• About
  • Contact
  • Testimonials
  • Newsletter
  • More
    • Demographics & Advertising Rates
    • Terms & Conditions
Saturday, February 4, 2023
No Result
View All Result
California Business Journal
  • Front Page
  • Business
  • Finance
  • People
  • Featured
  • Opinion
  • Technology
  • Law
  • News
  • Food
  • Art & Culture
  • Human Interest
  • Education
  • Insurance
  • Real Estate
  • Health & Fitness
California Business Journal
Earthquake Prediction is “Impossible”—Unless Politics Requires it

Photo Credits: Getty Images

Earthquake Prediction is “Impossible”—Unless Politics Requires it

by David Nabhan, Special to California Business Journal
A A
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Millions of cell phones and tens of thousands of hospitals, mass transit systems, airports, utility companies, and other vital infrastructure on the U.S. West Coast are connected to the recently inaugurated Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) system—receiving advance warnings of seismic waves rushing toward their location.

The “earthquake prediction is impossible” mantra is nonetheless unfazed by this fact or any other, having monopolized and hamstrung the science concerning seismic forecasting in California since long before Charles Richter’s day and still repeating what has become an absurd refrain now in the 21st century.

The old guard not only ignores EEW systems in the US, Mexico, Israel, Japan, Italy, Turkey, Romania, and elsewhere but turns a blind eye to thousands of world-class researchers at NASA, the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Bhabha Atomic Research Center in Mumbai, Italy’s Andrea Bina Seismic Observatory and hundreds of other premiere scientific institutions where advances in earthquake prediction are being made using dozens of space-based and ground-based techniques—from high-energy particle bursts in the upper atmosphere above seismically active areas to probe the dynamics of slow-slip quakes at incredible depths beneath the Cascadia fault in the US Pacific Northwest.

The only force in the last few decades which has accomplished the remarkable feat of eliciting the truth from policy-makers concerning such an overarching safety matter for some fifty million Americans in California, Oregon, and Washington are one even more potent and dangerous than the strongest earthquake: partisan politics.

In the state of New York, for example, politicians who dutifully toe the line against fracking have summoned the courage to suggest that predicting seismic activity is, in fact, possible—as long as the nation’s energy industry can be hamstrung by an attempt to link earthquakes with drilling for oil and gas. Indeed, one of the official reasons listed for the Empire State’s ban on fracking is that the practice can engender temblors.

No matter that not a single human being has ever died in an earthquake in the entire history of New York, few politicians, on either coast or anywhere else, shy away from attempting to terrorize constituencies to gain an advantage in policy disputes.

So earthquake prediction isn’t impossible—as long as it’s declared a reality in locales where there is zero chance of a shaker, with the bonus of giving the petroleum companies a black eye and causing energy scarcity and exploding prices for gasoline and natural gas.

Californians should be aware. However, that science has known for over a century that humankind’s great engineering feats—mining, dam construction, along with fracking—have caused uncountable earthquakes. There are a great many dams built in quake zones whose openings were punctuated with tremors.

Earthquake Prediction is “Impossible”—Unless Politics Requires it
Photo Credits: Getty Images

In 2008 some 80,000 Chinese were killed in a horrific earthquake that occurred on a fault line just 500 meters from the dam, only months after the massive work was completed.

Politicians three thousand miles away from the San Andreas have managed to summon the false courage to speak honestly about how, why, where, and when great earthquakes might be engendered. Californians, though, might wonder about their own double-talking elected officials who, on the one hand, rail about fracking while singing the praises of so-called “green” energy, which in fact, can be far more seismically dangerous than hydraulic fracturing.

California’s movers and shakers were blind, for example, to the potential catastrophe on the southern San Andreas when they approved and touted the geothermal plants in the Salton Sea Geothermal Field, an enterprise that has been deemed environmentally and politically correct. Some of the largest and hottest wells on Earth built astride one of the world’s great tectonic boundaries could have caused unease, especially when more than a few of the most respected seismologists have raised concerns.

ADVERTISEMENT

Dr. Christian Klose—a research scientist at Columbia University, Swiss Institute of Technology, German Research Center of Geosciences, etc.—has been advising for years now and broadcasting his counsel all over the world that the current geothermal energy operations at the Salton Sea “might be imprudent.”

Such an expert on man-made earthquakes may be right, yet in the real workaday world, where risks are an unavoidable part of everyone’s life, even Dr. Klose’s opinion may count for little. Civilization comes to a screeching halt without mines, dams, oil drilling, and other great pistons that power our society.

California’s citizenry knows that, even if its leaders feign ignorance.

David Nabhan writes science columns for Newsmax (Shaking Up Science) and The Times of Israel (Tectonic Shifts ).

Related Posts

OIP
California Wildfires burned millions of acres. How to build a disaster preparedness plan that saves lives.
444 feat
Op-Ed: The Economic Benefits of Earthquake-Resistant Buildings
water
Water and Energy

 

Tags: blindCaliforniaChineseEarthquake PredictionenergyinfrastructureInstituteIsraelnaturaloilpetroleumPoliticspowerpricesRussianSansciencesystems
ADVERTISEMENT
David Nabhan, Special to California Business Journal

David Nabhan, Special to California Business Journal

Related Posts

OIP
California Wildfires burned millions of acres. How to build a disaster preparedness plan that saves lives.
444 feat
Op-Ed: The Economic Benefits of Earthquake-Resistant Buildings
water
Water and Energy
advertisement
ADVERTISEMENT

CBJ Newsletter

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Instagram LinkedIn

Advertise With CBJ

Contact Rick@CalBizJournal.com

CBJ Rates and Demographics

Job Postings

CEO Wanted


Requirements: BS/BA + 2yrs of Business Managing Experience

Mail Resume: Grand Life, Inc. 14647 Northam St. La Mirada, CA 90638.

$114,754/year

ADVERTISEMENT
1REALTOUR-SAN DIEGO-WEB DESIGN
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn LinkedIn Instagram
C B J   LOGO  SVG-01
  • About
  • Contact California Business Journal
  • Testimonials
  • Demographics & Advertising Rates
  • Terms & Conditions

Categories

  • Art & Culture
  • Business
  • California Hotel Listings
  • Daily Updates
  • Editor's Choice
  • Education
  • Featured
  • Finance
  • Food & Dining
  • Health & Fitness
  • Human Interest
  • Insurance
  • Law
  • Lawyers
  • Marketing
  • Medical
  • News
  • Newsletter
  • Opinion
  • People
  • Popular
  • Real Estate
  • Social Media
  • Technology
  • Top 25 Wealth Management Companies in California
  • Uncategorized

CBJ Partner Firebrand Media

Laguna Beach Independent Newspaper
 Laguna Beach City Guide
 Newport Beach Independent Newspaper
Newport Beach Country Club Magazine
  Montage Magazine
 Omni Escapes Hotel Magazine
 Bespoke Concierge New York
 Evans Hotels
 Laguna Beach Magazine
 On The Menu Laguna Beach
 Newport Beach Magazine
Coastal Real Estate Guide (NB,LB, CDM)
Monarch Beach Resort Magazine
 Pacific Coast Magazine (SoCal)
Sea Island Life Magazine
Salamander Hotel & Resorts Magazine
 View our entire portfolio

 

Most Viewed

  • Gavel, scales of justice and law books

    Lawsuit Basics: How Much Does It Cost to Sue Someone?

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Investigation: Can TriumphFX Take Your Money?

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • The Impact of Covid: Racing to Buy Second Citizenships

    3 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • What to Do When an Online Casino Refuses to Pay Out Your Winnings

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Top 5 Flavors On Elf Bar BC5000 Review

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • NFL Paychecks: How Do NFL Players Get Paid?

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Five Reasons Why The Government Does Not Like Bitcoin

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • How to Start a Telecommunication Business: A Step-By-Step Guide

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Temu’s New Shipping Policy Is A Smashing Hit For Shoppers All Over the Country

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • 6 Types of Business Records and Receipts Every Small Business Should Keep

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Latest Articles

5 Sports Betting Apps For The Super Bowl

5 Sports Betting Apps For The Super Bowl

Free Spins: If You Love Online Slots, Check Out These Casinos

Free Spins: If You Love Online Slots, Check Out These Casinos

How to Optimize the Learning Process and Allocate More Time for Yourself

How to Optimize the Learning Process and Allocate More Time for Yourself

Should You Junk or Sell Your Unusable Car? 8 Considerations

Should You Junk or Sell Your Unusable Car? 8 Considerations

Q&A with Jennifer Woods, Vice President and Associate General Counsel of FrontDoor on Why Companies Should Release Sustainability Reports.

Q&A with Jennifer Woods, Vice President and Associate General Counsel of Frontdoor on Why Companies Should Release Sustainability Reports.

Best Practices for Establishing Secure Password Protocols

Best Practices for Establishing Secure Password Protocols

How to Up Your Marketing Game with Real Estate 3D Rendering

How to Up Your Marketing Game with Real Estate 3D Rendering

Tips For Designing A Vinyl Banner For Your Business

Tips For Designing A Vinyl Banner For Your Business

15 Useful Animation Makers for Novice Entrepreneurs (2023)

15 Useful Animation Makers for Novice Entrepreneurs For 2023

What is FinTech?

What is FinTech?

California Business Journal | California Business News, California News Media, California business articles | Orange County, Los Angeles, San Diego, Inland Empire, Northern California, San Francisco | Huntington Beach CA 92649 | (949) 648-3815
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED BY CALIFORNIA BUSINESS JOURNAL.
Site Design by 1REALTOUR

No Result
View All Result
  • Front Page
  • Business
  • Finance
  • People
  • Featured
  • Opinion
  • Technology
  • Law
  • News
  • Food
  • Art & Culture
  • Human Interest
  • Education
  • Insurance
  • Real Estate
  • Health & Fitness

California Business Journal | California Business News, California News Media, California business articles | Orange County, Los Angeles, San Diego, Inland Empire, Northern California, San Francisco | Huntington Beach CA 92649 | (949) 648-3815
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED BY CALIFORNIA BUSINESS JOURNAL.
Site Design by 1REALTOUR