An Introduction to Seismic
Eruption software and an
associated classroom activity
Michael Hubenthal, IRIS Educational Specialist
Additional
functionality
• Has numerous preset views,
– Investigate global and regional
geohazards
– Explore Plate Tectonics via crosssectional perspective views of
earthquake locations
•
Is also very customizable
– Make your own map
– Terrain files
– Event files
Activity: Interrogating the
Earthquake Catalog
Barker, J. (2005) Student-centered experiments
with earthquake occurrence data. The Earth
Scientist 21(2), 21-23.
Whoever wishes to
foresee the future must
consult the past;
Turn to you partner and discuss this statement
1) What does it mean?
2) Provide an example where it applies
3) Could this statement connect to earthquakes? How?
Guiding Content Questions
•
•
•
•
Where do earthquakes occur?
How frequently do earthquakes occur?
How frequently do various sized earthquakes occur?
How does regional tectonics affect distribution and
frequency?
• Can past history of Earthquake occurrence “predict”
future occurrences?
Steps:
• Select a region of the world that is of interest
to you by “making your own map”
• Interrogate the EQ catalogue to determine
the number of various sized events that occur
annually for your region. (Use M0.5 intervals)
• Plot this information on the graph provided
Questions
• Do you see any patterns or trends in earthquake
occurrence in your region?
• Are the numbers of earthquakes in the smallest and
largest ranges consistent with the trends in the other
regions?
• Can you think of any reasons why the trend is “flat” for
small and also large magnitudes?
• What is the likelihood that an earthquake of magnitude
7.0 or greater (which can cause severe damage) will
occur in the next year in your region?
• How might this information be useful to society?
• Is there a risk for forecasting earthquake likelihood using
a data set that only goes back to 1960?
Improving skills: organizing &
interpreting data
Magnitude
Number #/year
8.0
4
0.1
7.5
18
0.5
7.0
63
1.6
6.5
179
4.5
6.0
508
12.7
5.5
2019
50.5
5.0
5203
130
4.5
8457
211
4.0
8457
211
3.5
8457
211
Latitude 12oS to 12oN
Longitude 90oE to 130oE
Dates 1/1/1960 to 1/1/2000
Explore
Prediction/
Forecasting
Summary
• Accommodates student interests by allowing them to define
the temporal & spatial limits of their study.
• Simple, easily acquired data set
• Explores the broad topics that lead to a general
understanding of frequency and distribution of earthquakes
• Engages students in the process of science
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–
–
–
–
–
Making observations
Collecting empirical data
Exploring the limitation of the data
Organization, graphing and analyzing the data
Developing logical arguments to support conclusions
Skeptical review of other students’ work
Whoever wishes to foresee the
future must consult the past;
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
for human events ever
resemble those of preceding
times. This arises from the
fact that they are produced
by men who ever have
been, and ever shall be,
animated by the same
passions, and thus they
necessarily have the same
results. Machiavelli (May 3,
1469 – June 21, 1527)