I am aware that this course takes many of you out of your comfort zone, and that many of the things I ask you to learn may not, at first, seem important. My guideline is: what do I want you to retain in your subconscious about earthquakes after you leave this class and OSU. It is not a memory exercise. I am more interested in understanding concepts than I am in memorizing trivia. I hope that you agree that your study for the two exams will not be about trivia but about important things to know about earthquakes.
I have given you a lot of names of scientists to acknowledge their contribution to earthquake understanding, but unless I indicate otherwise in th study guide, I am not asking you to remember them.
The class is so large that I am required as a practical matter to use machine graded tests, involving multiple choice, TF, matching, etc. This ends up easier on you since I can ask about a much wider variety of topics. It is harder on me because I must offer you questions that are not ambiguous, and that takes a lot of time and thought.
My study suggestion is to read the text and this guide and formulate a series of all the questions I might ask, and learn the answers to them. In that way, you will all make As!
The two exams (Feb. 23 and Mar. 16) each count a third, and the term paper counts the other third. The term paper allows you to project your originality and your own efforts into the grading system. If you are conscientious in researching your topic and writing it up in 5 pages (no more), then you should do very well on the report. The report proposal is due at the midterm Feb. 23. It is checked in but not graded; it simply allows me to give you some input on your project and keep you from heading up a blind alley. Turning in your report early ensures that I will be able to devote more time to it, which is to your advantage.
The midterm examines through Feb. 16 (Chapter 9). The final is comprehensive.
Remember, the Midterm is Feb. 23, NOT Feb. 16, a misprint.
The chapters below refer to the text, Living with Earthquakes in the Pacific Northwest. I also refer to Putting Down Roots in Earthquake Country as PDR. If something is discussed only in class, I refer to it as video.
Iıd like you to know the general short history of recognition of earthquake hazards: what was the principal evidence, and when was it recognized? What is a paradigm change? The only name you should remember is Brian Atwater and what he did.
You need to get an idea of how much time is involved in Earth history. Compare this with the length of the historical record; why so short in Pacific NW relative to other parts of the Pacific. Rates of plate tectonics: about same as rate fingernails grow. Rate of subduction of CSZ, slip on San Andreas fault.
Be able to work the problem of recurrence interval based on convergence rate at CSZ, slip per earthquake of 65 feet, and last event 1700 A.D. What are the thicknesses of masses of rock involved.
Telling geologic time. Know ages of Holocene and Pleistocene. Know Pliocene, Tertiary, Quaternary. Age of the earth. Age of great eruption of Mt. Mazama (Crater Lake). How far did ice extend 20,000 yrs ago, and why did this cause sea level to be 400 feet lower than today? When did ice ages start? (from Table 1-1). When did Lewis and Clark start the historical period? I wonıt ask about the other dates on the table; they are for illustrative purposes only.
How does radiocarbon dating work? What are its limitations.
Why does the crust get stronger with depth up to a certain temperature, where it abruptly becomes weaker? What is the brittle-ductile transition? Where is the crust strongest? What is meant by brittle and ductile? Where do earthquakes in the crust tend to nucleate, and why? At what temperature is the brittle-ductile transition found in the crust, and at what temperature in the mantle?
Differences between continents and ocean basins, in terms of rocks of continents (granite), of ocean basins (basalt); in terms of levels above or below sea level. Ice cube analogy, or cream rising to top explaining the origin of continents. What material makes up the mantle, and what is the Moho? Granite, basalt, peridotite, serpentine. Which does not occur at the surface naturally? Figs. 2-1 and 2-2 summarize the above, illustrate the Moho, and show the variation in rock strength with increasing depth, with the effects of the Moho. Difference in crust vs mantle as opposed to lithosphere vs asthenosphere. What are the depths of these boundaries? How can the plates move over the asthenosphere, even though the asthenosphere is a solid?
Understand spreading centers, subduction zones, and transform faults (see video for transform faults, along with Chapter 6). Examples of each in the Northwest. Why is a spreading center at a ridge on the seafloor (see also video)? On Fig. 2-5, locate the CSZ, Juan de Fuca and Gorda ridges, Blanco transform fault, Pacific, Gorda, Juan de Fuca, and North America plates. (I wonıt ask about the small plates and boundaries off Vancouver I.)
Why can we tell so accurately what the plate motions are? What are the subduction rates at the CSZ and the spreading rate at the Juan de Fuca Ridge.
What is elasticity; understand examples. Under elastic strain, strain energy is stored in the object until its strength is exceeded, whereupon it breaks. Understand difference between elastic, brittle fracture,and ductile behavior.
Example of San Andreas fault storing elastic strain before 1906 earthquake, leading Reid to elastic rebound theory. Based on accurate surveying of benchmarks before and after an earthquake.
Understand hanging wall, footwall, normal fault, reverse fault, blind fault, blind thrust, left-lateral and right-lateral strike-slip faults. (Also see PDR, p. 20-21.) If I gave you examples like Fig. 3-6 photo or sketches in Fig. 3-10, can you name the type of fault? What are anticlines and synclines? How are folds related to blind faults? Why does an earthquake rupture an existing fault rather than unfaulted crust?
3 kinds of earthquake waves, P, S, and surface. Which are fastest? How can the different speeds of P and S waves be used to determine distance to earthquake?
Epicenter, focus, focal depth.
Waves have amplitude, wave length, period, frequency. What do each of these terms mean? (Fig. 3-12 and text)
Example of SillyPutty to show why the mantle can behave elastically in transmitting seismic waves, but yet flow slowly in plate tectonics.
Richter magnitude, or ML. What is actually measured? Waves with frequencies of 5 times per second. Not detected at great distances from the earthquake.
Ms measures long-period waves, take 20 seconds to pass a point, like ocean waves. Can be measured around the world. Boom box analogy to understand why.
None of these measure very large earthquakes, although they are OK for magnitudes less than 7. For really big ones, we use moment magnitude, Mw. This considers the area of the rupture surface of a fault times the amount of slip.
Intensity, Roman numeral scale. Have a general idea of this scale. What influences intensity: distance from epicenter, also nature of ground materials where intensity measured. Compare intensity maps on Figs. 3-15 and 3-16. At highest intensities, everything is destroyed, but at intermediate intensities of VI-VIII, well built structures do well, whereas poorly constructed buildings are likely to fail. Highest intensity measured historically in NW is VIII.
Acceleration is covered in Chapter 8.
Springs on the continental slope producing hydrogen sulfide and methane, coming up along active faults above the Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ). Left-lateral strike-slip faults on the Juan de Fuca plate discovered with side-scan sonar ("pictures" based on reflected sound waves rather than reflected light; Fig. 4-2).
Deformation of the lowest part of the North American continent by the CSZ, forming anticlines, synclines, and thrust faults (Fig. 4-3). CSZ fault directly imaged on seismic reflection profiles (Fig. 4-4).
The offshore consists of the continental shelf, which was dry land during the Ice Age, the continental slope, and the plate boundary at the CSZ. The lower part of the continental slope called the accretionary wedge or accretionary prism - analogy with snow on a snowplow blade. Off the Columbia, the slope cut by huge canyons cut by turbidity currents (what are they? Compare with snow avalanches). Cores in submarine canyons show evidence for turbidity currents since the eruption of Mt. Mazama every 500 years, same as recurrence interval for CSZ earthquakes, which may have triggered them.
Atwater's evidence in marshes: roots of coastal forests and marsh grasses suddenly downdropped and covered by gray clay with marine fossils, evidence for sudden subsidence. Just like subsidence observed in M>9 earthquakes in Alaska in 1964 and Chile in 1960. In some cases, the roots or marsh grass are directly covered by sand deposited by a tsunami. No other reasonable explanation other than great earthquake. (Fig. 4-6)
Similar evidence found from Vancouver Island south to northern California - Humboldt Bay, the entire CSZ. In all these areas the last event was radiocarbon dated at about 300 years ago.
Some of the 300-year soils have burial pits, indicating Native Americans were there before the last great earthquake.
Interval between successive soils may be as short as 150 years or as long as 1000 years, but on average, 500 years (video).
The CSZ has almost no earthquakes on it, as recorded by seismographs. Nearly all earthquakes are in crust, or in underlying Juan de Fuca plate. Earlier thought this meant subduction took place smoothly. Now thought the CSZ is completely locked, building up strain for another earthquake.
Trees in surf zone on Oregon coast, meaning that the surf zone uplifted enough to develop a forest, then subsided again into surf. The uplift may have been between earthquakes, and the subsidence accompanied an earthquake, just as it did in Atwater's marshes (video).
Re-survey of benchmarks shows that the crust is being deformed, just as Reid found for the San Andreas fault before the 1906 earthquake. Releveling of highways showed that the Coast Range is tilting eastward. Accumulating elastic strain before an earthquake.
The scientific controversy between M8 and M9. Why important? A M 9 would shake for several minutes; M 8 for a minute. Larger tsunami. M 9 affects such a large area that insurance companies may go bankrupt; government functions become erratic, disaster response comes from far away. Argument focuses on the last event 300 years ago.
Argument for M 8 (decade of terror): Southern Oregon and SW Washington uplifting rapidly; central Oregon not uplifting at all and may not be accumulating elastic strain. Rapid uplift may mean asperities on the CSZ (what are they?). How could fault rupture one asperity and across a zone of no strain accumulation and rupture another asperity? Continental slope is strongly deformed internally, characteristic of other subduction zones around the world with M 8.
Argument for M 9 (instant of catastrophe): All radiocarbon dates for youngest buried soil are around 300 years. (But radiocarbon dating only gets you within a couple of decades).
The Canadians argue that the releveling data from highways supports a M 9; the same data are interpreted by Americans as indicating a M 8.
Tree ring dating in SW Washington and N Oregon show trees all died between the 1699 and 1700 AD growing season. (If this were also true of S. Oregon and N. Calif., this would greatly strengthen the M 9 hypothesis, but this hasn't been tested yet.)
A tsunami in Japan on Jan. 27-28, 1700 could have been generated by a CSZ earthquake at 9 pm, Jan. 26, 1700 (remember this date). No earthquakes in Japan or on other populated subduction zones reported at this time. The size of the tsunami fits a M 9; a M 8 would probably not have been recorded. Also, evidence for only one tsunami, not several over a period of years. Consistent with tree ring evidence. (But the Japanese tsunami could have come from SW Pacific subduction zones, which also had no record keeping).
Native American oral traditions include stories of earthquake and tsunami, occurring on a winter night.
Be able to discuss the pros and cons of this controversy.
The Seattle earthquake 1000 years ago. based on: (1) trees that slid into Lake Washington on giant landslides; tree ring dating showed all the same age. (2) cores show a turbidite from strong ground shaking about 1000 years ago. (3) A trench on Puget Sound showed a driftwood log the same tree ring age as the trees from Lake Washington, associated with a tsunami deposit and with subsidence. (4) Rockslides damming lakes in Olympic Mountains were formed about 1000 years ago. (5) Uplifted terraces to the south, subsided marshes to north outline an east-west fault through downtown Seattle, south side up. Earthquake would have been about M 7.
Willamette Valley has many faults found by using seismic lines and wildcat well logs acquired in the search for oil and gas. None of these faults shows evidence of cutting Holocene deposits, so we can't say they are active. However, the Mount Angel right-lateral strike-slip fault, found by using the oil company data, ruptured in March 1993 to cause the Spring Break Quake of M 5.6. Not so big, but damage more than $28 million. Southwest British Columbia (I won't test on this, except to ask that you know that the largest historical crustal earthquake struck Vancouver Island in 1946, M 7.3)
Every few decades there is an earthquake in the Portland-Willamette Valley of M 5 to 5.6. But the historical record is too short to say that no larger earthquakes might occur. We imagine that earthquakes as large as the Seattle earthquake of M 7 or the Vancouver Island earthquake of M 7.3 are possible; anyway we should plan for this size.
The September, 1993 M 6 Klamath Falls earthquake; normal fault in a graben, part of Basin and Range Province. Fault on W side of graben ruptured; if it had been on E side, damage much worse since fault is within the city. Many active faults east of KF, with evidence for Holocene activity, and recurrence intervals of 5000-15,000 years (p. 36-37; Weldon video). Evidence is based on paleoseismology; what is it? Central Nevada had a series of 20th Century earthquakes with M>7, recurrence intervals same as faults in E Oregon. This is an earthquake cluster. Steens Mtn. has an active fault at its base.
Pasco Basin important to us because of potential for nuclear contamination at Hanford. Danger is reverse faults beneath folds (blind thrusts). Evidence for Holocene displacement; not considered in developing Hanford. Examples of critical facilities (nuclear plants and Columbia River dams). Why must we take such extreme precautions for critical facilities? Examples of older geological catastrophes: eruption of Columbia River Basalt 16 million years ago, catastrophic floods draining a glacial lake at the end of the Pleistocene. Both of these also affected the Willamette Valley. Not geological hazards today, but examples of what can happen.
Pacific Coast: Most hazardous because (1) closest to CSZ focus, (2) danger of tsunamis, and (3) active faults with higher slip rates than to east. Shoreline angle as indicator of former sea level.(5-21). Sea level change due to formation and melting of ice caps; Formerly higher than today 125,000 years ago, but 20,000 years ago, 400 feet lower, preserving shorelines on the continental shelf (Fig. 5-25). Also changes due to tectonic deformation (Fig. 5-22 to 5-24). South Slough at Coos Bay a syncline; faults to the west. Faults cut the 70,000 year terrace at Newport and Waldport, and the downthrown side of faults may control where subsided coseismic marshes are preserved - the Yaquina Bay fault may be active and extend beneath the bridge at Newport (video). River crossing Stonewall Bank now tilted eastward, evidence of folding of Stonewall anticline, could produce a M 6.7 earthquake. (I wonıt ask about northern California except note that wave-cut platform was uplifted by the April 1992 Petrolia earthquake, Fig. 5-27).
Juan de Fuca plate formerly part of a much larger plate, the Farallon plate, being subducted under N. America in last 30 million years. Earthquakes on spreading centers like Juan de Fuca Ridge are small, generally less than M5, and pose no danger to society. They accompany formation of new ocean crust. Recent news about Axial Volcano on Juan de Fuca Ridge (video) part of sea floor spreading process. Small plates north and south of Juan de Fuca plate (Explorer, Gorda) are very young and weak, and they have a lot of seismicity as they are torn apart. Some of these earthquakes are as large as M 7.2, causing damage in N. California. Blanco Transform Fault has high seismicity; analogous to San Andreas Transform Fault, but not likely to have such large earthquakes (why?) I wonıt ask about Sovanco or Nootka transform faults.
Earthquakes beneath Puget Sound. Understand east convexity and analog to tablecloth on corner of table (Fig. 6-4).
Explains why no slab earthquakes in most of Oregon. But there are slab earthquakes along coastal Vancouver Island.
Puget Sound earthquakes of M 7.1 in 1949 and M 6.5 in 1965 part of an earthquake cluster (earlier ones in 1939 and 1846).
Characteristics: 30-35 miles depth, below crust, meaning that mantle rock was involved (peridotite). Means that less damage than a crustal earthquake of same M, which had less distance to travel. Highest intensity VIII for 1949 event; VII for others, but the extent of the VIII intensity zone was very broad compared to a crustal earthquake. Also: almost no aftershocks. We think that M 7.1 is about as large as they get, but weıre not sure.
Eben Browning, 1990 New Madrid forecast; know the general story, including how the media and public got hooked in. Same for the San Fernando forecast (a scientist was legitimately trying to test a hypothesis) and Brady forecast for 1981 in Peru. Difference between prediction and forecast. Instant notoriety, social damage for people alarmed needlessly.
Parkfield forecast for San Andreas fault, know the general story about repeated earthquakes but donıt remember all the dates. Seismic gap theory. Japanese Tokai Gap seismic prediction experiment.
For China, know the general story about the successful Haicheng prediction, especially the part about foreshocks. They have forecast other earthquakes, all with foreshocks. The Greek forecast also was preceded by foreshocks, although a Greek physicist claims he can measure electrical signals in the earth; not corroborated.
My interest here is that you use these stories to give yourself perspective on manıs efforts to predict one of natureıs worst disasters - successful only under very specific circumstances, especially foreshocks.
Deterministic forecasting, use CSZ as example, M 8 vs M 9 (Fig. 7-1), but also the maximum earthquake for Portland-Willamette Valley.
Probabilistic forecasting: what is it? Gutenberg-Richter relationship (7-2) what is it? What are its weaknesses? (canıt extrapolate to M 9 or 10, assumes that occurrence of large earthquakes is related to occurrence of small ones - fails for CSZ which has none; characteristic earthquake from paleoseismology is larger than G-R predicts. What is a characteristic earthquake?
Uncertainty principle. Understand Fig. 7-5, showing a probabilistic forecast; time interval of interest - why selected? Consider probabilistic forecast for the CSZ, when is time 0, when is now and next 30 years. What would curve be like if we knew the exact year the next earthquake would occur? What would be the curve for probability of winning the jackpot on a slot machine?
Maps, p. 8-9 of PDR and Fig. 7-6 of text. In East Bay, chances are 2 out of 3 that a large earthquake will strike there in next 30 years! What is the map in PDR trying to tell us?
Amplification of seismic waves by soft sediments (bowl of jello problem). Measured by increase in wave amplitude, or by speed (velocity) of shaking (Fig. 8-1) or by acceleration compared to gravity. What is 1 g acceleration? What would happen to you with 1 g vertical acceleration? Note Fig. 8-2 showing that acceleration depends on the period of the seismic wave. Period and frequency. Path effects: if an earthquake wave passes through a basin with thick sediments, the shaking will be stronger and last longer than on bedrock.
Liquefaction, lateral spreads, sand dikes and sand boils. What effects from the 1949 earthquake (what happened rather than place names). Where found in Northwest from the 1700 AD earthquake?
Landslides generated by earthquakes: a major problem in number and in size of some of the largest ones. Bonneville landslide may be earthquake generated, but we're not sure. Landslides offshore may produce tsunamis.
Earthquake hazard maps of metropolitan areas: p. 68, video. Three hazards: ground shaking, liquefaction, landslides, combined on a map showing degree of hazard. Can be used in disaster planning for lifeline services, and in correlating high hazard sites with very dangerous buildings on those sites. General planning, not site specific. Maps exist for Portland and Salem.
My account of the 1964 tsunami from the Alaska earthquake is useful for planning. Note length of time before it arrived, lack of official warning, how the tsunami targeted specific communities (why?). Understand the story in general without memorizing people and places, except for Seaside, Cannon Beach, and Crescent City, which got it bad and would get it bad in the future.
What is a tsunami? Not a tidal wave. Seismic sea wave not entirely correct, why? Tsunamis can be produced by giant submarine landslides, volcanic eruptions. Slow earthquakes could produce large tsunamis but not be of large magnitude. Long periods (how long?), wave extends from surface to deep ocean floor. Sudden movement of the sea floor, propelling water ahead of it. What is felt by a ship at sea? Need for understanding configuration of sea floor to learn which coastal communities will be worst hit.
NOAA lead agency for tsunami warnings and research. Warning centers in Alaska and Hawaii; which one is responsible for us? Difference between tsunami watch and tsunami warning. NOAA has buoys and pressure gauges on sea floor to monitor tsunamis at sea.
How much warning time for a distant tsunami (hours)? For a local CSZ tsunami? 15-20 minutes only. No time to make sure; leave for high ground now.
Tsunami hazard maps published for entire Oregon coast by DOGAMI. Tsunami warning signs now being erected along the coast.
Evidence for giant tsunamis after the 1700 AD earthquake: sand derived from the sea found above the buried forests and marshes (Fig. 9-5).
Hazard vs peril from insurance company viewpoint.
Insurance losses after 1906 San Francisco and 1994 Northridge earthquakes: insurance not cost based. What does that mean?
Insurance a product whose cost to company determined only after it is sold.
What is the Law of Large Numbers? Why doesnıt it work yet for earthquakes?
Rating and underwriting. Reserves, policyholder surplus, retained earnings, reinsurance. Whatıs the purpose of reinsurance?
What is an insurable risk? Direct vs indirect coverage? Principle of indemnity. High deductible for insurance.
Insurance capacity vs insurance surplus. Probable maximum loss (PML) exposure. What causes capacity to change?
Building codes favor life safety; insurance losses depend on property safety.
Should the government take over? It has for flood insurance. Understand the issues Congress is struggling with in deciding to become involved in earthquake insurance? An insurance company handout or a legitimate role for government in responding to a catastrophe too large for a company or even an industry?
Study the California example because it could be debated here. What were the effects of Northridge when so many companies lost a lot of money. What is the California Earthquake Authority? Note the effects on rates based on where you are relative to active faults, and on nature of construction of your home. In Oregon it is simply yes or no.
In New Zealand, the government simply took over and is accumulating funds for the next disaster - difference from the US experience. Could we do that here? Will it be successful in NZ?
What is the Institute of Building and Home Safety?
What are chances you will be home during the next earthquake? In bed?
Principle of inertia. What is an inertial force? Dead load vs live load. Vertical load vs horizontal load; examples of each. Static load vs. dynamic load.
Brittle vs ductile in referring to buildings; different from our use in referring to Earth's crust. Examples from text. What is a retrofit?
Reinforcing your foundation; terms include mudsill, cripple wall, sill bolt. (also PDR, p. 20). Have a general idea of what is involved in doing this; I won't ask you to memorize bolt sizes or spacing; you can look that up when you need it. When did the UBC require bracing of cripple walls?
What is a soft story, and how is dealt with in retrofits?
Need for flexible gas connections. How does gas shut off valve work? Need a wrench next to the meter. Pros and cons of automatic shutoff valves.
Strapping water heater, brace built-in appliances, fasteners for high cabinets, tie downs for TV sets and other heavy items. Check for heavy items that could fall on a sleeping person (ceiling fans, large cabinets and headboards). (PDR p. 14-15)
Brick chimneys, free-standing wood stoves, propane tanks. What is meant by connections for a house.
Problems with mobile homes and manufactured homes. Marriage line, no cripple wall required by most codes.
Building codes affect only new construction or major remodels.
Building codes try to save lives; insurance companies want to save the building.
What do these mean? Shear walls, diaphragm, moment-resistant frame. Principle of base isolation.
Why is a soft first story (give examples) such a problem? What is tuning fork problem - vibrational frequency of building similar to that of earthquake waves create resonance.
What agency in Oregon paid for the most complete appraisal of Oregon's earthquake potential. Why was this agency so concerned?
What are issues involved in deciding what to retrofit first? Critical facilities: what should be included?
In which country did the government get involved first? When did the U.S. get involved? The WWSSN and the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. The USGS the first agency to conduct systematic investigations of earthquakes, starting in 1899. Change in role from exploitation of mineral, fuel and ground water resources to protection against natural hazards, including earthquakes.
The following discusses the various Federal agencies that spend your money working on earthquakes. A bit of alphabet soup here, and I will limit myself in exams to the most important. But it is YOUR money!
NEHRP established in 1977; a large motivation was possible prediction and control. Filling of reservoir behind Oroville Dam, California, may have triggered the Oroville earthquake. Why was it unreasonable to try to trigger smaller earthquakes along the San Andreas fault by injecting water along the fault? Developed into an earthquake research program. By 1990, prediction and control considered unreasonable. What does mitigate mean?
What are the four NEHRP agencies? Which is the lead agency?
Problems with Congress: difference between legislation authorizing work and appropriating funds to do work.
Role of FEMA. What is Federal Response Plan? Mitigation programs to supply grants to states to do work themselves; Weatherford Hall project as example. HAZUS, a new program to estimate losses from a disaster; Portland a case study.
USGS coordinates much of the research, including seismic network at University of Washington, which includes Oregon. Much work in California for obvious reasons. Urban area studies led to focused study on Pacific Northwest. NEIC, furnishes worldwide earthquake data quickly.
National Science Foundation. Focus on earthquake engineering. Also funds parts of nationwide seismic net (IRIS) with station at OSU. UNAVCO funds research using satellite data. Some work in earthquake geology
NIST, the smallest of NEHRP agencies, engineering and building code development.
Non-NEHRP agencies: NOAA. Principal agency for tsunami research and mitigation. Hydrophone arrays set up to detect T-phase waves emitted by Soviet submarines; declassified to study earthquakes; NOAA office in Newport. Locations much more accurate, many more earthquakes detected. Accurate mapping of sea floor bathymetry, useful in studying Cascadia Subduction Zone; identifying coastal areas more at risk from tsunamis. Declassified off Oregon but still classified off Washington. Directs research using submarines and robot vehicles on ocean floor.
NASA also non-NEHRP. Using space satellites to focus on Earth. Geodynamics Program followed by Mission to Planet Earth. Global Positioning System (GPS) to study slow crustal deformation from satellites.
Other Federal agencies and their main contribution: DOE, earthquake hazards ofnuclear power plants, nuclear waste disposal sites; NRC, nuclear power plants including the first critical study of earthquake hazards in Pacific Northwest in 1970s; Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation, earthquake hazards of dams (all these are critical facilities).
No questions about Canada.
Problem about how government agencies can transmit their results to the public.
Mission oriented or strategic research rather than curiosity-driven research (terms coined in Congress).