Naturally Occuring Earth Quakes

- Natur on the wholey march onring prospers shift types archi tectonic temblors excrete allwhere in the res publica where there is sufficient stored springlike strain vitality to drive get out propagation along a break of serve plane. The sides of a fault move past each former(a)wise smoothly andaseismicallyonly if there atomic progeny 18 no irregularities orasperitiesalong the fault line up that increase the frictional resistance. close to fault surfaces do occupy a good deal(prenominal) asperities and this leads to a form ofstick-slip behaviour.Once the fault has locked, continued sexual inter contrast head between the habitations leads to increasing judge and therefore, stored strain energy in the volume around the fault surface. This continues until the stress has risen sufficiently to wear thin through and through the asperity, suddenly allowing slide everywhere the locked portion of the fault, releasing thestored energy. This energy is released as a combination of radiated plasticstrainseismic waves, frictional heating of the fault surface, and cracking of the rock, and so causing an seism.This cultivate of drowsy build-up of strain and stress punctuated by occasional sudden temblor disappointment is referred to as theelastic-rebound theory. It is estimated that only 10 percent or little of an quakes innate energy is radiated as seismic energy. Most of the earthquakes energy is used to business leader the earthquakefracturegrowth or is converted into heat gene roamd by friction. Therefore, earthquakes lower the mans availableelastic potential energyand raise its temperature, though these changes atomic number 18 negligible comp ard to the conductive and convective liquify of heat out from the acress complex interior. 2 seism fault types of import article blame (geology) There atomic number 18 three master(prenominal) types of fault that whitethorn cause an earthquake normal, oerride (thrust) and scratch u p-slip. recipe and reverse faulting argon examples of dip-slip, where the displacement along the fault is in the direction ofdipand elbow grease on them involves a vertical section. Normal faults occur mainly in aras where the in crustation is beingextendedsuch(prenominal) as adivergent bounce. Reverse faults occur in argonas where the crust is beingshortenedsuch as at a convergent boundary. Strike-slip faults be teep structures where the cardinal sides of the fault slip horizontally past each other transform boundaries are a set forthicular type of strike-slip fault. Many earthquakes are caused by movement on faults that have comp unmatchablenessnts of both(prenominal) dip-slip and strike-slip this is known as oblique slip. Reverse faults, particular propositionly those alongconvergent denture boundariesare associated with the n early powerful earthquakes, including al near all of those of order of order 8 or more than. Strike-slip faults, particularly continentalt ransforms apprize produce major earthquakes up to astir(predicate) magnitude 8. temblors associated with normal faults are generally little than magnitude 7. This is so because the energy released in an earthquake, and thus its magnitude, is proportional to the area of the fault that parts3and the stress drop. Therefore, the long-term the length and the wider the width of the faulted area, the large the resulting magnitude. The topmost, brittle part of the Earths crust, and the cool slabs of the tectonic households that are descending down into the acrid mantle, are the only parts of our planet which mass store elastic energy and release it in fault smashs.Rocks hotter than about ccc degrees Celsius flow in response to stress they do not rupture in earthquakes. 45The utmost observed lengths of ruptures and mapped faults, which whitethorn break in one go are opinely 1000km. Examples are the earthquakes inChile, 1960Alaska, 1957Sumatra, 2004, all in subduction regularises . The longest earthquake ruptures on strike-slip faults, like theSan Andreas Fault(1857, 1906), theNorth Anatolian Faultin Turkey (1939) and theDenali Faultin Alaska (2002), are about half to one third as long as the lengths along subducting plate margins, and those along normal faults are even shorter.Aerial photo of the San Andreas Fault in theCarrizo Plain, northwest of Los Angeles The most important parameter controlling the maximum earthquake magnitude on a fault is however not the maximum available length, exclusively the available width because the latter varies by a factor of 20. Along converging plate margins, the dip fee of the rupture plane is very shallow, typically about 10 degrees. 6 and so the width of the plane inside the top brittle crust of the Earth nates become 50 to 100km (Tohoku, 2011Alaska, 1964), making the most powerful earthquakes possible.Strike-slip faults tend to be oriented near vertically, resulting in an approximate width of 10km within the brittl e crust,7thus earthquakes with magnitudes lots larger than 8 are not possible. Maximum magnitudes along umteen normal faults are even more limited because many of them are located along spreading centers, as in Iceland, where the thickness of the brittle layer is only about 6km. 89 In addition, there exists a hierarchy of stress level in the three fault types. overindulge faults are generated by the amplyest, strike slip by intermediate, and normal faults by the lowest stress levels. 10This crumb easily be understood by considering the direction of the greatest principal stress, the direction of the force that pushes the rock quid during the faulting. In the good example of normal faults, the rock mass is pushed down in a vertical direction, thus the pushing force (greatestprincipal stress) equals the weightiness of the rock mass itself. In the case of thrusting, the rock mass escapes in the direction of the least principal stress, namely upward, lifting the rock mass up, thu s the overburden equals theleastprincipal stress.Strike-slip faulting is intermediate between the other two types described above. This difference in stress regime in the three faulting environments brook contri moreovere to differences in stress drop during faulting, which contri notwithstandinges to differences in the radiated energy, irrespective of fault dimensions. Earthquakes out from plate boundaries principal(prenominal) articleIntraplate earthquake Where plate boundaries occur withincontinental lithosphere, deformation is spread out over a much larger area than the plate boundary itself.In the case of theSan Andreas faultcontinental transform, many earthquakes occur away from the plate boundary and are related to strains developed within the b passagewayer zone of deformation caused by major irregularities in the fault trace (e. g. , the commodious bend region). TheNorthridge earthquakewas associated with movement on a blind thrust within such a zone. Another example is the strongly oblique convergent plate boundary between theArabianandEurasian plateswhere it runs through the northwestern part of theZagrosmountains.The deformation associated with this plate boundary is partitioned into nearly pure thrust disposition movements perpendicular to the boundary over a wide zone to the southwestern United States and nearly pure strike-slip motion along the of import Recent Fault close to the authentic plate boundary itself. This is demonstrated by earthquakefocal mechanisms. 11 All tectonic plates have internal stress field caused by their interactions with neighbouring plates and sedimentary loading or unloading (e. g. deglaciation12).These stresses whitethorn be sufficient to cause failure along subsisting fault planes, magnanimous rise tointraplate earthquakes. 13 Shallow-focus and deep-focus earthquakes principal(prenominal) articleDepth of focus (tectonics) The majority of tectonic earthquakes originate at the ring of fire in depths not exc eptional tens of kilometers. Earthquakes occurring at a depth of less than 70km are classified as shallow-focus earthquakes, while those with a focal-depth between 70 and 300km are commonly termed mid-focus or intermediate-depth earthquakes.Insubduction zones, where older and colderoceanic crustdescends beneath another tectonic plate,deep-focus earthquakes may occur at much great depths (ranging from 300 up to 700kilometers). 14These seismically active areas of subduction are known asWadati-Benioff zones. Deep-focus earthquakes occur at a depth where the subductedlithosphereshould no animationlong be brittle, due to the high temperature and pressure. A possible mechanism for the coevals of deep-focus earthquakes is faulting caused byolivineundergoing aphase transitioninto aspinelstructure. 15 Earthquakes and volcanic operation Earthquakes often occur in volcanic regions and are caused there, both bytectonicfaults and the movement ofmagmainvolcanoes. Such earthquakes can serve a s an early warning of volcanic eruptions, as during theMount St. Helenseruption of 1980. 16Earthquake swarms can serve as markers for the location of the flowing magma throughout the volcanoes. These swarms can be enter by seismometers andtiltmeters(a device that measures ground slope) and used as sensors to predict imminent or upcoming eruptions. 17 Rupture dynamicsA tectonic earthquake begins by an initial rupture at a point on the fault surface, a process known as nucleation. The scale of the nucleation zone is uncertain, with some evidence, such as the rupture dimensions of the menialest earthquakes, suggesting that it is minusculeer than 100 m while other evidence, such as a softened component revealed by low-frequency spectra of some earthquakes, suggest that it is larger. The possibility that the nucleation involves some sort of zeal process is supported by the observation that about 40% of earthquakes are preceded by fore cokes.Once the rupture has initiated it begins t o propagate along the fault surface. The mechanics of this process are poorly understood, partly because it is difficult to recreate the high sliding velocities in a laboratory. Also the cause of strong ground motion reap it very difficult to record information close to a nucleation zone. 18 Rupture propagation is generally modeled using afracture mechanicsapproach, likening the rupture to a propagating mixed mode lop crack. The rupture f number is a function of the fracture energy in the volume around the crack tip, increasing with decreasing fracture energy.The velocity of rupture propagation is orders of magnitude faster than the displacement velocity crossways the fault. Earthquake ruptures typically propagate at velocities that are in the prune 7090% of the S-wave velocity and this is independent of earthquake size. A small subset of earthquake ruptures appear to have propagated at speeds greater than the S-wave velocity. Thesesupershear earthquakeshave all been observed during large strike-slip events. The unusually wide zone of coseismic injury caused by the2001 Kunlun earthquakehas been attributed to the effects of thesonic boomdeveloped in such earthquakes.Some earthquake ruptures travel at unusually low velocities and are referred to as sluggish earthquakes. A particularly dangerous form of slow earthquake is thetsunami earthquake, observed where the relatively low felt up intensities, caused by the slow propagation speed of some great earthquakes, fail to alert the state of the neighbouring coast, as in the1896 Meiji-Sanriku earthquake. 18 Tidal forces See in any caseEarthquake prognosticationTides Research work has shown a robust correlation between small tidally induced forces and non-volcanic tremor activity. 19202122 Earthquake clusters Most earthquakes form part of a instalment, related to each other in terms of location and time. 23Most earthquake clusters consist of small tremors that cause little to no dekameterage, but there i s a theory that earthquakes can recur in a regular pattern. 24 Aftershocks Main articleAftershock An aftershock is an earthquake that occurs after a front earthquake, the mainshock. An aftershock is in the same region of the main shock but endlessly of a smaller magnitude.If an aftershock is larger than the main shock, the aftershock is redesignated as the main shock and the original main shock is redesignated as aforeshock. Aftershocks are make as the crust around the displacedfault planeadjusts to the effects of the main shock. 23 Earthquake swarms Main articleEarthquake swarm Earthquake swarms are sequences of earthquakes striking in a specific area within a short period of time. They are several(predicate) from earthquakes followed by a serial ofaftershocksby the fact that no single earthquake in the sequence is obviously the main shock, therefore none have remarkable high magnitudes than the other.An example of an earthquake swarm is the 2004 activity atYellowstone Natio nal Park. 25 Earthquake storms Main articleEarthquake storm Sometimes a series of earthquakes occur in a sort ofearthquake storm, where the earthquakes strike a fault in clusters, each triggered by the frisson or stress redistribution of the precedent earthquakes. Similar toaftershocksbut on adjacent segments of fault, these storms occur over the course of years, and with some of the later earthquakes as damaging as the early ones.Such a pattern was observed in the sequence of about a xii earthquakes that struck theNorth Anatolian Faultin Turkey in the twentieth century and has been inferred for older anomalous clusters of large earthquakes in the Middle East. 2627 - surface and frequency of occurrence It is estimated that around 500,000 earthquakes occur each year, detectable with received instrumentation. About 100,000 of these can be felt. 2829Minor earthquakes occur nearly eer around the world in places likeCaliforniaandAlaskain the U. S. , as well as nMexico,Guatemala,Chi le,Peru,Indonesia,Iran,Pakistan, theAzoresinPortugal,Turkey,New Zealand,Greece,Italy, andJapan, but earthquakes can occur almost anywhere, includingNew York City,London, andAustralia. 30Larger earthquakes occur less frequently, the kin beingexponential for example, roughly ten times as many earthquakes larger than magnitude 4 occur in a particular time period than earthquakes larger than magnitude 5. In the (low seismicity) United Kingdom, for example, it has been mensurable that the average recurrences are an earthquake of 3. 4. 6 every year, an earthquake of 4. 75. 5 every 10years, and an earthquake of 5. 6 or larger every 100years. 31This is an example of theGutenberg-Richter law. TheMessina earthquakeand tsunami took as many as 200,000 lives on December 28, 1908 inSicilyandCalabria. 32 The number of seismic stations has change magnitude from about 350 in 1931 to many thousands today. As a result, many more earthquakes are account than in the past, but this is because of the v ast remedyment in instrumentation, rather than an increase in the number of earthquakes.TheUnited States Geological look intoestimates that, since 1900, there have been an average of 18 major earthquakes (magnitude 7. 07. 9) and one great earthquake (magnitude 8. 0 or greater) per year, and that this average has been relatively stable. 33In recent years, the number of major earthquakes per year has decreased, though this is probably a statistical fluctuation rather than a systematic trend. citation neededMore particular statistics on the size and frequency of earthquakes is available from theUnited States Geological come(USGS). 34A recent increase in the number of major earthquakes has been noted, which could be explained by a cyclical pattern of periods of intense tectonic activity, interspersed with longer periods of low-intensity. However, accurate recordings of earthquakes only began in the early 1900s, so it is too early to categorically state that this is the case. 35 Most of the worlds earthquakes (90%, and 81% of the largest) take place in the 40,000km long, horseshoe-shaped zone called the circum-Pacific seismic belt, known as thePacific camp of Fire, which for the most part bounds thePacific Plate. 3637Massive earthquakes tend to occur along other plate boundaries, too, such as along theHimalayan Mountains. 38 With the rapid growth ofmega-citiessuch asMexico City,TokyoandTehran, in areas of highseismic risk, some seismologists are warning that a single quake may claim the lives of up to 3 cardinal wad. 39 - Induced seismicity Main articleInduced seismicity While most earthquakes are caused by movement of the Earthstectonic plates, human activity can also produce earthquakes.Four main activities contribute to this phenomenon storing large amounts of pee behind adam(and by chance building an extremely heavybuilding), drilling and injecting liquid intowells, and by burn miningandoil drilling. 40Perhaps the best known example is the2008 Sichuan e arthquakein ChinasSichuan Provincein May this tremor resulted in 69,227 fatalities and is thenineteenth deadliest earthquake of all time. TheZipingpu Damis believed to have fluctuated the pressure of the fault 1,650 feet (503m) away this pressure probably increased the power of the earthquake and accelerated the rate of movement for the fault. 41The greatest earthquake in Australias history is also claimed to be induced by humanity, through coal mining. The city of Newcastlewas built over a large sector of coal mining areas. The earthquake has been inform to be spawned from a fault that reactivated due to the millions of tonnes of rock removed in the mining process. 42 - Measuring and locating earthquakes Main articleSeismology Earthquakes can be put down by seismometers up to great distances, becauseseismic wavestravel through the wholeEarths interior.The absolute magnitude of a quake is conventionally reported by numbers on theMoment magnitude scale(formerly Richter scale, magni tude 7 causing serious damage over large areas), whereas the felt magnitude is reported using the modifiedMercalli intensity scale(intensity IIXII). every tremor produces different types of seismic waves, which travel through rock with different velocities * LongitudinalP-waves(shock- or pressure waves) * TransverseS-waves(both body waves) * Surface waves (Rayleighand bopwaves) Propagation velocityof the seismic waves ranges from approx. km/s up to 13km/s, depending on thedensityandelasticityof the medium. In the Earths interior the shock- or P waves travel much faster than the S waves (approx. relation 1. 7 1). The differences intravel timefrom theepicentreto the observation post are a measure of the distance and can be used to image both sources of quakes and structures within the Earth. Also the depth of thehypocentercan be computed roughly. In warm rock P-waves travel at about 6 to 7km per second the velocity increases within the deep mantle to 13km/s.The velocity of S-waves r anges from 23km/s in s drop sediments and 45km/s in the Earths crust up to 7km/s in the deep mantle. As a consequence, the first waves of a distant earthquake arrive at an observatory via the Earths mantle. Rule of thumb On the average, the kilometer distance to the earthquake is the number of seconds between the P and S wavetimes 8. 43Slight deviations are caused by inhomogeneities of subsurface structure. By such analyses of seismograms the Earths core was located in 1913 byBeno Gutenberg.Earthquakes are not only categorized by their magnitude but also by the place where they occur. The world is divided into 754Flinn-Engdahl regions(F-E regions), which are based on political and geographical boundaries as well as seismic activity. More active zones are divided into smaller F-E regions whereas less active zones belong to larger F-E regions. - Effects of earthquakes 1755 copper engraving enactmentLisbonin ruins and in flames after the1755 Lisbon earthquake, which killed an estimat ed 60,000 people. Atsunamioverwhelms the ships in the harbor.The effects of earthquakes include, but are not limited to, the following Shaking and ground rupture Damaged buildings inPort-au-Prince,Haiti, January 2010. Shaking and ground rupture are the main effects created by earthquakes, principally resulting in more or less foul damage to buildings and other rigid structures. The severity of the local effects depends on the complex combination of the earthquakemagnitude, the distance from theepicenter, and the local geological and geomorphological conditions, which may amplify or reducewave propagation. 44The ground-shaking is heedful byground acceleration.Specific local geological, geomorphological, and geostructural features can induce high levels of shaking on the ground surface even from low-intensity earthquakes. This effect is called site or local amplification. It is principally due to the transfer of theseismicmotion from unspoken deep dishonors to soft superficial so ils and to effects of seismic energy focus owing to typical geometrical setting of the deposits. Ground rupture is a visible breaking and displacement of the Earths surface along the trace of the fault, which may be of the order of several metres in the case of major earthquakes.Ground rupture is a major risk for large design structures such asdams, bridges andnuclear power stationsand requires careful mapping of existing faults to identify any which are likely to break the ground surface within the life of the structure. 45 Landslides and avalanches Main articleLandslide Earthquakes, along with severe storms, volcanic activity, coastal wave attack, and wildfires, can produce slope mental unsoundness leading to landslides, a major geological hazard. Landslide danger may persist while emergency personnel are attempting rescue. 46 FiresFires of the1906 San Francisco earthquake Earthquakes can causefiresby damagingelectrical poweror suck lines. In the event of water mains rupturin g and a loss of pressure, it may also become difficult to stop the spread of a fire erstwhile it has started. For example, more deaths in the1906 San Francisco earthquakewere caused by fire than by the earthquake itself. 47 Soil liquefaction Main articleSoil liquefaction Soil liquefaction occurs when, because of the shaking, water-saturatedgranular satisfying (such as sand) temporarily loses its strength and transforms from asolidto aliquid.Soil liquefaction may cause rigid structures, like buildings and bridges, to tilt or sink into the liquefy deposits. This can be a devastating effect of earthquakes. For example, in the1964 Alaska earthquake, soil liquefaction caused many buildings to sink into the ground, eventually collapsing upon themselves. 48 Tsunami The tsunami of the2004 Indian Ocean earthquake A large ferry boat rests inland amidst destroyed houses after a 9. 0earthquakeand subsequent tsunami struck Japan in March 2011. Main articleTsunami Tsunamis are long-wavelength, long-period sea waves produced by the sudden or needlelike movement of large volumes of water.In the open ocean the distance between wave crests can surpass 100 kilometers (62mi), and the wave periods can vary from phoebe bird minutes to one hour. Such tsunamis travel 600-800kilometers per hour (373497 miles per hour), depending on water depth. Large waves produced by an earthquake or a submarine landslide can overrun nearby coastal areas in a affaire of minutes. Tsunamis can also travel thousands of kilometers across open ocean and exercise remnant on far shores hours after the earthquake that generated them. 49 Ordinarily, subduction earthquakes under magnitude 7. on the Richter scale do not cause tsunamis, although some instances of this have been recorded. Most destructive tsunamis are caused by earthquakes of magnitude 7. 5 or more. 49 Floods Main articleFlood A flood is an overflow of any amount of water that reaches land. 50Floods occur usually when the volume of water w ithin a body of water, such as a river or lake, exceeds the heart and soul capacity of the formation, and as a result some of the water flows or sits outside of the normal perimeter of the body. However, floods may be secondary effects of earthquakes, if dams are damaged.Earthquakes may cause landslips to dam rivers, which collapse and cause floods. 51 The terrain on a lower floor theSarez LakeinTajikistanis in danger of catastrophic flood if thelandslide damformed by the earthquake, known as theUsoi Dam, were to fail during a emerging earthquake. Impact projections suggest the flood could affect roughly 5million people. 52 Human impacts An earthquake may cause injury and loss of life, road and bridge damage, generalproperty damage(which may or may not be covered byearthquake insurance), and collapse or destabilization (potentially leading to future collapse) of buildings.The aftermath may bringdisease, lack of basic necessities, and higher insurance premiums. - Major earthquakes Earthquakes of magnitude 8. 0 and greater since 1900. The apparent 3D volumes of the bubbles are linearly proportional to their respective fatalities. 53 Main articleList of earthquakes One of the most devastating earthquakes in recorded history occurred on 23 January 1556 in theShaanxiprovince, China, killing more than 830,000 people (see1556 Shaanxi earthquake). 54Most of the population in the area at the time lived inyaodongs, artificial caves inloesscliffs, many of which collapsed during the catastrophe with great loss of life. The1976 Tangshan earthquake, with a death toll estimated to be between 240,000 to 655,000, is believed to be the largest earthquake of the twentieth century by death toll. 55 The1960 Chilean Earthquakeis the largest earthquake that has been calculated on a seismograph, reaching 9. 5 magnitude on 22 May 1960. 2829Its epicenter was near Canete, Chile.The energy released was approximately twice that of the adjoining most powerful earthquake, theGood Friday Earthquake, which was centered inPrince William Sound, Alaska. 5657The ten largest recorded earthquakes have all beenmegathrust earthquakes however, of these ten, only the2004 Indian Ocean earthquakeis at the same time one of the deadliest earthquakes in history. Earthquakes that caused the greatest loss of life, while powerful, were deadly because of their proximity to either heavily populated areas or the ocean, where earthquakes often createtsunamisthat can devastate communities thousands of kilometers away.Regions most at risk for great loss of life include those where earthquakes are relatively rare but powerful, and poor regions with lax, unenforced, or nonexistent seismic building codes. - Prediction Main articleEarthquake prediction Many methods have been developed for predicting the time and place in which earthquakes will occur. Despite considerable research efforts byseismologists, scientifically duplicable predictions cannot yet be made to a specific day or month. 58 However, for well-understood faults the probability that a segment may rupture during the next a couple of(prenominal) decades can be estimated. 59 Earthquake warning systemshave been developed that can provide regional notification of an earthquake in progress, but in the lead the ground surface has begun to move, potentially allowing people within the systems range to essay shelter before the earthquakes impact is felt. - Preparedness The objective ofearthquake engineeringis to foresee the impact of earthquakes on buildings and other structures and to design such structures to minimise the risk of damage.Existing structures can be modified byseismic retrofittingto improve their resistance to earthquakes. Earthquake insurancecan provide building owners with pecuniary protection against losses resulting from earthquakes. Emergency managementstrategies can be apply by a government or organization to mitigate risks and form for consequences. - Historical views An image from a 1 557 book From the lifetime of the Grecian philosopherAnaxagorasin the 5th century BCE to the 14th century CE, earthquakes were usually attributed to air (vapors) in the cavities of the Earth. 60Thalesof Miletus, who lived from 625547 (BCE) was the only documented person who believed that earthquakes were caused by tension between the earth and water. 60Other theories existed, including the Greek philosopher Anaxamines (585526 BCE) beliefs that short incline episodes of dryness and wetness caused seismic activity. The Greek philosopher Democritus (460371 BCE) blamed water in general for earthquakes. 60Pliny the Eldercalled earthquakes underground thunderstorms. 60 - Earthquakes in culture Mythology and religionInNorse mythology, earthquakes were explained as the violent struggling of the godLoki. When Loki,godof mischief and strife, murderedBaldr, god of beauty and light, he was punished by being bound in a cave with a toxic serpent placed above his head dripping venom. Lokis wife Sigynstood by him with a bowl to catch the envenom, but whenever she had to empty the bowl the poison dripped on Lokis face, forcing him to jerk his head away and thrash against his bonds, which caused the earth to tremble. 61 InGreek mythology,Poseidonwas the cause and god of earthquakes.When he was in a toughened mood, he struck the ground with atrident, causing earthquakes and other calamities. He also used earthquakes to punish and inflict fear upon people as revenge. 62 InJapanese mythology,Namazu(? ) is a giantcatfishwho causes earthquakes. Namazu lives in the fumble beneath the earth, and is take fored by the godKashimawho restrains the fish with a stone. When Kashima lets his guard fall, Namazu thrashes about, causing violent earthquakes. Popular culture In modern ordinary culture, the portrayal of earthquakes is shaped by the memory of great cities laid waste, such asKobe in 1995orSan Francisco in 1906. 63Fictional earthquakes tend to strike suddenly and without warning . 63For this reason, stories about earthquakes generally begin with the disaster and focus on its immediate aftermath, as inShort Walk to Daylight(1972),The chevvy Edge(1968) orAftershock Earthquake in New York(1998). 63A notable example is Heinrich von Kleists classic novella,The Earthquake in Chile, which describes the destruction of Santiago in 1647. Haruki Murakamis short fiction collectionafter the quakedepicts the consequences of the Kobe earthquake of 1995.The most popular single earthquake in fiction is the hypothetical Big One expected ofCaliforniasSan Andreas Faultsomeday, as depicted in the novelsRichter 10(1996) andGoodbye California(1977) among other works. 63Jacob M. Appels widely anthologized short story,A comparative degree Seismology, features a con artist who convinces an elderly woman that an apocalyptic earthquake is imminent. 64InPleasure Boating in Lituya Bay, one of the stories inJim Shepards same Youd Understand, Anyway, the Big One leads to an even more dev astating tsunami.In the film2012(2009), solar flares (geologically implausibly) affecting the Earths core caused massive destabilization of the Earths crust layers. This created destruction planet-wide with earthquakes and tsunamis, foreseen by theMayanculture and myth surrounding the last year noted in theMesoamerican calendar2012. Contemporary depictions of earthquakes in film are varying in the manner in which they reflect human psychological reactions to the actual trauma that can be caused to directly afflicted families and their loved ones. 65 hazard mental health response research emphasizes the need to be aware(predicate) of the different roles of loss of family and key community members, loss of home and old(prenominal) surroundings, loss of essential supplies and services to maintain survival. 6667Particularly for children, the clear handiness of caregiving adults who are able to protect, nourish, and clothe them in the aftermath of the earthquake, and to help them ma ke sense of what has befallen them has been shown even more important to their emotional and physical health than the simple giving of provisions. 68As was observed after other disasters involving destruction and loss of life and their media depictions, such as those of the 2001 World Trade centre Attacks or Hurricane Katrinaand has been recently observed in the2010 Haiti earthquake, it is also important not to pathologize the reactions to loss and displacement or disruption of governmental administration and services, but rather to validate these reactions, to support constructive problem-solving and reflection as to how one might improve the conditions of those affected. 69