Deck 4: Earthquake Prediction and Mitigation

Question 1

Which is a major fault that often shows a progressive migration along its length with time?

A) the North Anatolian Fault in Turkey
B) the San Andreas Fault in California
C) the Alpine Fault in New Zealand
D) the Haicheng Fault in China
E) the New Madrid Fault in Missouri

Answer 1

A

Question 2

What is ineffective in reducing the possibility of earthquake's damage to a building?

A) using base isolation pads between the building and its foundation
B) using diagonal bracing in the walls
C) adding sheets of plywood to the walls
D) anchoring the building to its foundation
E) loading the ground floor with heavy weights to prevent it from moving so much

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Which of the following statements about seismicity in Los Angeles and the Transverse Ranges is NOT true?

A) The number of observed moderate earthquakes is less than expected based on the overall slip rate.
B) Sections of the San Andreas Fault in this region have seismic gaps.
C) The average interval between large earthquakes along the San Andreas Fault is 160 years.
D) There are several earthquake generating faults in the region.
E) Moderate earthquakes in this area have an average recurrence interval of 15 years.

Answer 3

E

Question 4

Which of the following is NOT true of many old brick or stone buildings in an earthquake?

A) Flexing of the walls can permit the floor beams to pull out and the floors to fall.
B) Heavy reinforced concrete floors and corner supports with unreinforced fill-in walls of brick are common in the developing world.
C) Because of its mortar brick, walls can flex enough to withstand most earthquakes.
D) Bricks falling from buildings often crush cars and can injure or kill passengers.
E) Stone walls are no better than brick walls in an earthquake.

Question 5

Which of the following would be the safest place to be in an earthquake?

A) in bed
B) in a brick building
C) in a building with concrete walls
D) in a frame (wood) house
E) in a building with stone walls well cemented together

Question 6

The double-deck freeway at the east edge of San Francisco Bay collapsed in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.Why?

A) It was too tall for its height.
B) It lacked steel reinforcing bars.
C) Strong shaking lasted for more than the 30 minutes it was designed for.
D) It was built across soft mud.
E) Water from San Francisco Bay rotted the foundation material, weakening it.

Question 7

Which of the following states has the lowest seismic risk?

A) Arkansas
B) Minnesota
C) Missouri
D) Illinois
E) South Carolina

Question 8

Where in the United States and Canada are strong earthquakes most frequent?

A) in the Rocky Mountains
B) just off the coast of Oregon, Washington, and southwestern Canada
C) along the western fringe of California (onshore)
D) in northern Michigan
E) along the southern half of the east coast of United States

Question 9

Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A) Shattering glass is one of the most common causes of injuries in earthquakes.
B) During the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, broken glass rained down on the street in downtown San Francisco.
C) Safety glass is required in all windows of newly constructed commercial buildings.
D) Glass systems in modern high-rise buildings are designed to accommodate routine sway.
E) Safety glass in some commercial building is similar to that used in cars.

Question 10

For very long faults such as those in westernmost North America,what historic information can be,and has been,used to infer where the next large earthquake may be?

A) the part of the fault with the most frequent earthquakes
B) the part of the fault that creeps slowly and may be building to a sudden break
C) the part of the fault where there is a seismic gap
D) the part of the fault with the largest earthquake in the past
E) the part of the fault closest to the largest population

Question 11

It is advisable to keep well away from an old brick building during an earthquake.Why?

A) Old brick walls are generally not well anchored to the ground and often topple over.
B) The ornamental brick of the walls is not firmly attached to the main structure of the building, and it easily separates and falls.
C) The frequency of earthquake shaking matches the frequency of flexure of brick walls; they buckle in the middle and fall.
D) The mortar in old brick walls is generally crumbly, permitting groups of bricks to shake out and fall.
E) Overhanging brick parapets often break off and fall.

Question 12

The 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake occurred on which Californian fault?

A) San Andreas Fault
B) Hayward Fault
C) Calavares Fault
D) Loma Prieta Fault
E) San Jacinto Fault

Question 13

Which of the following have NOT been used to suggest that an earthquake may be coming?

A) microearthquakes
B) changes in groundwater level
C) increase in radon in water
D) changes in tide heights
E) strange animal behavior

Question 14

The best-known successful prediction of a major earthquake was where and when?

A) Fargo, North Dakota, in 1957
B) Haicheng, China, in 1975
C) Los Angeles in 1994
D) Hokkaido, Japan, in 1998
E) Banda Aceh, Sumatra, in 2004

Question 15

Buildings sway back and forth in an earthquake.A 20-story building oscillates how often?

A) 5 times per second
B) once per second
C) once per 5 seconds
D) once per minute
E) once per 5 minutes

Question 16

What is a seismic gap?

A) a part of an active fault that has not had recent earthquakes
B) a long time between earthquakes on a fault
C) a pronounced crevice along a fault
D) a gaping crack created by fault movement
E) an earthquake that causes no vibration of the ground

Question 17

What commonly causes severe damage in single-story frame (wood construction)houses in an earthquake?

A) They bounce up and down so much that the internal plaster or sheetrock crumbles.
B) They bounce up and down so much that the nails pull out of the wood supports.
C) The shaking shatters the windows, so the glass cuts up everything.
D) They shake off their foundations.
E) They totally collapse.

Question 18

Why does the North Anatolian Fault of Turkey kill many more people than the San Andreas Fault?

A) People in Turkey are not as familiar with earthquakes.
B) Earthquakes along that fault are much stronger than those in California.
C) Most of the buildings near that fault are on artificial fill.
D) There is poor quality of construction in Turkey.
E) There are no building codes in Turkey.

Question 19

Which of the following statements about the 1994 Northridge earthquake in the Los Angeles area is NOT true?

A) The earthquake severed gas lines and caused fires.
B) Its Richter Magnitude of 6.7 is considered moderate.
C) Highway interchanges that collapsed in 1971 withstood the shaking.
D) It was a blind thrust fault tens of miles from the San Andreas Fault.
E) Unbraced ground-floor garages of apartment buildings collapsed.

Question 20

Which of the following make(s)the safest house walls during an earthquake?

A) four inches of concrete
B) stone blocks well cemented together
C) bricks tightly mortared together
D) adobe
E) two-by-four inch lumber covered with plywood

Question 21

Why are strong concrete structures sometimes destroyed in a large earthquake,whereas nearby homes built with frame construction (wood lumber)are little damaged?

Question 22

Freeway overpasses often collapse in a strong earthquake,even though their supports are made of concrete and heavy-duty steel reinforcing bars.Why?

Question 23

Some major faults show migration of earthquakes along the fault with time (that is,over the past few hundred or a thousand years).Name one such fault-or indicate exactly where it is.When was the last major earthquake on that fault?

Question 24

You are the governor of California and the USGS has just warned you that they have predicted a magnitude 7 earthquake for the San Francisco Bay area that may occur within the next seven days.What will you do? Keep in mind that predictions are not always accurate or precise.

Question 25

In the case of the 2008 earthquake in Wenchuan (Sichuan),China,what could have been done to reduce the number of casualties that resulted from the earthquake?

Question 26

What is the approximate frequency of shaking,or back-and-forth sway,of a typical 2-story building?

Question 27

Why do so many people in certain regions get sick and often die from sickness after an earthquake?

Question 28

Buildings of different heights shake back and forth at different frequencies.Which shake at higher frequencies,short buildings or tall buildings?

Question 29

Between developed and developing countries,why do developing countries often suffer higher rates of casualties from earthquakes?

Question 30

There has been at least one highly successful prediction of a major earthquake that saved a very large number of lives.Where and when was that earthquake? What information led to the prediction?

Question 31

The USGS has asked you to write a report on past seismic activity along a specific fault.What will you look for and observe in the field?

Question 32

What is the approximate frequency of shaking,or back-and-forth sway,of a typical 20-story building?

Question 33

Where is the safest place to be in an earthquake?

Question 34

For years before the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake south of San Francisco,earthquake seismologists had been concerned about the possibility of a significant earthquake on the San Andreas Fault in that particular area.Other than the fact that it was on the San Andreas Fault,an area that has seen earthquakes in historic time,what lead them to that conclusion?

Question 35

You are on the 20th floor of your office building when the ground starts shaking-an earthquake is occurring! One of your coworkers bolts for the stairwell to try to flee the building.Do you let them continue down the stairs or stop them? Why?

Question 36

Since buildings and other structures cause most deaths in earthquakes,what types of construction or design are most likely to cause building collapse?

Question 37

Where in the United States,east of the Rocky Mountains,is there seismic risk comparable to California?