Critically examining the "End of the World"
Natural Disasters
The Japanese Earthquake: Real worries to consider
Mar 14th
It seems like everybody these days is talking about the earthquake in Japan, and with good reason. This was one of the largest earthquakes to be recorded in the area and its impact has been anything but minor. Not only was there damage from the initial seismic disturbance, but the following tsunami impacted coastal regions half way around the globe while devastating those closer to the epicenter.
There are all too many people crawling out of the woodwork to use this tragedy as proof of their own preferred “End of the World” scenario, and the worst part of such behavior is that it takes away precious energy that could be devoted to the real problems and questions that the Japanese earthquake has posed.
- People are in danger, and need help. While parts of Japan which were on the opposite side of the island, or inland, may be mostly intact, coastlines were ravaged and vital infrastructure has been compromised. Nuclear reactors are offline and countless people are without electricity. Rescue crews are still working constantly to dig through the rubble and debris for both victims and survivors. If you want to help, you can donate to the International Red Cross/Red Crescent here.
- Why is our ability to predict these events non-existent? It is no surprise to us anymore what causes earthquakes. When the energy stored along a fault line between tectonic plates exceeds a certain threshold, the plates grind and stutter against each other causing earthquakes and tsunamis. I understand that we have only had a standardized method of measuring these events for less than 100 years, but I personally can not help but ask if a few hundred million dollars spent on understanding our planet might have been better spent than an equivalent investment in bombs, or banker bailouts.
- How safe is nuclear energy, really? I will not deny being concerned about energy issues in general, and peak oil in particular. Nuclear energy has recently started regaining momentum as a possible solution since it was almost completely abandoned in the US after Three Mile Island. While there is plenty to fear from a meltdown, I get worried just trying to figure out what we’re supposed to do with the waste. I more than recognize the need to find sustainable energy, and quickly, but nuclear power is not a real solution to the problem.
We can learn a lot from the earthquake in Japan. We can face down serious questions about our energy. We can recognize that as much as we have learned in the last 100 years, we still have so much more to discover. Most importantly, we can learn that we are a durable and compassionate people capable of overcoming great adversity with the assistance of our fellow human beings.
2012, the Japanese Earthquake, and Basic Geology
Mar 14th
There are plenty of people trying to claim that the tragic Japanese earthquake is a sign of their own preferred End of the World scenario. You have people like Timothy Lahaye, “co author” of the Left Behind novels claiming that the earthquake was foretold in the bible. (Why didn’t you warn us? More importantly, why didn’t you try to warn Japan?) There are also people arguing that this is earthquake was triggered by solar flares, or is an early warning of massive polar shift. Of course we can not forget those who would say that the earthquake was caused by the “loosening of tectonic plates” prior to the arrival of Planet X.
The truth is that none of these things has anything at all to do with what is happening right now in Japan. What is happening right now in Japan is that people are suffering. People are dieing. Perhaps, most importantly, people are surviving, and people are working to help each other. Please, remember to take the time to do something to assist in the efforts of those heroes who are struggling right now to help those in need in Japan.
There is as it turns a very normal explanation for what seems like destruction on a mythic scale. It is geology. Japan is part of a global chain that surrounds the Pacific Ocean and is known as the “Ring of Fire.” This is a volatile region were tectonic plates are colliding and volcanoes are pushing magma from the Earth’s core to the surface. Seismic activity is common on the Ring of Fire. In fact, 90 percent of all earthquakes occur somewhere along this chain.
While those wishing to incite panic will point out that the intensity and frequency of earthquakes “seems to be getting worse and worse” they typically do not take into consideration how long we have been able to actually quantify earthquakes. The Richter scale wasn’t developed until 1935, and the now more accurate moment magnitude scale developed in the 1970s. While devices that could measure local seismic activity are quite old, the idea of a standard measurement for earthquakes and similar events is a new invention. To say that these disasters today are “far worse than ever before” is deliberately misleading. The accurate statement would be “this is the most activity we’ve recorded in the 85 some odd years we’ve bean measuring these things.” Which, when one assumes at the least, 6000 years of history, (or the more widely believed millions of years) is not saying very much at all.’
The Japanese earthquake is a tragedy. Feel free to do what you can to help those suffering there. But this was not foretold in the bible, it was not caused by a solar flare or another planet, and it does not mean the entire crust of the Earth is going to radically shift all at once. Don’t be bothered by such bedtime stories, there are real problems to worry about in this life.
