EARTHQUAKES 101
The point on Earth's surface directly above where an earthquake starts underground.
What is the epicenter?
This giant destructive ocean wave can be triggered by a large underwater earthquake.
What is a tsunami?
This type of vehicle produces zero direct emissions from burning gasoline.
What is an electric vehicle (EV)?
Coal, oil, and natural gas all belong to this category of nonrenewable energy.
What are fossil fuels?
Engineers design earthquake-resistant buildings to reduce these two main outcomes.
What are loss of life and property damage?
This famous California fault runs along the boundary where two plates slide horizontally past each other.
What is the San Andreas Fault?
This instrument detects and records earthquake waves.
What is a seismograph?
This is where earthquake damage is typically the worst at the surface.
What is near the epicenter?
Solar, wind, hydroelectric, geothermal, and biomass all fall under this category of energy.
What is renewable energy?
Of natural gas, oil, and coal, this fossil fuel produces the LEAST air pollution when burned.
What is natural gas?
Of tall buildings and short buildings, this type typically suffers more earthquake damage due to swaying.
What are tall buildings?
These two natural disasters are California's biggest ongoing risks (one geological, one climate-related).
What are earthquakes and droughts (or heat waves)?
The actual underground point where an earthquake starts.
What is the focus (or hypocenter)?
Fires from broken gas lines, landslides, and tsunamis that follow an earthquake are all classified as these.
What are secondary effects?
California has lots of this energy source because it sits on an active plate boundary where magma heats underground water.
What is geothermal energy?
This is roughly how long it takes for fossil fuels to form, making them nonrenewable.
What is millions of years?
For earthquake safety, building on this solid rock is far better than building on loose landfill.
What is bedrock?
This type natural resource that relies on underground magma is one of California's main energy source.
What is geothermal?
The correct arrival order of the three seismic wave types at a station.
What are P-waves, then S-waves, then Surface waves?
A landslide happens when this downward force overcomes the friction holding soil and rock in place on a slope.
What is gravity?
A city like Barstow, with consistently high average wind speeds, would be the best place to build these.
What are wind turbines?
Among fossil fuels, this one is the most polluting, emitting the most sulfur dioxide and particulates.
What is coal?
These small metal devices bolt a house's wooden frame directly to its concrete foundation.
What are foundation clips?
This type of correlation describes "as urbanization goes up, EPT species go down."
What is a negative correlation?
The name of the scale that we use to measure the STRENGTH of earthquakes is...
What is the Richter scale?
A magnitude 6 earthquake releases roughly this many times more energy than a magnitude 4.
What is 900 times more (30 x 30)?
A renewable resource is defined as one that can be replenished naturally at or near this rate.
What is the rate of consumption?
Nuclear energy is "low greenhouse gas" but still nonrenewable because it relies on this limited element.
What is uranium?
When two countries face the same magnitude earthquake but have very different death tolls, having stricter versions of these is the most likely reason.
What are building codes (or earthquake-resistant construction standards)?
California is not at major risk for these large tropical storms because its Pacific coast waters are too cold to form or sustain them.
What are hurricanes?