Humanities Homework Help

Discussion Requirements

A substantive comment should be approximately 300 words or more for each response (A total of 1 response).

Read the initial comments posted by your classmates and reflect upon them.

Before writing your comments:

• Review the Discussion grading rubric to see what is expected for an excellent discussion, in order to earn full credit.
• Review some resources to help you synthesize, such as the following:

Sullivan, J. (2011). Strategies for Synthesis Writing. Retrieved from http://www.findingdulcinea.com/features/edu/Strategies-for-Synthesis-Writing.html

NOTE: You are required to cite sources and include a reference list for the second post if it is simply your opinion. However, if your opinion is based on facts (as it should be), it is good practice to strengthen your position by citing sources.

Be sure to meet all of the criteria in the rubric, as noted in the instructions above.

Third post for each module discussion:

Read the initial and secondary comments posted by your classmates and reflect upon them.

Directly respond to at least one classmate in a way that extends meaningful discussions, adds new information, and/or offers alternative perspectives.

MY POST

DO NOT RESPOND

Classmates and Professor,

Mitigation measures of Earthquakes

In my community a major potential hazard would be earthquakes (California Earthquake Authority, 2020). Earthquakes are natural hazards that lead to the disruption of the usual way of life of people. Earthquakes lead to the destruction of lives, property, and infrastructure such as buildings, factories, shops, roads, schools, and bridges. This causes the displacement of people, and millions become homeless (NIH, 2021). Besides, they also cause significant disruptions in the public service system by cutting off communication and transport networks. Natural earthquakes are impossible to control, and therefore we need to mitigate and prepare for their effects.

Mitigation measures are central in preventing or reducing the risks that result from earthquakes. The criteria recognize opportunities to assess risks, reduce vulnerability, understand threats and hazards, sustain capabilities, avoid duplication of effort, and identify ways to increase resilience (Fema, 2021). My community’s measures to reduce the disruptive impact of natural disasters include the creation of awareness, education, disaster preparedness, and adoption of prediction and warning systems. However, for the mitigation of earthquakes, the most effective strategies involve adopting building codes and technologies that prevent the actual damage from the hazard.

Building codes have continuously been improved over the years to make society better prepared for the massive destruction presented by Earthquakes. In California, for example, building codes are modified after every significant event of an earthquake (Fema, 2021). The purpose of building codes is to make our buildings safer and resilient to shockwaves. These technologies help prevent a building from collapsing and help the people evacuate safely. Engineers incorporate building codes to stiffen buildings and make the structure more potent than an earthquake. While this may prevent buildings from collapsing, they are not entirely effective in preventing problems such as broken pipes and vents, toppling shelves, light fixtures, and water damage caused by extreme shaking. These damages usually lead to poor and unsafe living conditions, and at times the whole building may require demolition.

However, technology has presented us with an alternative that provides a more effective solution in mitigating the effects of earthquakes which my community needs to adopt. This has been realized with the development of seismic dampers added to buildings and work to absorb the energy of the earthquake (Grolms, 2020). They work with the same ideology as shock absorbers used in vehicles and are added to the structure of a building to contain the vibration and shock during an earthquake.

The technology allows people to reoccupy their homes or workplaces even after the worst levels of earthquakes. It is also cost-effective because the seismic dampers are always ready to handle the next seismic event or aftershock, and more importantly, they last the lifetime of a building. These technologies will significantly reduce the costs incurred in reconstruction and significantly reduce homelessness after major earthquake disasters.

Pedro

References

California Earthquake Authority CEA. (2020, June 8). Earthquake Risk in San Francisco. Retrieved from What is the Risk of a Bay Area Earthquake?: https://www.earthquakeauthority.com/Blog/2020/san-…

Fema. (2021). Hazard Mitigation Planning. Retrieved 14 April 2021, from https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/risk-management/hazard-mitigation-planning.

Fema. (2021). National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program. Retrieved 14 April 2021, from https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/risk-management/earthquake/nehrp.

Grolms, M. (2020). Affordable seismic dampers for residential and commercial buildings – Advanced Science News. Advanced Science News. Retrieved 14 April 2021, from https://www.advancedsciencenews.com/affordable-seismic-dampers-for-residential-and-commercial-buildings/.

NIH. (2021). Disaster Information Management Research Center. Disasterinfo.nlm.nih.gov. Retrieved 14 April 2021, from https://disasterinfo.nlm.nih.gov/.

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RESPONSE 1

Professor and Classmates,

Western Tennessee has two hazards, from what I have seen in the short time that I have lived here. The most common threat I have encountered so far, is tornadoes. I spent a large portion of my childhood on the West Coast, however my mother is from Arkansas and father is from Oklahoma. So my folks instilled a fear of tornadoes from an early age.

A person can greatly mitigate the risk of being injured or killed by a tornado, simply by staying informed and having a plan. That said, I recently purchased radios that will emit a warning by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on potential tornado activity (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , 2021). Additionally, everyone in my household has weather advisories enabled on their mobile phones. Additionally, we have a windowless room downstairs that everyone in my house knows to head to upon warning of a tornado.

Since moving to the area in December 2020, we have had 1 tornado that touched down just outside of the town where we live. It was unnerving going through my first tornado warning, but I feel my family was as best prepared as possible to seek shelter. No one can control the weather, nor control where a tornado will touch down. In this particular scenario, staying informed and having a plan are the best mitigation techniques to stay safe.

The second hazard is the New Madrid Seismic Zone. Although much more infrequent in terms of the fault line rupturing, it does have the potential to be deadly and catastrophic. This fault line runs along the Mississippi River and could potentially affect 8 states, ranging as far North as Illinois and as far South as Mississippi (CUSEC Member & Associate States, 2021). The last significant rupture along this fault line occurred in the early 1800’s, causing the Mississippi River to flow backwards for several days (The New Madrid Seismic Zone, 2021).

This particular scenario was part of a large-scale exercise that I participated in, during my time as the Crisis Action Team Superintendent with the National Guard Bureau in Washington, DC. In addition to “war gaming” possible scenarios with New Madrid, the State of Tennessee in 2006 adopted the International Building Code requirement for any newly constructed facilities. A total of 76 jurisdictions within Tennessee have been identified as being at-risk from New Madrid, with 37 of those jurisdictions that have adopted these building codes for commercial facilities (Building Codes in the, 2021).

One issue that concerns me in terms of mitigation for Memphis Tennessee is the Valero Oil Refinery, located along the Mississippi River (Memphis Refinery, 2021). My undergrad is in Logistics and Supply Chain Management, so I understand the importance of the Mississippi River and the ability to move commerce up and down the river. But if the New Madrid ever ruptures, the river will turn into a toxic sludge.

Andrew

References

Building Codes in the. (2021, April 28). Retrieved from Federal Emergency Management Agency : https://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=7708

CUSEC Member & Associate States. (2021, April 28). Retrieved from Central United States Earthquake Consortium: https://cusec.org/cusec-member-associate-states/

Memphis Refinery. (2021, April 28). Retrieved from Valero: https://www.valero.com/about/locations/memphis-ref…

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . (2021, April 28). Retrieved from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration : https://www.noaa.gov/

The New Madrid Seismic Zone. (2021, April 28). Retrieved from U.S. Geological Survey: https://www.usgs.gov/natural-hazards/earthquake-ha…

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Module 2 – Background

MITIGATION AND RISK REDUCTION

Required Reading

Earthquake risk reduction: Addressing the unmet challenges; the need for an interdisciplinary research approach (2008). Earthquake Engineering Research Group. Retrieved from http://www.eeri.org/site/images/free_pubs/Interdis…

Oskin, B. (2017). Japan earthquake & tsunami of 2011: Facts and information, Livescience. Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/39110-japan-2011-earth…

Required Websites

Disaster Information Management Research Center: https://disaster.nlm.nih.gov/

Hazard Mitigation Planning. FEMA. https://www.fema.gov/hazard-mitigation-planning

Introduction to Mitigation. FEMA EMI. Retrieved from http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/is393alst.asp.
Scroll down to IS393.A-Lesson 4, “Building and Implementing a Community Hazard Mitigation Plan.”

National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program. FEMA: http://www.fema.gov/national-earthquake-hazards-re…