Distinguished Lectureship - Speakers

Dr. William Wilcock

Professor
School of Oceanography,
University of Washington,
Seattle, Washington

Whale Seismology

Curriculum Vitae

William Wilcock is the Jerome M. Paros Endowed Chair in Sensor Networks in the School of Oceanography at the University of Washington.  His research interests include using geophysical techniques to understand seafloor volcanoes and hydrothermal systems, developing new tools for seafloor geodesy at subduction zones, exploiting cabled seafloor observatories for scientific studies and earthquake and tsunami early warning, and studying baleen whales using opportunistic recordings by seafloor seismometers.  He holds a B.A. in Earth Sciences from Cambridge University, an M.Sc. in Exploration Geophysics from Imperial College, a Ph.D. in Marine Geology and Geophysics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology / Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Joint Program in Oceanography and was a postdoctoral scholar at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego.

Large whales are amongst the most captivating animals on Earth, but they are challenging to study because they are too big to hold in tanks, they spend most of their time underwater, and individuals can range over thousands of miles. Recording their vocalizations is one of only a handful of tools available to scientists, but such data can be expensive to obtain, particularly in the deep ocean. The two largest whale species, blue and fin whales, create very loud repetitive sounds at frequencies of about 20 Hz that overlap those of earthquakes, and they are commonly recorded by the networks of seafloor seismometers deployed for geophysical studies. Whale recordings on seafloor seismometers are sometimes viewed as a bothersome source of noise that obscures seismic signals, but beginning with some pioneering work in the 1990s, a small but growing community of marine seismologists are taking advantage of earthquake monitoring experiments in the oceans to study blue and fin whales. Many of the seismological techniques to locate earthquakes and determine their size and frequency characteristics can be adapted to whales. In this talk, I will describe the origin of my own interest in whale seismology and discuss ongoing efforts to exploit extensive seismic data sets in the northeast Pacific and elsewhere for whale seismology.

Date Venue
Jan 26 2021, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College Virtual Event
Mar 25 2021, 7:00 PM North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences Virtual Event
Jun 08 2021, 6:30 PM Houston Museum of Natural Science Virtual Event
Jul 21 2021, 6:30 PM Wagner Free Institute Virtual Event

Dr. Guoqing Lin

Professor
Department of Marine Geosciences,
University of Miami,
Coral Gables, Florida

The 2018 Kīlauea Volcano Eruption: Expected or a Surprise and What Have We Learned?

Curriculum Vitae

Guoqing Lin is a Professor at the University of Miami. Her science portfolio encompasses themes from tectonic and subduction zone earthquakes, to volcano seismology and induced seismicity. Her research interests include high-precision earthquake relocation, seismic imaging, stress fields near faults, and structural properties at depth where earthquakes originate. She received her B.S. from Peking University, China, and Ph.D. degree from Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego. Prior to her current position, she was a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. View Guoqing’s website.

Kīlauea volcano in Hawai‘i is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. The U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) operates an extensive seismic network to monitor and investigate hazards from active volcanoes and earthquakes on the Island of Hawai‘i. Seismic investigations have considerable potential for addressing key issues regarding the evolution of volcanic and tectonic activity in Hawai‘i. Specifically, what is the relationship between crustal stress changes and past and future seismic and volcanic events? To what extent are stress changes explained by known events and how predictive are they of future events? In 2018, Kīlauea experienced its largest Lower East Rift Zone eruption and caldera collapse in the past 200 years. This activity provided an unprecedented opportunity for seismologists to investigate the interactions between seismic and magmatic processes and for the general community to learn how seismologists use earthquake data to monitor volcanoes. In this talk, I will present the seismic activity in Kīlauea based on the 33 years of HVO records and focus on the changes in earthquake distribution, seismic wave speeds, and stress field before and after the 2018 eruption. I will also review the geological setting and volcanic activity of Kīlauea volcano along with other volcanoes on the Big Island.

Date Venue
May 11 2021, 3:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College Virtual Event
May 03 2022, 7:00 PM Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Empirical Theater, Portland, Oregon, United States

Dr. Ben Holtzman

Research Professor
Division of Seismology, Geology and Tectonophysics,
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University,
Palisades, New York

Seismology with your Ears: Listening to Patterns in Tectonic, Volcanic and Human-induced Earthquakes

Curriculum Vitae

Ben Holtzman is a geophysicist at the Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University in New York. He studies the mechanical behavior of rocks applied to problems such as how magma migrates through the planet’s interior, how seismic waves propagate, and how earthquakes occur. He also works on “deep geothermal heat mining” – finding new ways to access the Earth’s internal heat to generate electricity without producing greenhouse gases. Ben is the founder of the Seismic Sound Lab (www.seismicsoundlab.org), developed the SeismoDome program at the Hayden Planetarium in New York City, and is Scientist-in-Residence at the Computer Music Center at Columbia University. He studied Geology as an undergraduate at Brown University, received his Ph.D. in Geophysics at the University of Minnesota, and has worked at Lamont since 2004.

Every earthquake emits seismic waves that spread from the ruptured part of a fault. We use these waves to locate and study the earthquake, and also to build an image of the Earth’s interior. Over time, we accumulate “catalogs” of past earthquakes. Listening to seismic data by “speeding up” the waves to shifting them into our audible range, a process called sonification, can help us perceive patterns in data that could otherwise be missed. In this presentation, I will weave together many short movies – animations with sonified seismic waves – to demonstrate the rich and complex patterns of natural tectonic and volcanic earthquakes and then contrast them to patterns of human-induced earthquakes. California earthquakes convey a sense of the nearly constant, but random, seismic activity of an active tectonic fault. Earthquakes associated with volcanic eruptions have a very different variety of sounds and patterns. We will compare the incredible sequence of earthquakes in Kīlauea, Hawai‘i during its 2018 eruption and contrast these with other eruptions. Finally, we will look at human-induced earthquakes associated with energy production. Listening to the differences between human-induced and tectonic earthquakes raises many important societal questions. In Oklahoma, a dramatic rise in earthquake occurrences were caused by injection of wastewater from shale gas extraction. In contrast, the extraction of geothermal energy, a CO2-free resource, also produces earthquakes but with minimal risk of groundwater contamination. All energy production comes with costs and risks to society, but how do we define and focus our concerns on the most critical ones? De-mystifying earthquake patterns through sonification can help in that direction.

Date Venue
Apr 09 2021, 1:00 PM Weber State University Virtual Event
May 11 2021, 4:15 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College Virtual Event
Apr 19 2022, 7:00 PM OMSI Science Pub, McMenamins Kennedy School Theater, Portland, Oregon

Dr. Sarah Minson

Research Geophysicist
U.S. Geological Survey Menlo Park,
Menlo Park, California

“Imminent Shaking": What Kind of Earthquake Warning is Possible?

Curriculum Vitae

Sarah Minson is a research geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey's Earthquake Science Center. Her research interests include determining the physics of earthquake ruptures, and estimating the slip distribution and predicting the ground motion from earthquakes in real-time for earthquake early warning. She received her B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the California Institute of Technology. Prior to her current position, she was a Mendenhall post-doctoral fellow with the US Geological Survey as well as a post-doctoral fellow at the California Institute of Technology. She is a winner of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) and a Kavli Fellow (National Academy of Sciences and The Kavli Foundation). View Sarah's staff profile here.

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The United States is developing ShakeAlert, an earthquake early warning system that will provide California, Oregon, and Washington with advanced warning of potentially damaging shaking. The hopes for early warning systems are high, but the reality of what can be expected from earthquake early warning is nuanced. Earthquakes don’t happen in an instant and don’t tell us how big they will become. This means that any forecasts that we make will be imperfect, and the amount of warning will be short; in many cases, only a few seconds of warning will be possible. In spite of these limitations, there could still be significant value to earthquake early warning, especially for people who are willing to adopt a “better safe than sorry” strategy of taking protective action for earthquakes that have only a small chance of causing damage. What kind of warning system would you prefer? One that issues alerts for weak shaking, but also sends alerts for many events that do not go on to produce strong shaking? Or an earthquake early warning system that issues alerts only once ground shaking is expected to be damaging, but there is an increased chance that the alerts could be issued too late? During this talk, you will discover how an earthquake early warning system works, how warnings are issued and how much warning is possible.

Date Venue
Oct 17 2019, 7:30 PM Exploratorium, San Francisco, California
Jan 24 2020, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States
Mar 04 2020, 7:00 PM Discovery Museum, Science Distilled, Reno, Nevada
Sep 29 2020, 6:30 PM OMSI Virtual Science Pub

Dr. Ross S. Stein

CEO and Co-Founder
Temblor, Inc.,
Redwood City, California

How the Gold Rush and the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake Enabled Us to Divine our Seismic Future

Curriculum Vitae

Ross S. Stein is CEO and cofounder of Temblor, Inc., Adjunct Professor of Geophysics at Stanford University, US Geological Survey Scientist Emeritus, Past President of the Tectonophysics section of the American Geophysical Union, and 2018 International Distinguished Lecturer of the Geological Society of America. A Fellow of the American Geophysical Union and Geological Society of America, Stein received the 2012 Gilbert F. White Natural Hazards Award from the American Geophysical Union, and received the 2000 Eugene M. Shoemaker Distinguished Achievement Award of the US Geological Survey. In 2003, the Science Citation Index reported that Stein was the second most cited author in earthquake science during the preceding decade; he was tenth most cited during 1900-2010. Stein frequently brings insights to public media interviews and public talks, and in IMAX and Discovery Channel films. He gave a 2012 TEDx talk, ‘Defeating Earthquakes,’ which has been viewed more than 50,000 times. Stein has given the Francis Birch Lecture, Gilbert White Lecture, a Centennial Plenary Lecture, and the Frontiers of Geophysics Lecture—all keynote presentations during annual Fall Meetings of the American Geophysical Union. Stein co-founded the Global Earthquake Model (GEM Foundation), and chaired its Science Board until 2015. He is a member of the Resilient America Roundtable of the National Academy of Sciences, and the Advisory Council on Catastrophes of Zurich Insurance.

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Almost everything we love about the San Francisco Bay area is brought to us by the faults. Absent the San Andreas and Hayward faults, there would be no San Francisco Bay, the only deep protected harbor on the California coast, and so the wellspring of the Gold Rush. The Hayward fault lifts up the Berkeley and Oakland Hills, with their magnificent sunset views of the Golden Gate Bridge. The San Gregorio fault makes Big Sur ‘big.’ A bend in the San Andreas fault thrusts up the Santa Cruz mountains, the spine of the peninsula, and the Marin headlands. These coastal ranges temper the climate, bathe us in fog, and crown us in Redwoods. What I want you to see is that we enjoy the fruits of the faults every day. And so, we must learn to live with their occasional spoils—as befell the San Francisco Bay area in 1868, most famously in 1906, and 1989. You will see that while we can’t predict earthquakes, we know where and why the hazard is high. And we know how to erect buildings that can withstand anything the faults can hurl at them. During this presentation, we’ll move from the discovery of gold to the discovery of what an earthquake is, and how quakes interact, illustrated with four different demos. And, I’ll leave you with the means to assess your own seismic risk, to ensure the safety of your own family.

Date Venue
Oct 17 2019, 8:30 PM Exploratorium, San Francisco, California
Jan 25 2020, 1:00 PM Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Rutgers, New Jersey, United States
Jul 21 2020, 7:00 PM OMSI Virtual Science Pub
Oct 10 2020, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College Virtual Event

Dr. Susan Hough

Research Geophysicist
U.S. Geologic Survey Pasadena,
Pasadena, California

What Past Earthquakes Tell Us About Future Earthquake Hazard: Facts & Fake Facts

Curriculum Vitae

Susan Hough graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a degree in geophysics in 1982 and received a PhD in Earth sciences from the University of California, San Diego in 1988. Since 1992 she has worked as a research geophysicist at the US Geological Survey in Pasadena. Her research interests include earthquake ground motions, induced earthquakes, historical earthquakes, and seismic hazard. She led deployments of portable seismometers following a number of damaging earthquakes, including the 1989 Loma Prieta, California, and 2010 Haiti earthquakes. She has co-authored over 120 articles, and was elected Fellow of the American Geophysical Union in 2009. She is now serving as President-Elect of the Seismological Society of America. In addition to technical articles, she has a long-standing interest in science communication, having authored five books on earthquake science for a non-specialist audience as well as numerous popular articles. She has further led USAID-supported capacity development projects in a number of countries including Nepal, Haiti, and Myanmar.

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Seismologists spend their lives working to understand earthquakes, including earthquakes caused by human activities, so that we can understand and mitigate the hazard they pose. Fortunately for us all, large earthquakes do not strike frequently in any one place. Many of the most important past earthquakes occurred before the invention of modern seismometers. To understand these events, scientists draw on sleuthing skills to explore all available sources of data. In this talk, I describe some of the ingenious work that has been done to understand past earthquakes, and the lessons they can teach us about present-day earthquake hazard. I also discuss evidence that, while earthquakes induced by wastewater injection appeared to be a new phenomenon, there is evidence that humans caused earthquakes in a number of places, including Oklahoma and Texas, as far back as the early 20th century.

Date Venue
Jul 16 2019, 7:00 PM Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Empirical Theater, Portland, Oregon, United States
Oct 17 2019, 8:30 PM Exploratorium, San Francisco, California
Oct 18 2019, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States
Nov 12 2019, 6:30 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States

Dr. Arthur Rodgers

Seismologist
Atmospheric, Earth & Energy Division,
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory,
Livermore, California

Forecasting Ground Shaking from Earthquakes Using Supercomputers

Curriculum Vitae

Arthur Rodgers joined Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) as a seismologist in 1997. He has worked on high-performance computing and computational seismology since 2004. This worked involved modeling of seismic waves from earthquakes and explosions. Dr. Rodgers has worked with teams on modeling earthquakes in the San Francisco Bay Area, as well as educational outreach with the California Academy of Sciences (2012), LLNL’s Science on Saturday (2015) and the American Museum of Natural History (2018). He obtained a B.S. in Physics from Northeastern University and a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado in 1993. He was a postdoctoral scholar at New Mexico State University (1994) and the University of California Santa Cruz (1994-1996). In 2010, he was a Fulbright Scholar to Grenoble France. He is currently a Visiting Researcher at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California Berkeley Seismology Laboratory.

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Computer simulations of earthquakes can be performed to understand the expected level and character of shaking for possible future events. Advances in numerical methods and the ever growing power of parallel processing supercomputers enable ever more realistic modeling of earthquake shaking, including geology and topography. I’ll describe how computer simulations are enabled by world-class supercomputers and how these simulations are generating ever more realistic motions for hazard and risk studies. This lecture will describe supercomputer modeling of earthquake ground motions with a focus on large Hayward Fault ruptures. The last major earthquake on the Hayward Fault, with magnitude 6.5-7.0, occurred on October 21, 1868. This earthquake caused significant damage to structures for the few thousands of people living in the “East Bay” at that time. Geologic evidence strongly suggests major earthquakes on the Hayward Fault occur about every 140-160 years. It has been 150 years since the 1868 event, but today approximately 2.5 million people live near the Hayward Fault. Therefore, simulations like the one on the Hayward Fault can help inform policy makers and the general public about seismic hazard and risk.

Date Venue
Feb 07 2019, 7:00 PM OMSI Science Pub, McMenamins Mission Theater, Portland, Oregon, United States
Oct 17 2019, 7:30 PM Exploratorium, San Francisco, California
Nov 08 2019, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States

Dr. Katie Keranen

Associate Professor
Department of Earth & Atmospheric Sciences,
Cornell University,
Ithaca, New York

Induced Earthquakes: Experimenting Unintentionally

Curriculum Vitae

Katie Keranen is an associate professor at Cornell University. Keranen wants to understand how the world works, and to that end, studies earthquakes, volcanoes, and plate motion to understand deformation of the earth at slow and rapid rates. Keranen has a BS from Michigan Technological University, a PhD from Stanford University, and completed postdoctoral research with the USGS Geological Survey.  Before arriving at Cornell, Keranen was an assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma, and began studying induced seismicity when her house began shaking.

Induced earthquakes are triggered by humans, either by injecting fluid into the ground, extracting it, or impounding it behind dams. Induced earthquakes have occurred for a century, but in the past decade have become more prevalent in locations such as Oklahoma than natural earthquakes along most plate boundaries. These earthquakes create a new hazard and bring public attention, but they also create opportunities to study earthquake processes at atypical rates. Here, I discuss the sudden rise in induced seismicity, the relationship to oil and gas production including wastewater disposal and hydraulic fracturing, mitigation efforts, and new scientific advances made possible by this unintended experiment.
 

Date Venue
Feb 28 2018, 6:30 PM Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, Texas, United States
Oct 04 2018, 7:00 PM OMSI Science Pub, McMenamins Mission Theater, Portland, Oregon, United States
Oct 17 2018, 7:00 PM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States

Dr. Frederik Simons

Professor
Department of Geosciences,
Princeton University,
Princeton, New Jersey

Through the Ocean to the Mantle: Under the Seas with a Fleet of Floating Seismic Robots

Curriculum Vitae

Frederik Simons is a geophysicist at Princeton University. Usually from the safety of his office, he analyzes data from digital global seismic networks to study the physical properties of the interior of the solid Earth, and from gravity satellite missions to weigh the ice sheets melting off its surface. To help increase seismic station coverage around the globe, he has been leaving his comfort zone by prototyping floating earthquake recorders in the oceans, and is now promoting the next big push in earth observation through the international initiative "EarthScope-Oceans". Simons joined the Princeton faculty in 2006. He is also an Associated Faculty member in the Program in Applied & Computational Mathematics and serves on the Executive Committee of the Program in Archaeology. Between 2010 and 2013, Simons was the Dusenbury University Preceptor of Geological & Geophysical Sciences. Previously, he was a Lecturer at University College London, a Princeton Council of Science & Technology Beck Fellow and a Department of Geosciences Hess Post-doctoral Fellow. Simons received a Ph.D. in Geophysics from M.I.T. and his M.Sc. in Geology from the KU Leuven in Belgium, of which he is a native. 

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In the last few decades, seismologists have mapped the Earth's interior (crust, mantle, and core) in ever increasing detail. Natural earthquakes, the sources of energy used to probe the Earth's inside via seismic computerized tomography, occur mostly on tectonic plate boundaries. Seismometers, the receivers of earthquake wave motion, are located mostly on dry land. Such fundamentally inadequate 'source-receiver' coverage leaves large volumes inside the Earth entirely unexplored. Here be dragons! Placing seismic stations on the ocean bottom is among the solutions practiced successfully today. But there are exciting alternatives. Enter MERMAID: a fully autonomous marine instrument that travels deep below the ocean surface, recording seismic activity (and marine environmental data), and then reporting it by surfacing for satellite data transmission. This presentation will discuss a century of Earth imaging, a decade of instrument design and development, and the challenging – and wet – places that our scientific journey has taken us.

Date Venue
Jan 30 2018, 6:30 PM Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, Texas, United States
Apr 17 2018, 7:00 PM Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Empirical Theater, Portland, Oregon, United States
Oct 17 2018, 7:00 PM Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Denver, Colorado, United States
Nov 13 2018, 6:30 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Nov 30 2018, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States

Dr. John Vidale

Professor and Director of the Southern California Earthquake Center
Department of Earth Sciences,
University of Southern California,
Los Angeles, California

A Tale of Three Pacific Northwest Temblors: One Big, One Deep and One Direct Hit

Curriculum Vitae

John Vidale is a Professor at the University of Southern California and Director of the Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC). He completed his undergraduate studies at Yale University and earned his Ph.D. from the California Institute of Technology. Before returning to southern California in summer 2017, Vidale spent more than a decade as a Professor at the University of Washington, Director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, and the Washington State Seismologist. Prior to that, he worked at the University of California, Santa Cruz and the US Geological Survey, and taught for a decade at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). While at UCLA, Vidale was Director of the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics. His honors include the American Geophysical Union's Macelwane Medal (1994) and being named American Geophysical Union's Gutenberg lecturer in 2009. The College of the Environment at the University of Washington named Vidale the 2011 Researcher of the Year. Vidale’s research focuses on earthquakes, volcanoes, Earth structure, and the hazards of strong shaking. 

Sudden mayhem. Tremendous impact. Unpredictable disruption. Is it any wonder earthquakes reserve a dark corner in our nightmares?

The Pacific Northwest is vulnerable to several shades of shakes:

  • giant coastal quakes,
  • isolated, miles-deep pops, and
  • rips that could tear Seattle’s downtown apart.

The University of Washington’s M9 Project, led for several years by John Vidale, is making the repercussions of each type of quake clearer—and both less and more frightening. Vidale will share the latest research and prognoses, and offer insights on implementing early warning technologies in the Pacific Northwest, so we can gain a few seconds or even minutes before suffering the strongest shaking.

Date Venue
Jan 27 2017, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States
Jul 26 2017, 8:00 PM Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Empirical Theater, Portland, Oregon, United States
Nov 08 2017, 7:00 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Nov 29 2017, 7:30 PM Town Hall Seattle, Phinney Neighborhood Association, Seattle, Washington

Dr. Stephen McNutt

Professor
School of Geosciences,
University of South Florida,
Tampa, Florida

Shaking and Baking: Using Seismology to Study Volcanoes

Curriculum Vitae

Stephen (Steve) R. McNutt is a volcano seismologist who worked half time for the Alaska Volcano Observatory from 1991-2012. He currently coordinates volcano seismology research for the School of Geosciences at the University of South Florida. His research interests include studies of source and propagation effects for volcanic tremor, low-frequency events, and explosion earthquakes; volcanic hazards assessments in Alaska, California, and Central America; the mechanical behavior of volcanoes including periodicity of eruptions; the effects of earth tides, sea level variations, and tectonic stresses on triggering eruptive activity; volcanic infrasound; and volcanic lightning. From July 1999 to July 2007 he served as Secretary General for the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior. He has served on several committees for the National Academy of Sciences, including the US National Committee for International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics, the US National Committee for the Pacific Science Association, and the standing Committee on Seismology and Geodynamics. He received his B.A. from Wesleyan University in 1977, his M.A. from Columbia University in 1982, and his Ph.D. in volcanology from Columbia University in 1985.

Seismology is used to study volcanoes in several ways. Seismic tomography, similar to medical tomography, is used to probe beneath volcanoes for their velocity and attenuation structure. This reveals the size, shape and location of bodies of molten rock underground, such as magma chambers and conduits. Models have become more detailed over the years as techniques and data have improved.

One result of such studies is a model of the structure of the volcano.  The model then provides a conceptual pathway to interpret the seismic activity that occurs prior to eruptions. A common pattern is an increase first in volcano-tectonic earthquakes caused by increasing pressure in the magma chamber communicated to faults in the rocks nearby. This is followed by low-frequency earthquakes, which are likely related to fluid processes involving magma or water and gases. Third, a continuous signal known as volcanic tremor occurs when magma reaches shallow levels near the vent.  Explosions and strong eruption tremor are associated with the eruption. Deep earthquakes sometimes occur as stresses readjust after the removal of magma. Such patterns, together with understanding of physics, have enabled successful forecasts of eruptions over a range of sizes and types.

The strength and character of some eruption seismic signals also provides clues to make near-real time assessments of eruptions while they are in progress. For example, the strength of eruption tremor is proportional to the height of the ash column. Lava fountaining from fissures makes stronger tremor than fountaining of the same height from cylindrical conduits. Magma with more gases makes stronger seismic signals and more fine ash, which can influence the amount of volcanic lightning!

These are the types of questions that Professor McNutt will explore as he discusses how the movement of magma causes volcano shaking and baking.

Date Venue
Jul 13 2017, 7:00 PM North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, North Carolina
Oct 21 2017, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States

Dr. Justin Rubinstein

Research Geophysicist
Induced Seismicity Project,
U.S. Geological Survey Menlo Park,
Menlo Park, California

Yes, Humans Really Are Causing Earthquakes

Curriculum Vitae

Dr. Justin Rubinstein is a seismologist and Deputy Chief of the Induced Seismicity Project at the United States Geological Survey (USGS) in Menlo Park, California. His research focuses on the ongoing surge of seismicity in the central United States and its relationship to oil and gas operations. This work includes developing methods to estimate the likelihood of earthquakes induced by oil and gas operations and field studies of seismicity in the Raton Basin (southern Colorado and northern New Mexico) and the Mississippi Lime Play (southern Kansas and northern Oklahoma). Dr. Rubinstein has worked on many topics related to earthquakes including: earthquake forecasting, controls on earthquake ground shaking, and causes of damage in the 1994 Northridge earthquake near Los Angeles. Rubinstein received his Bachelor’s Degree from University of California, Los Angeles and his Master’s and Doctorate from Stanford University.

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The central United States is experiencing an unprecedented surge in earthquakes that began in 2009, rising from an average of 21 magnitude 3 and larger quakes to over 650 in 2014 alone. This increased earthquake activity is found in just a few concentrated regions around the country, with the lion’s share in Oklahoma. In 2014 there were more magnitude 3 and larger earthquakes in Oklahoma than there were in California. The increased earthquake activity is limited to areas of new and emerging oil and gas production and is undoubtedly caused by some of the techniques they use.

With a focus on oil and gas production and related techniques, I will discuss the many ways that humans can cause earthquakes. In the case of fluid injection, the primary source of the recent increase in earthquake rate, the fluid pressure increase from injection can be transferred many miles from the injection point. This fluid-pressure increase, in effect, lubricates the faults, making them more prone to slipping in earthquakes.

Recent research shows that the rate at which injection occurs strongly influences whether earthquakes will be induced. Areas with higher injection rates are more likely to have induced earthquakes. Other parameters, like the total volume injected and the depth of injection, are also believed to affect the likelihood of induced earthquakes. Additionally, local geological conditions are important. Despite similar injection practices, there is very little injection-induced seismicity in North Dakota in stark contrast to Oklahoma.

Given that these earthquakes are human-caused, there is hope that they can be minimized or even stopped. Slowing or stopping injection, changing injection depths, or trucking fluids to other locations have all been suggested as ways to curb induced seismicity. Regulators in a number of states have taken notice of the increased seismicity and are taking action to reduce the likelihood of damaging temblors. With future research to improve our understanding of fluid-injection induced earthquakes, we may be able to reduce their likelihood, something that is not possible for natural earthquakes. To accomplish this, though, it will require cooperation between all the stakeholders, including academic scientists, regulators, and the oil and gas industry.

Date Venue
Apr 30 2016, 10:00 AM Cosmosphere, Hutchinson, Kansas, United States
Jun 02 2016, 7:00 PM OMSI Science Pub, McMenamins Mission Theater, Portland, Oregon, United States
Oct 14 2016, 7:00 PM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Nov 10 2016, 7:00 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Nov 15 2016, 6:00 PM Harvard Museums of Science & Culture, Geological Lecture Hall, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Dr. Caroline Beghein

Associate Professor
Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences,
University of California, Los Angeles,
Los Angeles, California

From Plate Tectonics to Deep Earth Dynamics: A Seismological Journey Inside the Earth

Curriculum Vitae

Dr. Caroline Beghein is an associate professor in seismology at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she has been working since 2008. Her research involves studying the Earth’s deep interior and how it relates to surface plate tectonics using recordings of earthquakes all over the globe. Caroline Beghein received her BSc degree in physics in 1997 from the Université de Liège, Belgium, from which she graduated with high honors, and a MSc degree in solid Earth geophysics from the Institut de Physique du Globe in Paris, France, in 1998. She graduated cum laude from Utrecht University, The Netherlands, in 2003 with a PhD in seismology. Before joining the faculty at UCLA, she spent two years, from 2004 to 2005, as a postdoctoral scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and she was a postdoctoral research associate in the School of Earth & Space Exploration at Arizona State University in 2006 and 2007. She was awarded the 2005 Arne Richter Award for Outstanding Young Scientists by the European Geophysical Union and the UCLA Assistant Professor Career Development Award in 2009.

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The motion of the tectonic plates that divide the Earth's surface explains many geological features and events - from mountain building, to deep oceanic trenches, to earthquakes, tsunami generation, and the presence of volcanoes. These motions at the surface are driven by processes deeper inside the Earth, in particular by the overturn of the mantle through convection: hot, lighter rocks rise to the surface and cold, denser material sinks. This process causes solid rocks in the mantle to flow and deform over geological time scales. To understand what happens at the surface, we need to study the deep Earth interior. We cannot, however, directly sample rocks from the mantle. Instead, scientists use recordings of the waves generated by earthquakes to map the physical properties of mantle rocks.

In this presentation, I will explain how seismologists are able to take the temperature of the Earth’s interior using these seismic recordings and how we can detect the direction of mantle flow with seismic waves. I will also talk about recent advances that help us better understand the relation between the motions of the rigid plates at the surface and the deformation of the underlying convecting mantle.

Date Venue
Jan 30 2016, 11:30 AM Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Rutgers, New Jersey, United States
Aug 29 2016, 7:00 PM OMSI Science Pub, The Venetian Theatre, Hillsboro, Oregon, United States
Oct 07 2016, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States

Dr. Thorne Lay

Professor
Department of Earth and Marine Sciences,
University of California, Santa Cruz,
Santa Cruz, California

A Global Surge of Great Earthquakes and What We are Learning From Them

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During the decade 2004-2014, 18 huge earthquakes with seismic magnitudes larger than 8.0 struck around the world, sometimes causing horrendous destruction and loss of life. The annual rate of such events was 2.5 times greater than had been experienced over the previous century of seismological observations.  Deployment of global networks of very high-quality seismic, geodetic, and tsunami recording systems had preceded most of these events, allowing unprecedented signals to be recorded for these great earthquakes.

Geophysicists have analyzed the recorded waves and ground motions to determine details of each earthquake, advancing our understanding of these dangerous events.  Most of the earthquakes have involved surprises, rapidly revising scientific ideas about the behavior of huge fault ruptures and indicating the need for improved mitigation efforts.

Date Venue
Mar 04 2015, 11:00 AM University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas, United States
Jun 22 2015, 2:00 PM IRIS Webinar, Internet
Jul 13 2015, 7:00 PM OMSI Science Pub, The Hollywood Theatre, Portland, Oregon, United States
Sep 10 2015, 7:30 PM Seattle Town Hall, Seattle, Washington, United States
Oct 08 2015, 12:00 PM University of California Center Sacramento, Sacramento, California, United States
Oct 23 2015, 7:00 PM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Nov 12 2015, 6:30 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States

Dr. Doug Wiens

Professor
Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences,
Washington University,
Saint Louis, Missouri

Fire and Ice: Volcanoes, Earth Structure, and the Evolution of the Antarctic Ice Sheet

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The continent of Antarctica supports the largest ice sheets in the world. The history of the ice sheets is intertwined with the geological history of continent, involving processes such as mountain building, the response of the land to the weight of glaciers, and heat flow melting and lubricating the bottom of the ice sheet. Very little is known about the history of Antarctica because the ice sheets preclude the usual geological sampling and mapping, so seismology offers a method to “see through the ice” and understand the continent beneath. Recent advances in technology now allow autonomous seismographs to be deployed across the continent for the first time.

In this presentation I will discuss projects that are installing seismographs across Antarctica and summarize recent discoveries. New results reveal that East Antarctica represents an ancient continent, with an average geological age of greater than one billion years and with highlands supported by thick continental crust.  In contrast, West Antarctica shows evidence of recent tectonic activity, and high heat flow that may lubricate the base of the ice sheet. The seismographs record earthquakes from magma movement associated with volcanoes beneath the ice. The high mantle temperatures suggest low mantle viscosity, such that the response of the land to ice mass changes will occur within a few hundred years. These insights are changing the way we model the recent history of the ice sheet.

Seismograms also provide important constraints on the movement and forces acting on the ice sheets. “Icequakes” ranging from very small cracking events near the surface of the ice sheet to massive crevassing and calving episodes produce unique seismic signals that help reveal the physics of ice movement. The largest signals come from a unique region on the Whillans Ice Stream, where a 100 mile-long section of the ice stream lurches forward twice a day, triggered by ocean tides, and sending seismic waves traveling across the entire continent. This unusual behavior may signal the slowing down of this ice stream in response to changes in the amount of water along the ice stream bed.

Date Venue
May 09 2015, 1:00 PM Fernbank Science Center, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
May 13 2015, 2:00 PM IRIS Webinar, Internet
Oct 25 2015, 3:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States
Oct 26 2015, 7:00 PM OMSI Science Pub, The Venetian Theatre, Hillsboro, Oregon, United States
Oct 27 2015, 7:30 PM Seattle Town Hall, Seattle, Washington, United States

Dr. Meredith Nettles

Associate Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory,
Columbia University,
Palisades, New York

Glacial Earthquakes: Using Seismic and GPS Observations to Map Changes in Glaciers and Ice Sheets Worldwide

The great ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica are losing mass, transferring more than 500 billion tons of water to the ocean each year. Most of this ice enters the ocean from large outlet glaciers: rivers of ice draining giant ice reservoirs. Understanding the behavior of the outlet glaciers is critical for accurate prediction of sea-level rise. The outlet glaciers are changing rapidly, with large variations in flow speed, thickness, and extent. In Greenland, many of the largest glaciers also produce seismic signals the size of those from magnitude 5 earthquakes, strong enough to be recorded around the globe.

The number of glacial earthquakes is increasing, with six times as many earthquakes occurring in recent years as in the early 1990s. I'll discuss the discovery of these peculiar earthquakes, and show how combining earthquake data with GPS measurements from glaciers allows us to learn how the glaciers and ice sheets may be affected by changing environmental conditions. Ice, the tides, earthquakes, and meltwater combine in a fascinating and complex system with real implications for our lives, whether on the coast or in the middle of the continent.

Date Venue
Apr 07 2014, 7:00 PM OMSI Science Pub, The Hollywood Theatre, Portland, Oregon, United States
Sep 23 2014, 6:00 PM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Nov 12 2014, 2:00 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States

Dr. Jean-Paul Ampuero

Assistant Professor of Seismology
California Institute of Technology,
Pasadena, California

Earth's Cocktail Party: Deciphering the Physics of Earthquakes With Networks of Seismic Arrays

Date Venue
May 10 2014, 2:00 PM Fernbank Science Center, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Oct 14 2014, 2:30 PM Noel Wein Public Library, Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
Jan 31 2015, 9:00 AM Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Rutgers, New Jersey, United States

Dr. Lara Wagner

Staff Scientist
Department of Terrestrial Magnetism,
Carnegie Institution for Science,
Washington, DC

Imaging the Ancient Margin: How the Southeastern United States Was Built (And Why You Should Care)

Date Venue
Apr 19 2013, 8:00 PM Fernbank Science Center, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Sep 12 2013, 8:00 PM Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC, United States
Jan 24 2014, 7:00 PM Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Rutgers, New Jersey, United States

Dr. Gavin Hayes

Research Geophysicist
USGA National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC),
Golden, Colorado

Mitigating Disasters: Earthquake Response in the 21st Century

Date Venue
Sep 25 2013, 8:00 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Jan 18 2014, 9:00 AM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States
Apr 24 2014, 10:00 AM Seattle Town Hall, Seattle, Washington, United States

Dr. Miaki Ishii

Associate Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Harvard Seismology Group,
Harvard University,
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Dissecting Giant Earthquakes: Things We Didn't Know

Date Venue
Apr 24 2012, 10:00 AM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Apr 28 2012, 10:00 AM Fernbank Science Center, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Oct 12 2012, 10:00 AM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Nov 12 2012, 11:00 AM University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Jan 25 2013, 7:00 PM Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Rutgers, New Jersey, United States

Dr. Gregory Beroza

Wayne Loel Professor; Department Chair
Department of Geophysics,
Stanford University,
Stanford, California

The Tortoise and the Hare: Slow vs Fast Earthquakes

Date Venue
Oct 24 2012, 10:00 AM IRIS Headquarters, AAAS Building, Washington, DC, United States
Nov 12 2012, 7:00 PM OMSI Science Pub, The Hollywood Theatre, Portland, Oregon, United States
Jan 19 2013, 7:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States
Feb 17 2013, 7:00 PM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Sep 16 2013, 8:00 PM University of Alaska, Fairbanks, Alaska, United States

Dr. Wayne D. Pennington

Michigan Technological University,
Houghton, Michigan

Preparing for the Future: Scientific and Humanitarian Lessons from the Haiti and Japan earthquakes

Date Venue
Mar 07 2011, 10:00 AM Allendale Columbia School, Rochester, New York, United States
Mar 15 2011, 10:00 AM University of Connecticut, Storrs Campus, Storrs, Connecticut, United States
Apr 21 2011, 11:00 AM Fernbank Science Center, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Apr 25 2011, 11:00 AM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Sep 12 2011, 10:00 AM Boise State University, Boise, Idaho, United States
Feb 22 2012, 10:00 AM OMSI Science Pub, The Hollywood Theatre, Portland, Oregon, United States

Dr. Beatrice Magnani

Associate Professor
Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences,
Southern Methodist University,
Dallas, Texas

The New Madrid Earthquakes Two Hundred Years Later: What Have We Learned About Earthquakes at the Center of Tectonic Plates?

Date Venue
Apr 28 2011, 10:00 AM Pink Palace Family of Museums, Sharpe Planetarium, Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Oct 14 2011, 11:00 AM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Oct 21 2011, 11:00 AM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States
Oct 27 2011, 11:00 AM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Jan 19 2012, 11:00 AM Adventure Science Center, Nashville, Tennessee, United States

Dr. Brian Stump

Southern Methodist University,
Dallas, Texas

Forensic Seismology and Nucler Testing: The Detective Work of Seismologists

Date Venue
Oct 15 2010, 11:00 AM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Nov 08 2010, 10:00 AM Utah State University, Logan, Utah, United States
Nov 30 2010, 10:00 AM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Jan 29 2011, 11:00 AM Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Rutgers, New Jersey, United States

Dr. Stephen Malone

University of Washington,
Seattle, Washington

Predicting Earthquakes and Volcanic Eruptions: What Can and Can't Now Be Done

Date Venue
Mar 19 2010, 10:00 AM National Science Teacher's Association (NSTA), Philadelphia, Pennslyvania, United States
Apr 20 2010, 10:00 AM OMSI Science Pub, The Hollywood Theatre, Portland, Oregon, United States
May 06 2010, 11:00 AM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Sep 07 2010, 10:00 AM The Merc Playhouse, Twisp, Washington, United States
Sep 30 2010, 11:00 AM Waubonsee Community College, Sugar Grove, Illinois, United States
Nov 16 2010, 10:00 AM Rice University, Houston, Texas, United States
Nov 18 2010, 11:00 AM University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Dr. Aaron A. Velasco

University of Texas at El Paso,
El Paso, Texas

Can a Large Earthquake in Another Country Cause One in Your Backyard?

Date Venue
Feb 21 2009, 10:00 AM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States
Apr 15 2009, 10:00 AM Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Denver, Colorado, United States
Sep 02 2009, 11:00 AM School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State Unviversity, Tempe, Arizona, United States
Sep 22 2009, 11:00 AM Humboldt State University, Arcata, California, United States

Dr. Richard C. Aster

New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technolgy,
Socorro, New Mexico

Taking Earth's Pulse and Temperature Using Seismology: Roaring Oceans and Singing Icebergs

Date Venue
Mar 12 2009, 10:00 AM Fernbank Science Center, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Mar 24 2009, 11:00 AM Aquarium of the Pacific, Longbeach, California, United States
Apr 22 2009, 10:00 AM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
May 20 2009, 11:00 AM Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States
Jun 24 2009, 11:00 AM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Oct 26 2009, 10:00 AM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Nov 05 2009, 11:00 AM University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, Texas, United States
Apr 29 2010, 10:00 AM Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colorado, United States

Dr. Cliff Frohlich

,
,

Deep Earthquakes and the Secret of Seismology

Date Venue
Feb 19 2008, 2:00 PM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Mar 03 2008, 2:00 PM Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, United States
Apr 11 2008, 3:00 PM Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota, United States
Apr 15 2008, 3:00 PM Grinnel College, Grinnell, Iowa, United States
Sep 04 2008, 3:00 PM University of Hawaii, Hawaii, United States
Sep 16 2008, 3:00 PM Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, Florida, United States
Sep 22 2008, 3:00 PM Hanover College, Madison, Indiana, United States
Oct 09 2008, 8:00 PM Rio Grande Valley Science Association Conference, Mercedes, Texas, United States

Dr. Uri ten Brink

U.S. Geological Survey, Woods Hole Science Center,
Woods Hole, Massachusetts

Peace and Science in the Middle East

Date Venue
Feb 19 2008, 10:00 AM Penn State, University Park, Pennslyvania, United States
Apr 29 2008, 10:00 AM Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, United States
May 29 2008, 6:00 PM Oregon State University, Eugene, Oregon, United States
Jun 12 2008, 3:00 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Oct 17 2008, 3:00 PM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States

Dr. Anne Sheehan

,
,

Seeing Beneath Mt. Everest: Probing a Breeding Ground of Destructive Earthquakes

Date Venue
Feb 23 2007, 3:00 PM Golden West Senior center, Boulder, Colorado, United States
Mar 06 2007, 3:00 PM Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan, United States
Mar 20 2007, 4:00 PM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
May 03 2007, 4:00 PM University of Alaska, Fairbanks, Alaska, United States
Jun 14 2007, 4:00 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Jun 26 2007, 4:00 PM Arvada North Middle School, Arvada, Colorado, United States
Aug 14 2007, 4:00 PM Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, Texas, United States
Oct 01 2007, 4:00 PM Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, California, United States
Oct 12 2007, 4:00 PM California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, United States
Oct 19 2007, 4:00 PM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Oct 23 2007, 4:00 PM Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts, United States
Oct 23 2007, 4:00 PM Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts, United States
Nov 28 2007, 3:00 PM San Diego State University, San Diego, California, United States

Dr. Brian Atwater

U.S. Geological Survey, Woods Hole Science Center,
Woods Hole, Massachusetts

The Orphan Tsunami of 1700 - A Trans-Pacific Detective Story

Date Venue
Jan 27 2007, 2:00 PM Southwestern Oregon Community College, Coos Bay, Oregon, United States
Mar 15 2007, 3:00 PM Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Sep 04 2007, 3:00 PM Aquarium of the Pacific, Longbeach, California, United States
Oct 03 2007, 3:00 PM Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Oct 16 2007, 8:00 PM Grand Valley State University, Allendale, Michigan, United States
Oct 18 2007, 8:00 PM Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, United States
Oct 22 2007, 8:00 PM University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States
Oct 23 2007, 8:00 PM Waubonsee Community College, Sugar Grove, Illinois, United States
Nov 06 2007, 7:00 PM Portland State University, Portland, Oregon, United States
Nov 14 2007, 2:00 PM Earlham College, Richmond, Indiana, United States

Dr. Mary Lou Zoback

U.S. Geological Survey, Woods Hole Science Center,
Woods Hole, Massachusetts

The 1906 Earthquake - Lessons Learned, Lessons Forgotten, and Future Directions

Date Venue
Mar 15 2006, 3:00 PM University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California, United States
Mar 22 2006, 3:00 PM University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
Apr 08 2006, 4:00 PM National Science Teachers Association, Anaheim, California, United States
Apr 26 2006, 4:00 PM San Diego Natural History Museum, San Diego, California, United States
Jun 13 2006, 4:00 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States

Dr. Ed Garnero

Arizona State University,
Phoenix, Arizona

Vibrations From the Deep: Deciphering the Birth and Death of the Earth's Surface

Date Venue
May 17 2006, 4:00 PM San Diego Natural History Museum, San Diego, California, United States
Sep 19 2006, 4:00 PM Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, Texas, United States
Oct 05 2006, 8:00 PM Arizona Science Center, Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Nov 14 2006, 3:00 PM Palms Springs Public Library, Palm Springs, California, United States

Dr. Seth Stein

Northwestern University,
Evanston, Illinois

Giant Earthquakes: Why, Where, When, and What We Can Do

Date Venue
Feb 17 2006, 3:00 PM Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Mar 07 2006, 3:00 PM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Apr 27 2006, 4:00 PM University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States
May 08 2006, 4:00 PM San Diego Natural History Museum, San Diego, California, United States
Sep 13 2006, 4:00 PM Waubonsee Community College, Sugar Grove, Illinois, United States
Oct 13 2006, 4:00 PM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Oct 18 2006, 4:00 PM University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, United States
Oct 28 2006, 4:00 PM Evanston Township High School, Evanston, Illinois, United States
Nov 15 2006, 3:00 PM University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma, United States

Dr. Michael Wysession

Washington University,
Saint Louis, Missouri

Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and a Modern Journey to the Center of the Earth

Date Venue
Jan 01 2005, 3:00 PM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Apr 02 2005, 3:00 PM National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), Dallas, Texas, United States
May 12 2005, 4:00 PM Maryland Science Center, Baltimore, Maryland, United States
May 13 2005, 4:00 PM Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Jun 21 2005, 4:00 PM Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, Texas, United States
Jun 30 2005, 4:00 PM American Museum of Natural History, New York, United States
Jul 23 2005, 4:00 PM Field Museum, Chicago, Illinois, United States
Sep 23 2005, 4:00 PM Arizona Science Center, Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Oct 23 2005, 4:00 PM St. Louis Science Center, St. Louis, Missouri, United States
Nov 15 2005, 3:00 PM Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Denver, Colorado, United States

Dr. Susan Hough

Research Geophysicist
U.S. Geologic Survey Pasadena,
Pasadena, California

The Very Long Reach of Very Large Earthquakes

Curriculum Vitae

Susan Hough graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a degree in geophysics in 1982 and received a PhD in Earth sciences from the University of California, San Diego in 1988. Since 1992 she has worked as a research geophysicist at the US Geological Survey in Pasadena. Her research interests include earthquake ground motions, induced earthquakes, historical earthquakes, and seismic hazard. She led deployments of portable seismometers following a number of damaging earthquakes, including the 1989 Loma Prieta, California, and 2010 Haiti earthquakes. She has co-authored over 120 articles, and was elected Fellow of the American Geophysical Union in 2009. She is now serving as President-Elect of the Seismological Society of America. In addition to technical articles, she has a long-standing interest in science communication, having authored five books on earthquake science for a non-specialist audience as well as numerous popular articles. She has further led USAID-supported capacity development projects in a number of countries including Nepal, Haiti, and Myanmar.

Date Venue
Jan 26 2005, 3:00 PM University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California, United States
Feb 04 2005, 3:00 PM Museum of Science, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Apr 28 2005, 4:00 PM SSA Annual Meeting, Memphis, Tennessee, United States
May 17 2005, 4:00 PM Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, Texas, United States
Nov 05 2005, 3:00 PM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Nov 18 2005, 3:00 PM Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, District of Columbia, United States

Dr. David E. James

Research Geophysicist
Carnegie Institution for Science,
Washington, DC

Revealing the Mysteries of the Earth's Deep Interior: Plates, Plumes, and the Birth of Modern Seismology

Date Venue
Apr 30 2004, 4:00 PM Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Jun 10 2004, 4:00 PM IRIS Annual Meeting '04, Tucson, Arizona, United States
Jul 29 2004, 4:00 PM University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Sep 30 2004, 4:00 PM Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Denver, Colorado, United States

 David Wald

U.S. Geological Survey, Woods Hole Science Center,
Woods Hole, Massachusetts

Rapid Earthquake Information: Citizen Science and New Tools for Emergency Response

Date Venue
Mar 26 2004, 3:00 PM University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, United States
Apr 16 2004, 4:00 PM SSA Annual Meeting '04, Palm Springs, California, United States
May 12 2004, 4:00 PM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Sep 08 2004, 4:00 PM University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, United States

Dr. Roger Bilham

University of Colorado,
Boulder, Colorado

Death and Construction: Earthquakes on an Urban Planet

Date Venue
Mar 03 2003, 3:00 PM Museum of Science, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Mar 21 2003, 3:00 PM University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, United States
May 02 2003, 4:00 PM SSA Annual Meeting '03, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Sep 12 2003, 4:00 PM Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Oct 16 2003, 4:00 PM St. Louis Science Center, St. Louis, Missouri, United States

Dr. Walter Mooney

U.S. Geological Survey, Woods Hole Science Center,
Woods Hole, Massachusetts

The Discovery of the Earth: The Quest to Understand the Interior of our Planet

Date Venue
Feb 03 2003, 3:00 PM New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
Jun 06 2003, 4:00 PM IRIS Annual Meeting '03, Yosemite, California, United States
Nov 12 2003, 3:00 PM Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Denver, Colorado, United States
Nov 14 2003, 3:00 PM Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, District of Columbia, United States