first aid, sanitation, health and hygiene needs, shelter and bedding, and light/fire. It also includes lists of what to purchase and how to store it, as well as simple excercises to gain confidence in perfoming necessary tasks. Learn what to do during and immediately after an earthquake, how to develop a reunification plan, and how to communicate when basic infrastructure is down. It also addresses the particular concerns of those living in coastal areas (the tsunami zone) as well as those outside of the severe impact zone. It covers long-term ways to stay safe without modern conveniences and a crash course in survival techniques should the quake happen before all preparations are complete. Get Ready! presents information in clear, practical, and managable steps, equipping the reader with the skills to care for themselves and their loved ones should a major earthquake hit. And when it does, the internet will not be an option, making this reference handbook invaluable. If you live in the Pacific Northwest, you need Get Ready!
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 1632173042
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
The definitive guide to getting ready for and staying safe after a major earthquake in the Pacific Northwest. FEMA recommends being prepared for two weeks of self-sufficiency after it occurs, and this handbook will show you how with clear, informative, and easy-to-implement steps. Recent seismic activity has made national headlines and underscored the fact that the Cascadia fault line off the coast of British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and Northern California is overdue for a major earthquake. And when it happens, living conditions could be akin to those in the mid-nineteenth century. This handbook covers the supplies you need to stay safely in place, including water, food (and food prep), first aid, sanitation, health and hygiene needs, shelter and bedding, and light/fire. It also includes lists of what to purchase and how to store it, as well as simple excercises to gain confidence in perfoming necessary tasks. Learn what to do during and immediately after an earthquake, how to develop a reunification plan, and how to communicate when basic infrastructure is down. It also addresses the particular concerns of those living in coastal areas (the tsunami zone) as well as those outside of the severe impact zone. It covers long-term ways to stay safe without modern conveniences and a crash course in survival techniques should the quake happen before all preparations are complete. Get Ready! presents information in clear, practical, and managable steps, equipping the reader with the skills to care for themselves and their loved ones should a major earthquake hit. And when it does, the internet will not be an option, making this reference handbook invaluable. If you live in the Pacific Northwest, you need Get Ready!
The Big One
Author: Elizabeth Rusch
Publisher: Clarion Books
ISBN: 0544889045
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 85
Book Description
About earth movement and plate tectonics, and the possibility of earthquakes at the Cascadia Subduction Zone, an area between British Columbia and northern California.
Publisher: Clarion Books
ISBN: 0544889045
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 85
Book Description
About earth movement and plate tectonics, and the possibility of earthquakes at the Cascadia Subduction Zone, an area between British Columbia and northern California.
Active Faults of the World
Author: Robert Yeats
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107375606
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 923
Book Description
Providing the first worldwide survey of active earthquake faults, this book focuses on those described as 'seismic time bombs' – with the potential to destroy large cities in the developing world such as Port au Prince, Kabul, Tehran and Caracas. Leading international earthquake expert, Robert Yeats, explores both the regional and plate-tectonic context of active faults, providing the background for seismic hazard evaluation in planning large-scale projects such as nuclear power plants or hydroelectric dams. He also highlights work done in more advanced seismogenic countries like Japan, the United States, New Zealand and China, providing an important basis for upgrading building standards and other laws in developing nations. The book also explores the impact of major quakes on social development through history. It will form an accessible reference for analysts and consulting firms, and a convenient overview for academics and students of geoscience, geotechnical engineering and civil engineering, and land-use planning.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1107375606
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 923
Book Description
Providing the first worldwide survey of active earthquake faults, this book focuses on those described as 'seismic time bombs' – with the potential to destroy large cities in the developing world such as Port au Prince, Kabul, Tehran and Caracas. Leading international earthquake expert, Robert Yeats, explores both the regional and plate-tectonic context of active faults, providing the background for seismic hazard evaluation in planning large-scale projects such as nuclear power plants or hydroelectric dams. He also highlights work done in more advanced seismogenic countries like Japan, the United States, New Zealand and China, providing an important basis for upgrading building standards and other laws in developing nations. The book also explores the impact of major quakes on social development through history. It will form an accessible reference for analysts and consulting firms, and a convenient overview for academics and students of geoscience, geotechnical engineering and civil engineering, and land-use planning.
The Great Quake
Author: Henry Fountain
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group (NY)
ISBN: 1101904062
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 298
Book Description
On March 27, 1964, at 5-36 p.m., the biggest earthquake ever recorded in North America--and the second biggest ever in the world, measuring 9.2 on the Richter scale--struck Alaska, devastating coastal towns and villages and killing more than 130 people in what was then a relatively sparsely populated region. In a riveting tale about the almost unimaginable brute force of nature, New York Times science journalist Henry Fountain, in his first trade book, re-creates the lives of the villagers and townspeople living in Chenega, Anchorage, and Valdez; describes the sheer beauty of the geology of the region, with its towering peaks and 20-mile-long glaciers; and reveals the impact of the quake on the towns, the buildings, and the lives of the inhabitants. George Plafker, a geologist for the U.S. Geological Survey with years of experience scouring the Alaskan wilderness, is asked to investigate the Prince William Sound region in the aftermath of the quake, to better understand its origins. His work confirmed the then controversial theory of plate tectonics that explained how and why such deadly quakes occur, and how we can plan for the next one.
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group (NY)
ISBN: 1101904062
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 298
Book Description
On March 27, 1964, at 5-36 p.m., the biggest earthquake ever recorded in North America--and the second biggest ever in the world, measuring 9.2 on the Richter scale--struck Alaska, devastating coastal towns and villages and killing more than 130 people in what was then a relatively sparsely populated region. In a riveting tale about the almost unimaginable brute force of nature, New York Times science journalist Henry Fountain, in his first trade book, re-creates the lives of the villagers and townspeople living in Chenega, Anchorage, and Valdez; describes the sheer beauty of the geology of the region, with its towering peaks and 20-mile-long glaciers; and reveals the impact of the quake on the towns, the buildings, and the lives of the inhabitants. George Plafker, a geologist for the U.S. Geological Survey with years of experience scouring the Alaskan wilderness, is asked to investigate the Prince William Sound region in the aftermath of the quake, to better understand its origins. His work confirmed the then controversial theory of plate tectonics that explained how and why such deadly quakes occur, and how we can plan for the next one.
Subduction
Author: Kristen Millares Young
Publisher: Red Hen Press
ISBN: 1597098949
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 247
Book Description
“Utterly unique . . . examines themes of love, intrusion, loss, community and trust against a backdrop of a Makah reservation in the Pacific Northwest.” —Ms. Magazine Selected as a Staff Pick by The Paris Review Silver Medal winner in the Independent Publisher Book Awards in Multicultural Fiction Fleeing the shattered remains of her marriage and treachery by her sister, a Latina anthropologist named Claudia takes refuge in Neah Bay, a Native whaling village on the jagged Pacific coast. Claudia yearns to lose herself to the songs of the tribe and the secrets of a spirited hoarder named Maggie. Instead, she stumbles into Maggie’s prodigal son Peter, who, spurred by his mother’s failing memory, has returned seeking answers to his father’s murder. Claudia helps Peter’s family convey a legacy delayed for decades by that death, but her presence, echoing centuries of fraught contact with indigenous peoples, brings lasting change and real damage. Through the ardent collision of Peter and Claudia, Subduction portrays not only their strange allegiance after grievous losses but also their shared hope of finding solace and community on the Makah Indian Reservation. An intimate tale of stunning betrayals, Subduction bears witness to the power of stories to disrupt—and to heal. “Young beautifully and vividly renders the Pacific Northwest, particularly the unique world of Neah Bay. Subduction is at once a thought-provoking meditation on the geography and geology of the natural world and a generous exploration of the natural shifts and movements that shape her characters.” —Jonathan Evison, New York Times-bestselling author of Legends of the North Cascades
Publisher: Red Hen Press
ISBN: 1597098949
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 247
Book Description
“Utterly unique . . . examines themes of love, intrusion, loss, community and trust against a backdrop of a Makah reservation in the Pacific Northwest.” —Ms. Magazine Selected as a Staff Pick by The Paris Review Silver Medal winner in the Independent Publisher Book Awards in Multicultural Fiction Fleeing the shattered remains of her marriage and treachery by her sister, a Latina anthropologist named Claudia takes refuge in Neah Bay, a Native whaling village on the jagged Pacific coast. Claudia yearns to lose herself to the songs of the tribe and the secrets of a spirited hoarder named Maggie. Instead, she stumbles into Maggie’s prodigal son Peter, who, spurred by his mother’s failing memory, has returned seeking answers to his father’s murder. Claudia helps Peter’s family convey a legacy delayed for decades by that death, but her presence, echoing centuries of fraught contact with indigenous peoples, brings lasting change and real damage. Through the ardent collision of Peter and Claudia, Subduction portrays not only their strange allegiance after grievous losses but also their shared hope of finding solace and community on the Makah Indian Reservation. An intimate tale of stunning betrayals, Subduction bears witness to the power of stories to disrupt—and to heal. “Young beautifully and vividly renders the Pacific Northwest, particularly the unique world of Neah Bay. Subduction is at once a thought-provoking meditation on the geography and geology of the natural world and a generous exploration of the natural shifts and movements that shape her characters.” —Jonathan Evison, New York Times-bestselling author of Legends of the North Cascades
When the Earth Roars
Author: Gregory Smits
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1442220104
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 227
Book Description
Japan, which is among the most earthquake-prone regions in the world, has a long history of responding to seismic disasters. However, despite advances in earthquake-related safety technologies, the destructiveness of the magnitude 9 class earthquake and tsunami that struck the country on 3/11 raised profound questions about how societies can deal effectively with seismic hazards. This important book places the devastating earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear meltdown disaster in historical perspective, examining conceptions of earthquakes since the seventeenth century, the diverse ways actual earthquakes and their aftermath played out, and their enduring social and scientific significance. By looking backward, Gregory Smits identifies future pitfalls to avoid and assesses the allocation of resources for dealing with future earthquake and tsunami disasters. He criticizes Japan’s postwar quest for earthquake prediction and the concept of “characteristic” earthquakes. Smits argues that earthquakes are so chaotic as to be unpredictable, not only geologically but also in their social and cultural effects. Therefore, he contends, the best hope for future disaster mitigation is antiseismic engineering and flexible disaster-relief capabilities. As the first sustained historical analysis of destructive earthquakes and tsunamis, this book is an essential resource for anyone interested in Japan, natural disasters, seismology, and environmental history.
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1442220104
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 227
Book Description
Japan, which is among the most earthquake-prone regions in the world, has a long history of responding to seismic disasters. However, despite advances in earthquake-related safety technologies, the destructiveness of the magnitude 9 class earthquake and tsunami that struck the country on 3/11 raised profound questions about how societies can deal effectively with seismic hazards. This important book places the devastating earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear meltdown disaster in historical perspective, examining conceptions of earthquakes since the seventeenth century, the diverse ways actual earthquakes and their aftermath played out, and their enduring social and scientific significance. By looking backward, Gregory Smits identifies future pitfalls to avoid and assesses the allocation of resources for dealing with future earthquake and tsunami disasters. He criticizes Japan’s postwar quest for earthquake prediction and the concept of “characteristic” earthquakes. Smits argues that earthquakes are so chaotic as to be unpredictable, not only geologically but also in their social and cultural effects. Therefore, he contends, the best hope for future disaster mitigation is antiseismic engineering and flexible disaster-relief capabilities. As the first sustained historical analysis of destructive earthquakes and tsunamis, this book is an essential resource for anyone interested in Japan, natural disasters, seismology, and environmental history.