1906 Aleutian Island (USA) Earthquake Archive

in Memory of Prof. Donald B. Scott (1913-1975)


1906 8/17 0:10 UTC, 51.00N  179.00E         Mw=7.8, Aleutian Is., USA


This earthquake occurred about 30 minutes before the Valparaiso (Chile) earthquake, and was thus included in a collection of seismograms of the latter earthquake published by International Association of Seismology.  

Endowment Donor: William H. K. Lee (provided the fund to scan the seismogram collection of the1906 Valparaiso (Chile) Earthquake published by Rudolph and Tams in 1907).
Contributors: William H. K. Lee


William H. K. Lee wishes to dedicate this earthquake archive to his undergraduate mentor, Dr. Donald B. Scott, the late professor of physics and head of the Computer Center of the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. When Lee was a second-year undergraduate student, Prof. Scott offered him a staff position at the Computer Center (part-time when school was in session and full-time in the summer). Lee was then able to complete his college education with the needed financial support, and the job turned him into a computer freak at the dawn of the university computer era.


 

1. "Notes on the Valparaiso and Aleutian Earthquakes of August 17, 1906", by F. Omori, Bull. Imperial Earthquake Investigation Committee (Japan), vol. I, no. 2, p. 75-113, 1907.

2. Seismograms of the 1906 Aleutian Island (USA) Earthquake
Since this earthquake occurred about 30 minutes before the Valparaiso (Chile) earthquake, please click
Seismograms of the 1906 Valparaiso (Chile) Earthquake to view the seismograms of both earthquakes.

3. A Biographic Note of Prof. Donald Burton Scott (1913-1975)
Donald B. Scott was born in Toronto, Canada on March 13, 1913, and was educated at the University of Toronto (B.A. physics, 1937), and McGill University (Ph.D. physics, 1940). He spent his entire professional career at the University of Alberta, Edmonton (Instructor, Physics, 1940-43; Lecturer, 1943-45; Assistant Professor, 1945-51; Associate Professor, 1951-54; Professor, 1954-71; Ombudsman, 1971-75).
Prof. Scott helped bring the first computer to the University of Alberta in 1957 and headed the Computer Center. From 1964 to1971, he was the Chair of the University’s Computing Department.  His research in physics included Stark effect in zinc, cloud chamber study of beta ray sources, and measurement of ionizing radiations. He was excellent in teaching and kind to students.

(Last updated: August 21, 2004)