A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Taiwan on September 19th, toppling buildings and bridges, derailing trains, and causing widespread disruption of services and communications. According to the BBC, at least one person was killed and 146 injured. Some of the most dramatic damage is a badly damaged bridge in southeastern Taiwan shown in the drone footage below.
From YouTube: As part of a Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC) and OpenTopography collaboration, Sarah Robinson (ASU M.S. student) and Andrew Whitesides (USC undergraduate) – supported by SCEC’s ACCESS program (Advancement of Cyberinfrastructure Careers through […]
Geological engineers and engineering geologists are fascinated by the occurrence of natural hazards such as landslides, debris flows, rockslides, and earthquakes. At times we can feel almost giddy when looking at the destructive videos, and […]
A new study published in the current issue of Geoarchaeology claims that earthquake-prone areas along the edges of tectonic plates were far more likely to give birth to great ancient civilizations than less dynamic landscapes. The author of the paper, Eric Force, a (U of A Wildcat!) says that 13 of 15 ancient civilizations sites aren’t the product of chance. Instead, ancient people appear to have chosen to settle close to a tectonic plate boundary. The exceptions were in ancient China and Egypt. [Image Adapted from Eric R. Force, Geoarchaeology: An International Journal, 23 (2008)]
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