research paper topics on earthquake

143 Earthquake Essay Topics & Examples

Need a catchy title for an earthquake essay? Earthquakes can take place almost everywhere. That is why this problem is so exciting to focus on.

🏆 Best Earthquake Topic Ideas & Essay Examples

🎓 good essay topics on earthquake, 📌 catchy titles for earthquake essay, 👍 research titles about earthquake, ❓ essay questions about earthquake.

In your earthquake essay, you might want to compare and contrast various types of this natural disaster. Another option is to talk about your personal experience or discuss the causes and effects of earthquakes. In a more serious assignment like a thesis or a term paper, you can concentrate on earthquake engineering or disaster management issues. In this article, we’ve gathered best research titles about earthquake and added top earthquake essay examples for more inspiration!

• Crisis Management: Nissan Company and the 2011 Earthquake Expand on the points made in the case to identify the potential costs and benefits of these actions. The sharing of information was quite beneficial to Nissan in its response to the disaster.
• Natural Disasters: Tornadoes, Earthquakes, and Hurricanes Hence the loss may depend on the population of the area affected and also the capacity of the population to support or resist the disaster.
• Earthquake in South Africa: Reconstruction Process Therefore, it is vital for the government of South Africa to address the issues caused by the earthquake and reconstruct the region, focusing on several public interventions to stimulate the region’s growth in the shortest […]
• Public Awareness of Earthquake This will mean that the basement that is involved in thickening and shortening is mechanically required to produce the shape of zagros belt.
• Mitigation of Earthquake Hazards The geologists should also inform the architects on the areas where earthquakes are likely to occur and how strong they will be able.
• Natural Disasters: Earthquakes, Floods and Volcanic Eruption This is due to the relationship between an eruption and the geology of the area. It was observed that the mountain swelled and increased in size due to the upward force of magma.
• Earthquakes and Their Devastating Consequences The break in the ground surface is the most common cause of horrific consequences, and people often cannot get out of the epicenter of the incident.
• Earthquakes Impact on Human Resource in Organizations The researcher seeks to determine the magnitude of this effect and its general effect on the society in general and the firms affected in specific.
• Disaster Preparedness and Nursing: A Scenario of an Earthquake In a scenario of an earthquake, nursing staff must be aware of the stages of disaster management and disaster preparedness in particular.
• Analysis of Damage to Apartment Buildings in the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake In turn, it is a prerequisite for the cataclysms in nature, such as earthquakes and the effect of liquefaction which was particular to the Marina district in the disaster of 1989.
• Earthquake Prevention From Healthcare Perspective In terms of primary prevention of such a disaster, it is necessary to establish a public body or organization responsible for the creation of an extensive network of food, water, and first-aid kits to last […]
• School Preparedness Plan for Tornado, Earthquakes, Fire Emergency In case of an earthquake emergency, the school should be prepared to keep the students safe. In case of a tornado emergency the school should be prepared to keep the students safe.
• Earthquake in Haiti 2010: Nursing Interventions During natural disasters, such as the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti in 2010, nursing interventions aim to reduce the level of injury and provide the conditions for the fast recovery of its victims.
• Earthquakes in Chile and Haiti Moreover, the quake in Haiti raptured at the epicenter of the city with a high population density compared to Chile. Therefore despite a lower magnitude earthquake than Chile, Haiti suffered more damage due to the […]
• The 1979 Tangshan Earthquake The Tangshan Earthquake happened in 1976 is considered to be one of the large-scale earthquakes of the past century. The 1975 Haicheng Earthquake was the first marker of gradual and continuous intensification of tectonic activity […]
• Natural Disasters: Earthquakes, Volcanoes, and Tsunamis In addition, the paper will outline some of the similarities and differences between tsunamis and floods. Similarities between tsunamis and floods: Both tsunamis and floods are natural disasters that cause destruction of properties and human […]
• Role of the Nurses in the Site of the Haiti Earthquake The primary aim of the tertiary intervention conducted by the health practitioners was to reduce the effect of the diseases and injuries that occurred because of the Haiti earthquake.
• Theory of Disaster: Earthquakes and Floods as Examples of Disasters The second category is that of those people who put their focus on the effects of the social vulnerability or the disasters to the society or to the people who are likely to be the […]
• Volcanoes: Volcanic Chains and Earthquakes The “Ring of Fire” is marked by the volcanic chains of Japan, Kamchatka, South Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, the Cascade Range of the United States and Canada, Central America, the Andes, New Zealand, Tonga, […]
• Earthquakes: Causes and Consequences The first of these are body waves, which travel directly through rock and cause the vertical and horizontal displacement of the surface.
• The Parkfield Earthquake Prediction Experiment The seismic activity and the relatively regular sequence of the earthquakes in the area of San Paul Fault generated the interest of the geologists in exploring the processes in the rupture.
• The Impacts of Japan’s Earthquake, Tsunami on the World Economy The future prospects in regard to the tsunami and the world economy will be presented and application of the lessons learnt during the catastrophe in future” tsunami occurrence” management.
• Natural vs. Moral Evil: Earthquakes vs. Murder This problem demonstrates that such justifications for the problem of evil, such as the fact that suffering exists to improve the moral qualities of a person and thus serve the greater good, are unconvincing.
• Review of Earthquake Emergency Response The second resource is the supply of food and water that can help survivors wait for the rescue team for three days.
• California Earthquakes of the 20th Century Ultimately, the current essay examines the most devastating earthquakes in California in the 20th century and proposes a hypothesis of when the next large earthquake might strike.
• Human Activity and Growing Number of Earthquakes The pieces that support the opposing view claim that the data about their number may be distorted due to the lack of difference in the development mechanism of natural and artificial earthquakes.
• Researching the Earthquake Due to human activity, artificial earthquakes occur, and their number increases every year following the strengthening of destructive human impact on the planet.
• Earthquake Disasters: Medical Response and Healthcare Challenges Therefore, an earthquake disaster infers abrupt and immense shaking of the ground for a duration and magnitude that can infringe the day-to-day activities. The last role of healthcare personnel in triage and intervention is to […]
• Haiti Earthquake of 2010 Overview The purpose of this paper is to review the location and physical cause of the event, its human impact from it, and some of the interesting facts related to the disaster.
• Wenchuan Earthquake: Impact on China’s Economy The earthquake made a moderate impact on the country’s economy, yet affected several industries located in the devastated areas.
• The Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of 2011 Documentary The documentary reflects the events leading to the natural disasters and their aftermath, including an investigation into the reasons for the failure of the precautionary measures in place during the 2011 earthquake in Japan.
• Recent Earthquakes and Safety Measures in California and Nevada The earthquake that is the largest by magnitude is in California. It is possible to minimize the damage by an earthquake.
• Earthquake Risk Reduction: Challenges and Strategies The victims of the earthquake in Haiti were hundreds of people, while the number of wounded and homeless was in the thousands. As for the latter, the worst scenario of the earthquake is created and […]
• A Geological Disaster: Nisqually Earthquake in Washington State Geology refers to the study of the processes that lead to the formation of rocks and the processes that contribute to the shape of the earth.
• The Huaxian Earthquake: China’s Deadliest Disaster The main reason for the terrible earthquakes consequences was in the absence of a plan for the emergency case. After visiting China later in 1556, he wrote that the given disaster was likely to be […]
• The Sumatra Earthquake of 26 December 2004: Indonesia Tsunami As such, the earthquake resulted in the development of a large tsunami off the Sumatran Coast that led to destruction of large cities in Indonesia.
• Understanding Plate Tectonics and Earthquakes: Movements, Causes, and Measurement Therefore, the distance of the fracture will determine the intensity of the vibrations caused by the earthquake and the duration of the effect, that is, shaking the ground.
• Review of Public Meeting Regarded Earthquakes This focused meeting held in Port Au-Prince was to formulate the best strategies to help the people of Haiti anticipate, adapt and also recover from the impacts of earthquakes.
• Rebuilding Haiti: Post-Earthquake Recovery No doubt the tremors have taken a massive toll on the lives and resources of Haiti, but it was not only the tremors that caused the damage to such a massive extent.
• Earthquake Impacts: A Case Study of the 2010 Haiti Earthquake The short-term effects of the earthquake include food shortage, lack of clean water; breakdown of communication, lack of sufficient medical care, closure of ports and main roads, increased mortally, injuries, fires, the spread of communicable […]
• Sichuan Earthquake and Recovering as Community Problem We plan to give these pamphlets to businessmen in China and we have also uploaded these pamphlets on the internet for all the people around the world to see and to support this great cause.
• Natural Hazard: Tsunami Caused by Earthquakes Other areas that are prone to the tsunamis include Midwestern and Eastern United States of America and parts of Eastern of Canada, Indian Ocean and East Africa.
• Emergency Response to Haiti Earthquake The response to the earthquake and calamities that followed was a clear demonstration that the country was ill-prepared to deal with such a disaster.
• Haiti and Nepal Earthquakes and Health Concerns As applied to the environment in these countries, roads were disrupted and, in some parts of the area, people could not be provided with the necessary amounts of food and drinking water.
• Hypothetical New York Earthquake Case Therefore, the following faults would be included in the report as potential causes of the earthquake: the 125th Street fault is the largest of all.
• 1906 San Francisco Earthquake: Eyewitness Story The moon crept in and out of the room, like a late evening silhouette, but its lazy rays did little to signal us what we would expect for the rest of the day.
• Scientists’ Guilt in L’Aquila Earthquake Deaths Additionally, there is another issue related to the development of scientific knowledge, which takes time as it is subjected to a lot of criticism before it is adopted.
• Dangerous and Natural Energy: Earthquakes The distribution of earthquakes in the world varies according to the region. Click on one of the earthquakes on the map and make a note of its magnitude and region.
• Earthquake Emergency Management and Health Services Fundamental principles of healthcare incident management involve the protection of people’s lives, the stabilization of the disaster spot, and the preservation of property.
• Fracking: Increased Seismic Activities in Kansas According to the report of the State Corporation Commission of the State of Kansas, the work of local drilling companies has considerably increased the number of seismic activities in the state.
• Earthquake as a Unique Type of Natural Disaster Earthquakes are believed to be one of the most dangerous natural disasters, and they can have a lot of negative effects on both the community and the environment.
• US Charities in Haiti After the 2010 Earthquake This paper aims to explore the overall implications of the earthquake and the response to it, as well as to provide an examination of the actions of three U.S.-based NGOs, which contributed to the restoration […]
• Christchurch Earthquakes’ Impact on New Zealand Businesses Similarly, the occurrence of the incident led to the loss of lives that had the potential of promoting most businesses into great heights.
• Understanding Earthquake Statistics: Frequency, Magnitude, and Data Sources Tectonic earthquakes are prompted as a consequent of movement of the earth’s crust because of the strain. The USGS National Earthquake Information Center reports an increase in the number of detection and location of earthquakes […]
• Natural Disasters: Tsunami, Hurricanes and Earthquake The response time upon the prediction of a tsunami is minimal owing to the rapid fall and rise of the sea level.
• Geology Issues: Earthquakes The direction of the plates’ movements and the sizes of the faults are different as well as the sizes of tectonic plates.
• 2008 and 2013 Sichuan Earthquakes in China This was the worst and the most devastating earthquake since “the Tangshan earthquake of 1976 in China”. In addition, impacts differ based on the number of fatalities and damages to property.
• Haiti Earthquake Devastation of 2010 In addition, most of the personnel who were part and parcel of the recovery teams were lost in the disaster making it difficult to reach out for the victims.
• Mitigation for Earthquake and Eruption Since the energy is mainly derived from the sustained stress and deformation of the underlying rocks, the precursor signals of earthquakes especially in seismic zones are majorly based on the careful study of the earth’s […]
• Earthquakes in New Madrid and Fulton City, Missouri The accumulation of this stress is a clear indication of the slow but constant movement of the earth’s outermost rocky layers.
• Tōhoku Earthquake of 2011 The rate at which the pacific plate undergoes displacement is at eight to nine centimeter per annum, hence the plate subduction of the plate led to a discharge of large amounts of energy leading to […]
• Earthquakes as a Cause of the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Although earthquake is a major cause of the post traumatic stress disorder, there are other factors that determine the development of the same.
• Plate Tectonics, Volcanism, Earthquakes and Rings of Fire Plate tectonics has led to the separation of the sea floor over the years and the earth is composed of seven tectonic plates according to the available geological information.
• The 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake The earthquake was accompanied by a great tsunami given the high magnitude of the earthquake that reached 9. The third disaster was the meltdown of a number of nuclear plants following the tsunami.
• Earthquakes: Definition, Prevalence of Occurrence, Damage, and Possibility of Prediction An earthquake is a dangerous tremor that is caused by sudden release of energy in the crust of the earth leading to seismic waves that cause movements of the ground thus causing deaths and damages.
• Losing the Ground: Where Do Most Earthquakes Take Place? Since, according to the above-mentioned information, natural earthquakes are most common in the places where the edges of tectonic plates meet, it is reasonable to suggest that earthquakes are most common in the countries that […]
• Geology Issue – Nature of Earthquakes Such an earthquake is caused by a combination of tectonic plate movement and movement of magma in the earth’s crust. Continental drift is the motion of the Earth’s tectonic plates relative to each other.
• The Great San Francisco Earthquake The length however depends on the size of the wave since the larger the wave the larger the area affected and consequently the longer the period of time taken.
• The Impact of the California Earthquake on Real Estate Firms’ Stock Value
• Technology Is The Best Way To Reduce The Impact of An Earthquake
• Study on Earthquake-Prone Buildings Policy in New Zealand
• The Devastating Effects of the Tohuku Earthquake of 2011 in Japan
• The Disasters in Japan in 2011: The Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami
• Why Was the Haiti Earthquake So Deadly
• Taking a Closer Look at Haiti After the Earthquake
• The Aftermath of The Earthquake of Nepal
• The Effects of the Fourth-Largest Earthquake in Japan in Problems Persist at Fukushima, an Article by Laurie Garret
• The Greatest Loss of The United Francisco Earthquake of 1906
• The Impact of Hurricanes, Earthquakes, and Volcanoes on Named Caribbean Territories
• The Destruction Caused by the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake
• Foreshocks and Aftershocks in Earthquake
• The Great San Francisco Earthquake and Firestorm
• Scientific and Philosophic Explanation of The 1755 Lisbon Earthquake
• The Haiti Earthquake: Engineering and Human Perspectives
• Voltaire and Rousseau: A Byproduct of The Lisbon Earthquake
• The Great East Japan Earthquake’s Impact on the Japanese
• Estimating the Direct Economic Damage of the Earthquake in Haiti
• What Should People Do Before, During, and After an Earthquake
• What to Do Before, During, and After an Earthquake
• Valuing the Risk of Imperfect Information: Christchurch Earthquake
• The Impact of the Earthquake on the Output Gap and Prices
• The Devastating Earthquake of The United States
• The Earthquake of The Sumatra Earthquake
• The Crisis of the Fukushima Nuclear Plant After an Earthquake
• The Impact of The San Francisco Earthquake of 1906
• The History and Effects of the Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami in 2004
• The Effects of an Earthquake Ledcs
• The Cascadia Earthquake: A Disaster That Could Happen
• The Economy in the Aftermath of the Earthquake
• The Impact of Earthquake Risk on Housing Market Before and After the Great East Japan Earthquake
• Who Benefit From Cash and Food-for-Work Programs in Post-Earthquake Haiti
• Macro Effects of Massive Earthquake Upon Economic in Japan from 2011 to 2013
• How the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake Shaped Economic Activity in the American West
• The Cause of Earthquakes and the Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906
• The Effect of the Earthquake in Haiti: Global Issues
• Understanding How Gigantic Earthquake and Resultant Tsunami Are Being Formed
• Why God and The Earthquake of Haiti Happened
• The Effects of the Great East Japan Earthquake on Investors’ Risk and Time Preferences
• The Great East Japan Earthquake and its Short-run Effects on Household Purchasing Behavior
• Internal Displacement and Recovery From a Missouri Earthquake
• Understanding the Causes and Effects of an Earthquake
• Supply Chain Disruptions: Evidence From the Great East Japan Earthquake
• The Earthquake That Shook The World In Pakistan
• What Motivates Volunteer Work in an Earthquake?
• Who Benefits From Cash and Food-For-Work Programs in Post-earthquake Haiti?
• Why Did Haiti Suffer More Than Kobe as a Result of an Earthquake?
• Why Did the Earthquake in Haiti Happen?
• Why Does the Earthquake Happen in Chile?
• Why Was the Haiti Earthquake So Deadly?
• Was the Japan Earthquake Manmade?
• How Did the 1964 Alaska Earthquake Enhance Our Understanding?
• How Does the Theory of Plate Tectonics Help to Explain the World Distribution of Earthquakes and Volcanic Zones?
• How Leaders Controlled Events in the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake?
• How Shaky Was the Regional Economy After the 1995 Kobe Earthquake?
• How Would Society React to Modern Earthquakes, if They Only Believed in Myths?
• How the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake Shaped Economic Activity in the American West?
• How Does the Nepal Earthquake Continue to Re-Shape People’s Lives?
• Are People Insured Against Natural Disasters Such as Earthquakes?
• What Is the Long-Lasting Impact of the 2010 Earthquake in Haiti?
• How Do Japanese Smes Prepare Against Natural Disasters Such as Earthquakes?
• The Kobe Earthquake and Why Did Mrs. Endo Die?
• What Was the Last Earthquake?
• What Is an Earthquake, and Why Does It Happen?
• What Are Three Earthquake Facts?
• What Is an Earthquake in a Simple Way?
• How Do Earthquakes Start?
• What Are the Effects of Earthquakes?
• How Can Earthquakes Be Prevented?
• What Are the Five Leading Causes of the Earthquake?
• Where Is the Safest Place to Be in an Earthquake?
• Can Humans Cause Earthquakes?
• What Are Five Facts about Earthquakes?
• Does a Small Earthquake Mean That a Giant Earthquake Is Coming?
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IvyPanda . (2024) '143 Earthquake Essay Topics & Examples'. 26 February.

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115 Earthquake Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Inside This Article

Earthquakes are a natural phenomenon that can have devastating effects on communities and infrastructure. For students studying geology, geography, or environmental science, writing an essay on earthquakes can provide a deeper understanding of the causes, impacts, and mitigation strategies associated with these powerful events. To help spark your creativity, here are 115 earthquake essay topic ideas and examples:

The causes of earthquakes: exploring the geological processes that lead to seismic activity.

The Richter scale: how scientists measure the magnitude of earthquakes.

The relationship between earthquakes and plate tectonics.

Famous earthquakes in history: examining events like the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

The impact of earthquakes on buildings and infrastructure.

The role of early warning systems in mitigating earthquake damage.

The social and economic impacts of earthquakes on communities.

Earthquake forecasting: can scientists predict when and where earthquakes will occur?

The psychological effects of living in earthquake-prone regions.

The connection between earthquakes and tsunamis.

The role of government agencies in earthquake preparedness and response.

The ethics of rebuilding after a major earthquake.

Earthquake-resistant building design: how engineers are working to minimize damage.

The cultural significance of earthquakes in different societies.

The environmental impacts of earthquakes on ecosystems and wildlife.

The role of international cooperation in earthquake relief efforts.

The effects of climate change on seismic activity.

Earthquake diplomacy: how disasters can bring nations together.

The history of seismology: tracing the development of earthquake science.

The connection between fracking and induced earthquakes.

The role of social media in disseminating information during earthquakes.

The impact of earthquakes on global supply chains.

The relationship between earthquakes and volcanic activity.

The intersection of politics and earthquakes: how governments respond to disasters.

The ethics of disaster relief in earthquake-affected regions.

The role of citizen science in monitoring earthquakes.

The impact of earthquakes on mental health and well-being.

The effects of earthquakes on agriculture and food security.

The connection between earthquakes and groundwater contamination.

The role of gender in disaster response and recovery after earthquakes.

The impact of earthquakes on tourism and local economies.

The relationship between earthquakes and landslides.

The ethics of earthquake prediction: should we try to forecast seismic events?

The connection between earthquakes and nuclear power plants.

The role of indigenous knowledge in earthquake preparedness.

The impact of earthquakes on education and schools.

The effects of earthquakes on transportation networks.

The relationship between earthquakes and fracking-induced earthquakes.

The role of insurance companies in earthquake risk assessment and management.

The impact of earthquakes on wildlife and ecosystems.

The connection between earthquakes and climate change.

The role of social media in earthquake response and recovery efforts.

The effects of earthquakes on water resources and infrastructure.

The relationship between earthquakes and mental health.

The impact of earthquakes on agriculture and food security.

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105 Earthquake Essay Topics

🏆 best essay topics on earthquake, 📚 earthquake research paper examples, 👍 good earthquake research topics & essay examples, 🌶️ hot earthquake ideas to write about, ❓ earthquake research questions.

• Earthquakes’ Impacts on Society
• 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami
• Earthquakes: Effects on People’s Health
• The Tohoku Earthquake: Tsunami Entry
• Earthquake Resistant Building Technology & Ethics
• Emergency Operations Plan During Earthquake
• A Report on Earthquakes Using Scientific Terms
• Comparison of the Loma Prieta California Earthquake and Armenia An earthquake is a tremor in the earth’s crust that results to seismic waves as a result of the sudden energy realized from the earths bowels.
• Geology: Iquique Earthquake in Chile This paper describes the Iquique earthquake that took place on 1 April, 2014 in Chile and explains why living near an active faultline is better than on an active volcano.
• Consequences of Northridge Earthquake The paper discusses Northridge Earthquake. A blind thrust fault provoked an earthquake of a magnitude of 6.7, which is high for such a natural phenomenon.
• Earthquake: Definition, Stages, and Monitoring An earthquake is a term used to describe the tremors and vibrations of the Earth’s surface; they are the result of sudden natural displacements and ruptures in the Earth’s crust.
• India’s, Indonesia’s, Haiti’s, Japan’s Earthquakes In 2001, the major tremor hit the Indian state Gujarat. It was reported as the most significant earthquake in the region in the last several decades.
• Earthquakes: History and Studies Earthquakes are sudden movements of the earth’s surface caused by the abrupt release of energy into the earth’s crust. The earliest earthquake took place in China in 1411 BC.
• Earthquake Mitigation Measures for Oregon Oregon could prepare for the earthquake by using earthquake-proof construction technologies and training people.
• Destructive Force: Earthquake in Aquila, Italy A high magnitude earthquake shook Central Italy and the worst hit was the city of Aquila, the pain and sorrow were palpable but it did not take long before the people decided to move on.
• Causes of the Haiti Earthquake This paper defines what an earthquake is, then discusses and reviews the causes of the Haiti Earthquake and the possibility of another Earthquake.
• Earthquakes Preventions in USA and Japan The article clarifies the issue of earthquakes in the United States, investigate the weaknesses of the American system, and explore the benefits of the Japanese technique.
• Earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand The earthquake is considered one of the costliest natural disasters in history. Thousands of buildings, cars, and other property were damaged or destroyed completely.
• Humanitarian Assistance After 2010 Haiti Earthquake This paper aims to discuss how the people of Haiti experienced the earthquake, as well as how humanitarian aid from various organizations helped make a difference for Haitians.
• Earthquakes: Determination of the Risk There is a need to create awareness and knowledge about earthquake disasters and how to mitigate and respond to such disasters.
• Earthquake Threats in Bakersfield Earthquakes and dam failures are the most severe threats to Bakersfield, both of which can result in gas leaks and power disruptions.
• Earthquakes as the Natural Disaster Posing the Greatest Danger to Societies The scope of irreparable damage, human losses, and paralyzed infrastructure due to earthquakes causes high economic costs for rescuing, preventing, reconstructing, rehabilitating.
• Effects of Earthquakes: Differences in the Magnitude of Damage Caused by Earthquakes There are various types of earthquakes depending on the cause of the earthquake hence have different effects and damage to property and loss of life.
• Energy Safety and Earthquake Hazards Program The distribution of earthquakes around the world is not uniform. Some parts experience earthquakes frequently while others do not.
• Scientific Responsibility for Earthquakes in Japan Extensive geological studies of the occurrence of earthquakes not only in Japan but also around the world have uncovered useful information on their devastating potential.
• Active Tectonics and Earthquake Geology Along the Pallatanga Fault
• An Instrumental Earthquake Magnitude Scale
• Critical Double Impulse Input and Bound of Earthquake Input Energy to Building Structure
• Benefits and Costs of Earthquake Mitigation
• Spatial Patterns of Earthquake Disaster Probability and Individual Risk Perception
• Designing Earthquake-Proof Buildings
• Earthquake Magnitude: Recent Research and Current Trends
• Disaster and Economic Structural Change: The Earthquake
• Assessing Earthquake Early Warning Using Sparse Networks in Developing Countries
• Earthquake Magnitude, Intensity, Energy, and Acceleration
• Disaster and Political Trust: The Japan Tsunami and Earthquake
• Appraising the Unhappiness Due to the Great East Japan Earthquake
• Earthquake Magnitude Scaling Using Seismogeodetic Data
• Numerical and Comparative Study of Earthquake Intensity Indices in Seismic Analysis
• Earthquake and Volcanic Hazards in the Caribbean
• Estimating Earthquake Location and Magnitude From Seismic Intensity Data
• Dependence of Earthquakes on the Human Factor
• A Surprisingly Good Measure of Earthquake Ground Motion
• Recent Studies of Historical Earthquake-Induced Landsliding, Ground Damage in New Zealand
• Business Losses, Transportation Damage, and the Northridge Earthquake
• Difference Between Earthquake Magnitude and Earthquake
• Using Earthquake Intensities to Forecast Earthquake Occurrence Times
• Corporate Philanthropy: Insights From the Wenchuan Earthquake in China
• Crisis Communication During Volcanic Emergencies: Japanese Earthquake
• Earthquake Hazard and the Environmental Seismic Intensity Scale
• Earthquake Magnitude Time Series: Scaling Behavior of Visibility Networks
• Regional Relationships Among Earthquake Magnitude Scales
• Impact and Lessons Learned From the Japanese Earthquake
• Earthquake Planning and Decision Support Systems
• A Probabilistic Neural Network for Earthquake Magnitude Prediction
• Effects of Earthquake on the Surrounding Environment
• Earthquake Risk Assessment for the Building Inventory
• A Criterion for Determining Exceedance of the Operating Basis Earthquake
• Living With Earthquake and Flood Hazards
• Statistical Models for Earthquake Occurrences and Residual Analysis for Point Processes
• Fiscal and Social Costs of Recovery Programs for an Earthquake Disaster
• Correlation Between Earthquake Intensity Parameters and Damage Indices of High-Rise RC Chimneys
• Real-Time Seismology and Earthquake Damage Mitigation
• Routine Data Processing in Earthquake Seismology
• Fault-Zone Properties and Earthquake Rupture
• Traditional Construction Techniques for Construction of Earthquake Resistant Buildings
• Implementing New Loan Programs for an Earthquake
• Earthquake Risk Mitigation: The Impact of Seismic Retrofitting Strategies on Urban Resilience
• New Possible Earthquake Precursor and Initial Area for Satellite Monitoring
• Federal State and Local First Responders Earthquake
• Interdependency Amongst Earthquake Magnitudes in Southern California
• Influence of Fluids and Magma on Earthquakes: Seismological Evidence
• Network Similarity and Statistical Analysis of Earthquake Seismic Data
• Statistics of Earthquake Activity: Models and Methods for Earthquake Predictability Studies
• Superbrittleness of Rocks and Earthquake Activity
• Why Do Earthquakes Occur in the Lithosphere?
• What Is the Relationship Between Earthquakes and Plate Tectonics?
• What Conditions Need to Be Present in Order for an Earthquake to Occur?
• Where Was the Deadliest Earthquake?
• What Is the Medium of Earthquake Waves?
• How Is the Amount of Energy Released During an Earthquake Measured?
• What Is the Difference Between an Earthquake and a Fault?
• Where Is the Safest Place to Be During an Earthquake?
• What Does the Magnitude of an Earthquake Mean?
• What Is the Source of Energy for an Earthquake?
• What Tectonic Plates Caused the Haiti Earthquake?
• Does an Earthquake Form Only in the Continental Crust?
• What Information Does an Epicenter Provide About an Earthquake?
• Why Is the Shaking Close to an Earthquake’s Epicenter More Severe?
• Do Earthquakes Cause Volcanoes to Erupt?
• How Are an Earthquake’s Fault Focus and Epicenter Related?
• How Do Tectonic Plates Cause Earthquakes and Volcanoes?
• Why Do Most Earthquakes Occur Along Tectonic Plate Boundaries?
• What Type of Fault Caused the Japan Earthquake in 2011?
• What Is Soil Liquefaction During Earthquake Motion?
• Why Are Earthquakes Mechanical Waves?
• How Do Earthquake Locations Support the Theory of Plate Tectonics?
• What Energy Is Released by an Earthquake?
• Why Don’t Insurance Companies Usually Offer Earthquake Insurance?
• Do Earthquakes Typically Occur Along Passive Continental Margins?
• How Do Geologists Locate the Epicenter of an Earthquake?
• What Geologic Cycle Is an Earthquake In?
• What Is the Social and Economic Impacts of Earthquake?
• Why Are Large Earthquakes Less Common Than Small Earthquakes?
• How Do Earthquakes Affect the Earth’s Crust?

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Collection  09 December 2022

A multi-disciplinary view on earthquake science

Earthquakes are a major natural hazard, potentially affecting millions of people globally every year. Researchers integrate field, laboratory and modelling data to better understand the underlying physical mechanisms of earthquakes. This will help us to ultimately improve our earthquake mitigation measures and hazard planning.

In this collection, we celebrate the achievements of the earthquake research community and showcase publications from Nature Communications on this topic, including a Q&A bringing together four seismologists with various research foci.

Earthquakes are a natural hazard affecting millions of people globally every year. Researchers are working on understanding the mechanisms of earthquakes and how we can predict them from various angles, such as experimental work, theoretical modeling, and machine learning. We invited Marie Violay (EPFL Lausanne), Annemarie Baltay (USGS), Bertrand Rouet-Leduc (Kyoto University) and David Kammer (ETH Zürich) to discuss how such a multi-disciplinary approach can advance our understanding of Earthquakes.

Modeling in seismology

Machine learning and earthquake forecasting—next steps

A new generation of earthquake catalogs developed through supervised machine-learning illuminates earthquake activity with unprecedented detail. Application of unsupervised machine learning to analyze the more complete expression of seismicity in these catalogs may be the fastest route to improving earthquake forecasting.

• Gregory C. Beroza
• Margarita Segou
• S. Mostafa Mousavi

Revealing the spatiotemporal complexity of the magnitude distribution and b -value during an earthquake sequence

The authors introduce a new perspective to study the spatiotemporal behavior of the magnitude–frequency distribution: spatially isolating seismogenic zones to provide an appropriate scale to resolve the b-value. Among those zones, the b-value behaved remarkably throughout the 2016 central Italy sequence.

• Marcus Herrmann
• Ester Piegari
• Warner Marzocchi

Earthquake breakdown energy scaling despite constant fracture energy

Earthquake breakdown energy is commonly interpreted as a proxy for fracture energy but is observed to scale with magnitude. Here the authors show that a scale-independent stress overshoot, as seen in the 3D dynamic earthquake rupture simulations, leads to comparable scaling despite constant fault fracture energy.

• Gregory C. McLaskey
• David S. Kammer

Predicting fault slip via transfer learning

By teaching machine learning models with earthquake fault numerical simulations laboratory fault slip is predictable. Training the model further with a snippet of laboratory data improves predictions suggesting an approach to probing faults in Earth.

• Christopher W. Johnson
• Paul A. Johnson

Autonomous extraction of millimeter-scale deformation in InSAR time series using deep learning

A deep neural network is developed to automatically extract ground deformation from Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar time series. Applied to data over the North Anatolian Fault, the method can detect 2 mm deformation transients and reveals a slow earthquake twice as extensive as previously recognized.

• Bertrand Rouet-Leduc
• Romain Jolivet
• Claudia Hulbert

Real-time determination of earthquake focal mechanism via deep learning

The authors here present a deep learning method to determine the source focal mechanism of earthquakes in realtime. They trained their network with approximately 800k synthetic samples and managed to successfully estimate the focal mechanism of four 2019 Ridgecrest earthquakes with magnitudes larger than Mw 5.4.

• Wenhuan Kuang
• Congcong Yuan

Aftershocks are fluid-driven and decay rates controlled by permeability dynamics

In this study, the authors propose that a fluid rich environment is necessary to generate long-lasting aftershock sequences. Based on this premise, the study presents a theory for modeling fluid-driven earthquake sequences

• Stephen A. Miller

Fault valving and pore pressure evolution in simulations of earthquake sequences and aseismic slip

Coupling between fault zone fluid flow, permeability evolution, and elastic stress transfer produces fault valving and fluid-driven aseismic slip and pore pressure pulses. This model might explain late interseismic fault unlocking, slow slip, and rapid pressure transmission in induced seismicity.

• Weiqiang Zhu
• Kali L. Allison

Earthquake transformer—an attentive deep-learning model for simultaneous earthquake detection and phase picking

The authors here present a deep learning model that simultaneously detects earthquake signals and measures seismic-phase arrival times. The model performs particularly well for cases with high background noise and the challenging task of picking the S wave arrival.

• William L. Ellsworth

Clustering earthquake signals and background noises in continuous seismic data with unsupervised deep learning

The authors here tackle the problem that too much seismic data is acquired worldwide to be evaluated in a timely fashion. Seydoux and colleagues develop a machine learning framework that can detect and cluster seismic signals in continuous seismic records.

• Léonard Seydoux
• Randall Balestriero
• Richard Baraniuk

Automated design of a convolutional neural network with multi-scale filters for cost-efficient seismic data classification

The authors present an automated design approach to propose a new neural network architecture for seismic data analysis. The new architecture classifies multiple seismic reflection datasets at extremely low computational cost compared with conventional architectures for image classification.

• Yanfei Wang

Obtaining free USArray data by multi-dimensional seismic reconstruction

The USArray of EarthScope is a seismic broadband network acquiring global seismic data. Here, the authors apply an iterative rank-reduction method to obtain free earthquake data at locations where no seismic stations are available as well as enhancing existing data recorded by the USArray.

• Yangkang Chen
• Yunfeng Chen

Forecasting the magnitude of the largest expected earthquake

Forecasting aftershock earthquakes is a critical step in improving seismic hazard mitigation. The authors here combine Bayesian methods with extreme value theory to tackle this problem - and manage to estimate the maximum magnitude of an expected earthquake as well as the arrival times in a pre-defined window.

• Robert Shcherbakov
• Jiancang Zhuang
• Yosihiko Ogata

Into the field

Linking the scaling of tremor and slow slip near Parkfield, CA

Huang and Hawthorne present new evidence supporting that tremor and slow slip are linked by the same moment-duration scaling. First-order implications would include that tremor and slow slip are likely generated by the same fault zone process.

• Jessica C. Hawthorne

Megathrust reflectivity reveals the updip limit of the 2014 Iquique earthquake rupture

The rupture area of the 2014 Iquique earthquake offshore northern Chile was spatially limited to a region where the plate boundary is non-reflective in seismic images, indicative of low fluid pressure. In contrast, north and updip of the rupture area, a coherent highly reflective plate boundary indicates excess fluid pressure, which may inhibit strain accumulation, while strain release in the non-reflective rupture area occurs during large earthquakes.

• Jacob Geersen
• Heidrun Kopp

Shallow slow earthquakes to decipher future catastrophic earthquakes in the Guerrero seismic gap

New offshore observations in the Guerrero seismic gap discovered shallow slow earthquakes, which suggest that a portion of the plate interface undergoes stable slip. This may explain the long return period of large earthquakes and why have previous large earthquakes not propagated into the gap.

• R. Plata-Martinez

Short-term interaction between silent and devastating earthquakes in Mexico

This study shows how seismic and aseismic events are related in Mexico between 2017 and 2019. Based on a series of observations and models, the study suggests that the Mw 8.2 intraslab earthquake of 8 September 2017 severely altered the mechanical properties of the plate interface, facilitating the interaction between the events and disrupting the slow slip cycles at a regional scale.

• V. M. Cruz-Atienza
• E. Kazachkina

Near-surface softening and healing in eastern Honshu associated with the 2011 magnitude-9 Tohoku-Oki Earthquake

The authors here investigate the stiffness reduction of solid geomaterials during earthquakes via combining field, experimental and numerical data. The study shows multiple metastable contacts at small surface separations below a few diameters of a water molecule due to the oscillatory hydration interaction.

• Su-Yang Wang
• Hai-Yang Zhuang

Were changes in stress state responsible for the 2019 Ridgecrest, California, earthquakes?

Based on b -value mapping, the author proposes the high likelihood of future rupture in the area of the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquakes.

• K. Z. Nanjo

Tomography of the source zone of the great 2011 Tohoku earthquake

Using data recorded by a new seafloor seismic network, the authors reveal the detailed 3D structure of the source zone of the great 2011 Tohoku-oki earthquake, which sheds new light on the mechanism of the great earthquake and tsunami.

• Yuanyuan Hua
• Dapeng Zhao

Cascading and pulse-like ruptures during the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquakes in the Eastern California Shear Zone

The authors here investigate in the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquakes in Searles Valley, California. Based on geodetic and seismological data, the authors separate the event into two earthquakes (Mw 6.5 and 7.1) and produce kinematic slip models of the event.

• Jean-Philippe Avouac

Interseismic strain build-up on the submarine North Anatolian Fault offshore Istanbul

The state of the Main Marmara Fault (fault segment of the North Anatolian Fault) is widely discussed, towards whether it is creeping or locked. The authors here present seafloor geodetic measurements which indicate a complete locking of the fault in the central part of the Sea of Marmara. This provides significant information for the assessment of both seismic and potential tsunami hazard to Istanbul.

• Dietrich Lange

Dynamic viability of the 2016 Mw 7.8 Kaikōura earthquake cascade on weak crustal faults

The 2016 Kaikōura earthquake in New Zealand raised the discussion about how a complex fault system operates. Here the authors propose a dynamic rupture scenario that reproduces key characteristics of the event and show that the fault system works at low apparent friction.

• Thomas Ulrich
• Alice-Agnes Gabriel

Earthquakes in the lab

Creep fronts and complexity in laboratory earthquake sequences illuminate delayed earthquake triggering

Laboratory earthquake experiments reproduce delayed earthquake triggering, similar to aftershocks, as a result of propagating slow slip fronts. The speed of the fronts can be highly sensitive to fault stress levels left behind by previous earthquakes.

• Sara Beth L. Cebry

Seismic events miss important kinematically governed grain scale mechanisms during shear failure of porous rock

Sound and Vision: In-situ synchrotron x-ray imaging with simultaneous acoustic monitoring captures grain scale damage mechanisms and unlocks the relationship between seismic and aseismic processes during catastrophic failure of porous rock.

• Alexis Cartwright-Taylor
• Maria-Daphne Mangriotis
• Oxana V. Magdysyuk

Fault rock heterogeneity can produce fault weakness and reduce fault stability

This paper shows that faults comprised of heterogeneously distributed materials, as is typical for tectonic faults in nature, are weaker and more unstable than equivalent faults where the materials are homogeneously mixed together.

• John D. Bedford
• Daniel R. Faulkner
• Nadia Lapusta

Nanometric flow and earthquake instability

Extremely fine-grained fault rocks are intrinsically weak and behave as fluids even at low temperatures and fast deformation rates. Local production of fine-grained material during fault movement can lead to an earthquake instability.

Two end-member earthquake preparations illuminated by foreshock activity on a meter-scale laboratory fault

By tuning fault surface heterogeneity, the authors report earthquake preparation processes respectively driven by preslip and cascade-up on a meter-scale laboratory fault. The findings suggest that foreshock activity can be useful for predicting when and how the impending mainshock will occur.

• Futoshi Yamashita
• Eiichi Fukuyama
• Shigeru Takizawa

Initial effective stress controls the nature of earthquakes

The authors show that seismogenic faults can be activated by stress perturbations by all possible modes of slip independently of the frictional properties. They demonstrate, that the nature of seismicity is mostly governed by the initial stress level along the faults.

• François X. Passelègue
• Michelle Almakari
• Marie Violay

Mechanical behaviour of fluid-lubricated faults

The effect of fluid viscosity on fault mechanics is mainly conjectured by theoretical models. Here, the authors present experimental data from rock friction experiments, showing both static and dynamic friction coefficients to decrease with viscosity and dynamic friction to depend on the Sommerfeld number.

• C. Cornelio
• E. Spagnuolo

Earthquake lubrication and healing explained by amorphous nanosilica

Tectonic faults weaken during slip in order to accelerate and produce earthquakes. Here the authors show a mechanism for weakening faults through the transformation of quartz to amorphous nanoparticulate wear powders that lubricate friction experiments, and transform back to quartz under geologic conditions.

• Christie D. Rowe
• Kelsey Lamothe
• Stefano Aretusini

Quick links

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National Earthquake Resilience: Research, Implementation, and Outreach (2011)

Chapter: 1 introduction.

1 Introduction

When a strong earthquake hits an urban area, structures collapse, people are injured or killed, infrastructure is disrupted, and business interruption begins. The immediate impacts caused by an earthquake can be devastating to a community, challenging it to launch rescue efforts, restore essential services, and initiate the process of recovery. The ability of a community to recover from such a disaster reflects its resilience, and it is the many factors that contribute to earthquake resilience that are the focus of this report. Specifically, we provide a roadmap for building community resilience within the context of the Strategic Plan of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP), a program first authorized by Congress in 1977 to coordinate the efforts of four federal agencies—National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), National Science Foundation (NSF), and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

The three most recent earthquake disasters in the United States all occurred in California—in 1994 near Los Angeles at Northridge, in 1989 near San Francisco centered on Loma Prieta, and in 1971 near Los Angeles at San Fernando. In each earthquake, large buildings and major highways were heavily damaged or collapsed and the economic activity in the afflicted area was severely disrupted. Remarkably, despite the severity of damage, deaths numbered fewer than a hundred for each event. Moreover, in a matter of days or weeks, these communities had restored many essential services or worked around major problems, completed rescue efforts, and economic activity—although impaired—had begun to recover. It could be argued that these communities were, in fact, quite resilient. But

it should be emphasized that each of these earthquakes was only moderate to strong in size, less than magnitude-7, and that the impacted areas were limited in size. How well would these communities cope with a magnitude-8 earthquake? What lessons can be drawn from the resilience demonstrated for a moderate earthquake in preparing for a great one?

Perhaps experience in dealing with hurricane disasters would be instructive in this regard. In a typical year, a few destructive hurricanes make landfall in the United States. Most of them cause moderate structural damage, some flooding, limited disruption of services—usually loss of power—and within a few days, activity returns to near normal. However, when Hurricane Katrina struck the New Orleans region in 2005 and caused massive flooding and long-term evacuation of much of the population, the response capabilities were stretched beyond their limits. Few observers would argue that New Orleans, at least in the short term, was a resilient community in the face of that event.

Would an earthquake on the scale of the 1906 event in northern California or the 1857 event in southern California lead to a similar catastrophe? It is likely that an earthquake on the scale of these events in California would indeed lead to a catastrophe similar to hurricane Katrina, but of a significantly different nature. Flooding, of course, would not be the main hazard, but substantial casualties, collapse of structures, fires, and economic disruption could be of great consequence. Similarly, what would happen if there were to be a repeat of the New Madrid earthquakes of 1811-1812, in view of the vulnerability of the many bridges and chemical facilities in the region and the substantial barge traffic on the Mississippi River? Or, consider the impact if an earthquake like the 1886 Charleston tremor struck in other areas in the central or eastern United States, where earthquake-prone, unreinforced masonry structures abound and earthquake preparedness is not a prime concern? The resilience of communities and regions, and the steps—or roadmap—that could be taken to ensure that areas at risk become earthquake resilient, are the subject of this report.

EARTHQUAKE RISK AND HAZARD

Earthquakes proceed as cascades, in which the primary effects of faulting and ground shaking induce secondary effects such as landslides, liquefaction, and tsunami, which in turn set off destructive processes within the built environment such as fires and dam failures (NRC, 2003). The socioeconomic effects of large earthquakes can reverberate for decades.

The seismic hazard for a specified site is a probabilistic forecast of how intense the earthquake effects will be at that site. In contrast, seismic risk is a probabilistic forecast of the damage to society that will be caused by earthquakes, usually measured in terms of casualties and economic losses in a

specified area integrated over the post-earthquake period. Risk depends on the hazard, but it is compounded by a community’s exposure —its population and the extent and density of its built environment—as well as the fragility of its built environment, population, and socioeconomic systems to seismic hazards. Exposure and fragility contribute to vulnerability . Risk is lowered by resiliency , the measure of how efficiently and how quickly a community can recover from earthquake damage.

Risk analysis seeks to quantify the risk equation in a framework that allows the impact of political policies and economic investments to be evaluated, to inform the decision-making processes that contribute to risk reduction. Risk quantification is a difficult problem, because it requires detailed knowledge of the natural and the built environments, as well as an understanding of both earthquake and human behaviors. Moreover, national risk is a dynamic concept because of the exponential rise in the urban exposure to seismic hazards (EERI, 2003b)—calculating risk involves predictions of highly uncertain demographic trends.

Estimating Losses from Earthquakes

The synoptic earthquake risk studies needed for policy formulation are the responsibility of NEHRP. These studies can take the form of deterministic or scenario studies where the effects of a single earthquake are modeled, or probabilistic studies that weight the effects from a number of different earthquake scenarios by the annual likelihood of their occurrence. The consequences are measured in terms of dollars of damage, fatalities, injuries, tons of debris generated, ecological damage, etc. The exposure period may be defined as the design lifetime of a building or some other period of interest (e.g., 50 years). Typically, seismic risk estimates are presented in terms of an exceedance probability (EP) curve (Kunreuther et al., 2004), which shows the probability that specific parameters will equal or exceed specified values ( Figure 1.1 ). On this figure, a loss estimate calculated for a specific scenario earthquake is represented by a horizontal slice through the EP curve, while estimates of annualized losses from earthquakes are portrayed by the area under the EP curve.

The 2008 Great California ShakeOut exercise in southern California is an example of a scenario study that describes what would happen during and after a magnitude-7.8 earthquake on the southernmost 300 km of the San Andreas Fault ( Figure 1.2 ), a plausible event on the fault that is most likely to produce a major earthquake. Analysis of the 2008 ShakeOut scenario, which involved more than 5,000 emergency responders and the participation of more than 5.5 million citizens, indicated that the scenario earthquake would have resulted in an estimated 1,800 fatalities, $113 billion in damages to buildings and lifelines, and nearly $70 billion in busi-

FIGURE 1.1 Sample mean EP curve, showing that for a specified event the probability of insured losses exceeding L i is given by p i . SOURCE: Kunreuther et al. (2004).

ness interruption (Jones et al., 2008; Rose et al., in press). The broad areal extent and long duration of water service outages was the main contributor to business interruption losses. Moreover, the scenario is essentially a compound event like Hurricane Katrina, with the projected urban fires caused by gas main breaks and other types of induced accidents projected to cause $40 billion of the property damage and more than $22 billion of the business interruption. Devastating fires occurred in the wake of the 1906 San Francisco, 1923 Tokyo, and 1995 Kobe earthquakes.

Loss estimates have been published for a range of earthquake scenarios based on historic events—e.g., the 1906 San Francisco earthquake (Kircher et al., 2006); the 1811/1812 New Madrid earthquakes (Elnashai et al., 2009); and the magnitude-9 Cascadia subduction earthquake of 1700 (CREW, 2005)—or inferred from geologic data that show the magnitudes and locations of prehistoric fault ruptures (e.g., the Puente Hills blind thrust that runs beneath central Los Angeles; Field et al., 2005). In all cases, the results from such estimates are staggering, with economic losses that run into the hundreds of billions of dollars.

FEMA’s latest estimate of Annualized Earthquake Loss (AEL) for the nation (FEMA, 2008) is an example of a probabilistic study—an estimate of national earthquake risk that used HAZUS-MH software ( Box 1.1 ) together with input from Census 2000 data and the 2002 USGS National Seismic Hazard Map. The current AEL estimate of $5.3 billion (2005$)

FIGURE 1.2 A “ShakeMap” representing the shaking produced by the scenario earthquake on which the Great California ShakeOut was based. The colors represent the Modified Mercalli Intensity, with warmer colors representing areas of greater damage. SOURCE: USGS. Available at earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/shakemap/sc/shake/ShakeOut2_full_se/ .

reflects building-related direct economic losses including damage to buildings and their contents, commercial inventories, as well as damaged building-related income losses (e.g., wage losses, relocation costs, rental income losses, etc.), but does not include indirect economic losses or losses to lifeline systems. For comparison, the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) (2003b) extrapolated the FEMA (2001) estimate of AEL ($4.4 billion) for residential and commercial building-related direct economic losses by a factor of 2.5 to include indirect economic losses, the social costs of death and injury, as well as direct and indirect losses to the

BOX 1.1 HAZUS ® —Risk Metrics for NEHRP

The ability to monitor and compare seismic risk across states and regions is critical to the management of NEHRP. At the state and local level, an understanding of seismic risk is important for planning and for evaluating costs and benefits associated with building codes, as well as a variety of other prevention measures. HAZUS is Geographic Information System (GIS) software for earthquake loss estimation that was developed by FEMA in cooperation with the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS). HAZUS-MH (Hazards U.S.-Multi-Hazard) was released in 2003 to include wind and flood hazards in addition to the earthquake hazards that were the subject of the 1997 and 1999 HAZUS releases. Successive HAZUS maintenance releases (MR) have been made available by FEMA since the initial HAZUS-MH MR-1 release; the latest version, HAZUS-MH MR-5, was released in December 2010.

Annualized Earthquake Loss (AEL) is the estimated long-term average of earthquake losses in any given year for a specific location. Studies by FEMA based on the 1990 and 2000 censuses provide two “snapshots” of seismic risk in the United States (FEMA, 2001, 2008). These studies, together with an earlier analysis of the 1970 census by Petak and Atkisson (1982), show that the estimated national AEL increased from $781 million (1970$) to $4.7 billion (2000$)—or by about 40 percent—over four decades ( Figure 1.3 ). All three studies used building-related direct economic losses and included structural and nonstructural replacement costs, contents damage, business inventory losses, and direct business interruption losses.

industrial, manufacturing, transportation, and utility sectors to arrive at an annual average financial loss in excess of $10 billion.

Although the need to address earthquake risk is now accepted in many communities, the ability to identify and act on specific hazard and risk issues can be improved by reducing the uncertainties in the risk equation. Large ranges in loss estimates generally stem from two types of uncertainty—the natural variability assigned to earthquake processes ( aleatory uncertainty ), as well as a lack of knowledge of the true hazards and risks involved ( epistemic uncertainty ). Uncertainties are associated with the methodologies, the assumptions, and databases used to estimate the ground motions and building inventories, the modeling of building responses, and the correlation of expected economic and social losses to the estimated physical damages.

FIGURE 1.3 Growth of seismic risk in the United States. Annualized Earthquake Loss (AEL) estimates are shown for the census year on which the estimate is based, in census year dollars. Estimate for 1970 census from Petak and Atkinson (1982); HAZUS-99 estimate for 1990 census from FEMA (2001); and HAZUS-MH estimate for 2000 census from FEMA (2008). Consumer Price Index (CPI) dollar adjustments based on CPI inflation calculator (see data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl ).

Comparison of published risk estimates reveals the sensitivity of such estimates to varying inputs, such as soil types and ground motion attenuation models, or building stock inventories and damage calculations. The basic earth science and geotechnical research and data that the NEHRP agencies provide to communities help to reduce these types of epistemic uncertainty, whereas an understanding of the intrinsic aleatory uncertainty is achieved through scientific research into the processes that cause earthquakes. Accurate loss estimation models increase public confidence in making seismic risk management decisions. Until the uncertainties surrounding the EP curve in Figure 1.1 are reduced, there will be either unnecessary or insufficient emergency response planning and mitigation because the experts in these areas will be unable to inform decision-makers of the probabilities and potential outcomes with an appropriate degree of

confidence (NRC, 2006a). Information about new and rehabilitated buildings and infrastructure, coupled with improved seismic hazard maps, can allow policy-makers to track incremental reductions in risk and improvements in safety through earthquake mitigation programs (NRC, 2006b).

NEHRP ACCOMPLISHMENTS—THE PAST 30 YEARS

In its 30 years of existence, NEHRP has provided a focused, coordinated effort toward developing a knowledge base for addressing the earthquake threat. The following summary of specific accomplishments from the earth sciences and engineering fields are based on the 2008 NEHRP Strategic Plan (NIST, 2008):

• Improved understanding of earthquake processes. Basic research and earthquake monitoring have significantly advanced the understanding of the geologic processes that cause earthquakes, the characteristics of earthquake faults, the nature of seismicity, and the propagation of seismic waves. This understanding has been incorporated into seismic hazard assessments, earthquake potential assessments, building codes and design criteria, rapid assessments of earthquake impacts, and scenarios for risk mitigation and response planning.

• Improved earthquake hazard assessment. Improvements in the National Seismic Hazard Maps have been developed through a scientifically defensible and repeatable process that involves peer input and review at regional and national levels by expert and user communities. Once based on six broad zones, they now are based on a grid of seismic hazard assessments at some 150,000 sites throughout the country. The new maps, first developed in 1996, are periodically updated and form the basis for the Design Ground Motion Maps used in the NEHRP Recommended Provisions for Seismic Regulations for New Buildings and Other Structures, the foundation for the seismic elements of model building codes.

• Improved earthquake risk assessment. Development of earthquake hazard- and risk-assessment techniques for use throughout the United States has improved awareness of earthquake impacts on communities. NEHRP funds have supported the development and continued refinement of HAZUS-MH. The successful NEHRP-supported integration of earthquake risk-assessment and loss-estimation methodologies with earthquake hazard assessments and notifications has provided significant benefits for both emergency response and community planning. Moreover, major advances in risk assessment and hazard loss estimation beyond what could be included in a software package for general users were developed by the three NSF-supported earthquake engineering centers.

• Improved earthquake safety in design and construction. Earthquake safety in new buildings has been greatly improved through the adoption, in whole or in part, of earthquake-resistant national model building codes by state and local governments in all 50 states. Development of advanced earthquake engineering technologies for use in design and construction has greatly improved the cost-effectiveness of earthquake-resistant design and construction while giving options with predicted decision consequences. These techniques include new methods for reducing the seismic risk associated with nonstructural components, base isolation methods for dissipating seismic energy in buildings, and performance-based design approaches.

• Improved earthquake safety for existing buildings. NEHRP-led research, development of engineering guidelines, and implementation activities associated with existing buildings have led to the first generation of consensus-based national standards for evaluating and rehabilitating existing buildings. This work provided the basis for two American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) standards documents: ASCE 31 (Seismic Evaluation of Existing Buildings) and ASCE 41 (Seismic Rehabilitation of Existing Buildings).

• Development of partnerships for public awareness and earthquake mitigation. NEHRP has developed and sustained partnerships with state and local governments, professional groups, and multi-state earthquake consortia to improve public awareness of the earthquake threat and support the development of sound earthquake mitigation policies.

• Improved development and dissemination of earthquake information. There is now a greatly increased body of earthquake-related information available to public- and private-sector officials and the general public. This comes through effective documentation, earthquake response exercises, learning-from-earthquake activities, publications on earthquake safety, training, education, and information on general earthquake phenomena and means to reduce their impact. Millions of earthquake preparedness handbooks have been delivered to at-risk populations, and many of these handbooks have been translated from English into languages most easily understood by large sectors of the population. NEHRP now maintains a website 1 that provides information on the program and communicates regularly with the earthquake professional community through the monthly electronic newsletter, Seismic Waves.

• Improved notification of earthquakes. The USGS National Earthquake Information Center and regional networks, all elements of the Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS), now provide earthquake

_________________

1 See www.nehrp.gov .

alerts describing a magnitude and location within a few minutes after an earthquake. The USGS PAGER system 2 provides estimates of the number of people and the names of cities exposed to shaking, with corresponding levels of impact shown by the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale and estimates of the number of fatalities and economic loss, following significant earthquakes worldwide ( Figure 1.4 ). When coupled with graphic ShakeMaps 3 showing the distribution and severity of ground shaking (e.g., Chapter 3 , Figure 3.2 ), this information is essential for effective emergency response, infrastructure management, and recovery planning.

• Expanded training and education of earthquake professionals. Thousands of graduates of U.S. colleges and universities have benefited from their involvement and experiences with NEHRP-supported research projects and training activities. Those graduates now form the nucleus of America’s earthquake professional community.

• Development of advanced data collection and research facilities. NEHRP took the lead in developing ANSS and the George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES). Through these initiatives, NEES now forms a national infrastructure for testing geotechnical, structural, and nonstructural systems, and once completed, ANSS will provide a comprehensive, nationwide system for monitoring seismicity and collecting data on earthquake shaking on the ground and in structures. NEHRP also has participated in the development of the Global Seismographic Network to provide data on seismic events worldwide.

As well as this list of important accomplishments cited in the 2008 NEHRP Strategic Plan, the following range of NEHRP accomplishments in the social science arena were described in NRC (2006a):

• Development of a comparative research framework. Largely supported by NEHRP, over the past three decades social scientists increasingly have placed the study of earthquakes within a comparative framework that includes other natural, technological, and willful events. This evolving framework calls for the integration of hazards and disaster research within the social sciences and among social science, natural science, and engineering disciplines.

• Documentation of community and regional vulnerability to earthquakes and other natural hazards. Under NEHRP sponsorship, social science knowledge has expanded greatly in terms of data on community and regional exposure and vulnerability to earthquakes and other natural hazards, such that the foundation has been established for devel-

2 See earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/pager/ .

3 See earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/shakemap/ .

FIGURE 1.4 Sample PAGER output for the strong and damaging February 2011 earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand. SOURCE: USGS. Available at earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/pager/events/us/b0001igm/index.html .

oping more precise loss estimation models and related decision support tools (e.g., HAZUS). The vulnerabilities are increasingly documented through state-of-the-art geospatial and temporal methods (e.g., GIS, remote sensing, and visual overlays of hazardous areas with demographic information), and the resulting data are equally relevant to pre-, trans-, and post-disaster social science investigations.

• Household and business-sector adoption of self-protective measures. A solid knowledge base has been developed under NEHRP at the household level on vulnerability assessment, risk communication, warning response (e.g., evacuation), and the adoption of other forms of protective action (e.g., emergency food and water supplies, fire extinguishers, procedures and tools to cut off utilities, hazard insurance). Adoption of these and other self-protective measures has been modeled systematically, highlighting the importance of disaster experience and perceptions of personal risk (i.e., beliefs about household vulnerability to and consequences of specific events) and, to a lesser extent, demographic variables (e.g., income, education, home ownership) and social influences (e.g., communications patterns and observations of what other people are doing). Although research on adoption of self-protective measures of businesses is much more limited, recent experience of disaster-related business or lifeline interruptions has been shown to be correlated with greater preparedness activities, at least in the short run. Such preparedness activities are more likely to occur in larger as opposed to smaller commercial enterprises.

• Public-sector adoption of disaster mitigation measures. Most NEHRP-sponsored social science research has focused on the politics of hazard mitigation as they relate to intergovernmental issues in land-use regulations. The highly politicized nature of these regulations has been well documented, particularly when multiple layers of government are involved. Governmental conflicts regarding responsibility for the land-use practices of households and businesses are compounded by the involvement of other stakeholders (e.g., bankers, developers, industry associations, professional associations, other community activists, and emergency management practitioners). The results are complex social networks of power relationships that constrain the adoption of hazard mitigation policies and practices at local and regional levels.

• Hazard insurance issues. NEHRP-sponsored social research has documented many difficulties in developing and maintaining an actuarially sound insurance program for earthquakes and floods—those who are most likely to purchase earthquake and flood insurance are, in fact, those who are most likely to file claims. This problem makes it virtually impossible to sustain an insurance market in the private sector for these hazards. Economists and psychologists have documented in laboratory studies

a number of logical deficiencies in the way people process information related to risks as it relates to insurance decision-making. Market failure in earthquake and flood insurance remains an important social science research and public policy issue.

• Public-sector adoption of disaster emergency and recovery preparedness measures. NEHRP-sponsored social science studies of emergency preparedness have addressed the extent of local support for disaster preparedness, management strategies for improving the effectiveness of community preparedness, the increasing use of computer and communications technologies in disaster planning and training, the structure of community preparedness networks, and the effects of disaster preparedness on both pre-determined (e.g., improved warning response and evacuation behavior) and improvised (e.g., effective ad hoc uses of personnel and resources) responses during actual events. Thus far there has been little social science research on the disaster recovery aspect of preparedness.

• Social impacts of disasters. A solid body of social science research supported by NEHRP has documented the destructive impacts of disasters on residential dwellings and the processes people go through in housing recovery (emergency shelter, temporary sheltering, temporary housing, and permanent housing), as well as analogous impacts on businesses. Documented specifically are the problems faced by low-income households, which tend to be headed disproportionately by females and racial or ethnic minorities. Notably, there has been little social science research under NEHRP on the impacts of disasters on other aspects of the built environment. There is a substantial research literature on the psychological, social, and economic and (to a lesser extent) political impacts of disaster, which suggests that these impacts, while not random within impacted populations, are generally modest and transitory.

• Post-disaster responses by the public and private sectors. Research before and since the establishment of NEHRP in 1977 has contradicted misconceptions that during disasters, panic will be widespread, that large percentages of those who are expected to respond will simply abandon disaster relief roles, that local institutions will break down, that crime and other forms of anti-social behavior will be rampant, and that the mental impairment of victims and first responders will be a major problem. Existing and ongoing research is documenting and modeling the mix of expected and improvised responses by emergency management personnel, the public and private organizations of which they are members, and the multi-organizational networks within which these individual and organizational responses are nested. As a result of this research, a range of decision support tools is now being developed for emergency management practitioners.

• Post-disaster reconstruction and recovery by the public and private sectors. Prior to NEHRP relatively little was known about disas-

ter recovery processes and outcomes at different levels of analysis (e.g., households, neighborhoods, firms, communities, and regions). NEHRP-funded projects have helped to refine general conceptions of disaster recovery, made important contributions in understanding the recovery of households and communities (primarily) and businesses (more recently), and contributed to the development of statistically based community and regional models of post-disaster losses and recovery processes.

• Research on resilience has been a major theme of the NSF-supported earthquake research centers. The Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (MCEER) sponsored research providing operational definitions of resilience, measuring its cost and effectiveness, and designing policies to implement it at the level of the individual household, business, government, and nongovernment institution. The Mid-American Earthquake Center (MAE) sponsored research on the promotion of earthquake-resilient regions.

ROADMAP CONTEXT—THE EERI REPORT AND NEHRP STRATEGIC PLAN

The 2008 NEHRP Strategic Plan calls for an accelerated effort to develop community resilience. The plan defines a vision of “a nation that is earthquake resilient in public safety, economic strength, and national security,” and articulates the NEHRP mission “to develop, disseminate, and promote knowledge, tools, and practices for earthquake risk reduction—through coordinated, multidisciplinary, interagency partnerships among NEHRP agencies and their stakeholders—that improve the Nation’s earthquake resilience in public safety, economic, strength, and national security.” The plan identifies three goals with fourteen objectives (listed below), plus nine strategic priorities (presented in Appendix A ).

Goal A: Improve understanding of earthquake processes and impacts.

Objective 1: Advance understanding of earthquake phenomena and generation processes.

Objective 2: Advance understanding of earthquake effects on the built environment.

Objective 3: Advance understanding of the social, behavioral, and economic factors linked to implementing risk reduction and mitigation strategies in the public and private sectors.

Objective 4: Improve post-earthquake information acquisition and management.

Goal B: Develop cost-effective measures to reduce earthquake impacts on individuals, the built environment, and society-at-large.

Objective 5: Assess earthquake hazards for research and practical application.

Objective 6: Develop advanced loss estimation and risk assessment tools.

Objective 7: Develop tools that improve the seismic performance of buildings and other structures.

Objective 8: Develop tools that improve the seismic performance of critical infrastructure.

Goal C: Improve the earthquake resilience of communities nationwide.

Objective 9: Improve the accuracy, timeliness, and content of earthquake information products.

Objective 10: Develop comprehensive earthquake risk scenarios and risk assessments.

Objective 11: Support development of seismic standards and building codes and advocate their adoption and enforcement.

Objective 12: Promote the implementation of earthquake-resilient measures in professional practice and in private and public policies.

Objective 13: Increase public awareness of earthquake hazards and risks.

Objective 14: Develop the nation’s human resource base in earthquake safety fields.

Although the Strategic Plan does not specify the activities that would be required to reach its goals, in the initial briefing to the committee NIST, the NEHRP lead agency, described the 2003 report by the EERI, Securing Society Against Catastrophic Earthquake Losses, as at least a starting point. The EERI report lists specific activities—and estimates costs—for a range of research programs (presented in Appendix B ) that are in broad accord with the goals laid out in the 2008 NEHRP Strategic Plan. The committee was asked to review, update, and validate the programs and cost estimates laid out in the EERI report.

COMMITTEE CHARGE AND SCOPE OF THIS STUDY

The National Institute of Standards and Technology—the lead NEHRP agency—commissioned the National Research Council (NRC) to undertake a study to assess the activities, and their costs, that would be required for the nation to achieve earthquake resilience in 20 years ( Box 1.2 ). The charge

BOX 1.2 Statement of Task

A National Research Council committee will develop a roadmap for earthquake hazard and risk reduction in the United States. The committee will frame the road map around the goals and objectives for achieving national earthquake resilience in public safety and economic security stated in the current strategic plan of the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program (NEHRP) submitted to Congress in 2008. This roadmap will be based on an analysis of what will be required to realize the strategic plan’s major technical goals for earthquake resilience within 20 years. In particular, the committee will:

• Host a national workshop focused on assessing the basic and applied research, seismic monitoring, knowledge transfer, implementation, education, and outreach activities needed to achieve national earthquake resilience over a twenty-year period.

• Estimate program costs, on an annual basis, that will be required to implement the roadmap.

• Describe the future sustained activities, such as earthquake monitoring (both for research and for warning), education, and public outreach, which should continue following the 20-year period.

to the committee recognized that there would be a requirement for some sustained activities under the NEHRP program after this 20-year period.

To address the charge, the NRC assembled a committee of 12 experts with disciplinary expertise spanning earthquake and structural engineering; seismology, engineering geology, and earth system science; disaster and emergency management; and the social and economic components of resilience and disaster recovery. Committee biographic information is presented in Appendix C .

The committee held four meetings between May and December, 2009, convening twice in Washington, DC; and also in Irvine, CA; and Chicago, IL (see Appendix D ). The major focal point for community input to the committee was a 2-day open workshop held in August 2009, where concurrent breakout sessions interspersed with plenary addresses enabled the committee to gain a thorough understanding of community perspectives regarding program needs and priorities. Additional briefings by NEHRP agency representatives were presented during open sessions at the initial and final committee meetings.

Report Structure

Building on the 2008 NEHRP Strategic Plan and the EERI report, this report analyses the critical issues affecting resilience, identifies challenges and opportunities in achieving that goal, and recommends specific actions that would comprise a roadmap to community resilience. Because the concept of “resilience” is a fundamental tenet of the roadmap for realizing the major technical goals of the NEHRP Strategic Plan, Chapter 2 presents an analysis of the concept of resilience, a description of the characteristics of a resilient community, resilience metrics, and a description of the benefits to the nation of a resilience-based approach to hazard mitigation. Chapter 3 contains descriptions of the 18 broad, integrated tasks comprising the elements of a roadmap to achieve national earthquake resilience focusing on the specific outcomes that could be achieved in a 20-year timeframe, and the elements realizable within 5 years. These tasks are described in terms of the proposed activity and actions, existing knowledge and current capabilities, enabling requirements, and implementation issues. Costs to implement these 18 tasks are presented in Chapter 4 , in as much detail as possible within the constraint that some components have been the subject of specific, detailed costing exercises whereas others are necessarily broad-brush estimates at this stage. The final chapter briefly summarizes the major elements of the roadmap.

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The United States will certainly be subject to damaging earthquakes in the future. Some of these earthquakes will occur in highly populated and vulnerable areas. Coping with moderate earthquakes is not a reliable indicator of preparedness for a major earthquake in a populated area. The recent, disastrous, magnitude-9 earthquake that struck northern Japan demonstrates the threat that earthquakes pose. Moreover, the cascading nature of impacts-the earthquake causing a tsunami, cutting electrical power supplies, and stopping the pumps needed to cool nuclear reactors-demonstrates the potential complexity of an earthquake disaster. Such compound disasters can strike any earthquake-prone populated area. National Earthquake Resilience presents a roadmap for increasing our national resilience to earthquakes.

The National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) is the multi-agency program mandated by Congress to undertake activities to reduce the effects of future earthquakes in the United States. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)-the lead NEHRP agency-commissioned the National Research Council (NRC) to develop a roadmap for earthquake hazard and risk reduction in the United States that would be based on the goals and objectives for achieving national earthquake resilience described in the 2008 NEHRP Strategic Plan. National Earthquake Resilience does this by assessing the activities and costs that would be required for the nation to achieve earthquake resilience in 20 years.

National Earthquake Resilience interprets resilience broadly to incorporate engineering/science (physical), social/economic (behavioral), and institutional (governing) dimensions. Resilience encompasses both pre-disaster preparedness activities and post-disaster response. In combination, these will enhance the robustness of communities in all earthquake-vulnerable regions of our nation so that they can function adequately following damaging earthquakes. While National Earthquake Resilience is written primarily for the NEHRP, it also speaks to a broader audience of policy makers, earth scientists, and emergency managers.

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Earthquakes

Earthquakes happen every day, but most are so small that humans cannot feel them. Nonetheless, over the past 50 years, earthquakes and the tsunamis and landslides that resulted from them have contributed to millions of injuries and deaths and more than $1 trillion in damage. For nearly a century, Caltech scientists and engineers have led the world in earthquake measurement and monitoring. By informing preparedness and response initiatives, and pioneering innovations in early warning, their work aims to reduce the human toll of these natural disasters. Learn more about earthquake science and engineering.

Earthquakes Terms to Know >

What Happens During an Earthquake?

What causes earthquakes, and what types of earthquakes are there? To answer these questions, it is first helpful to have an understanding of Earth's composition.

How Are Earthquakes Measured?

Two different viewpoints underpin the most important measurements related to earthquakes: magnitude and intensity . To scientists, an earthquake is an event inside the earth. To the rest of us, it is an extraordinary movement of the ground. Magnitude measures the former, while intensity measures the latter.

Can Seismologists Predict Earthquakes?

It is not currently possible to predict exactly when and where an earthquake will occur, nor how large it will be. However, seismologists can estimate where earthquakes may be likely to strike by calculating probabilities and forecasts .

How Could a Major Earthquake Affect Urban Infrastructure?

Megacities are especially vulnerable to earthquakes. Learn about cascading effects and how modeling can minimize the risk of a natural hazard turning into a disaster.

What Happens to Buildings During Earthquakes?

Find out how earthquakes affect houses, high-rises, and other buildings, and which are considered the safest and most dangerous places to be.

How Do We Know What Makes a Building Earthquake Resistant?

Learn how the Community Seismic Network gathers data about how the ground and buildings move to inform safer construction and better damage detection.

EARTHQUAKE PREPAREDNESS

How Do Earthquake Early Warning Systems Work?

Earthquake early warning systems don't predict earthquakes. Instead, they detect ground motion as soon as an earthquake begins and quickly send alerts that a tremor is on its way, giving people crucial seconds to prepare.

What Should You Do Before, During, and After an Earthquake?

It is impossible to predict when and where an earthquake will strike. Nonetheless, you can take steps before, during, and after a quake to help yourself stay safe and recover quickly.

Ask a Caltech Expert

Lucy Jones on Earthquakes

Find answers to common questions about earthquakes from seismologist and science communicator Lucy Jones, a visiting associate in geophysics at Caltech and the founder of the Dr. Lucy Jones Center for Science and Society.

Terms to Know

A smaller earthquake that occurs after the largest event of an earthquake sequence (mainshock). Aftershocks can occur for days, months, or years after the mainshock, but reduce in frequency over time.

Dip-slip fault

Fault where the two sides have moved vertically relative to each other.

Earthquake early warning (EEW) systems

When significant earthquakes begin, these systems distribute electronic alerts to warn people before shaking reaches them, providing potentially crucial seconds of preparation time.

Earthquake forecast

The probability of an earthquake of a certain size happening within a certain period of time. This is different from an earthquake "prediction," which requires a specific date and time, location, and magnitude. It is not yet possible to predict earthquakes.

The point on the surface of the earth directly above where an earthquake rupture begins.

A fracture in earth's crust. On either side of a fault, blocks of crust have moved relative to each other. Earthquakes occur when rock on one side of the fault suddenly slips.

An earthquake that comes before a larger earthquake in the same sequence. Foreshocks do not show any identifying characteristics when they occur; they are identified when a larger event follows.

For a given earthquake, the location within Earth's interior where the earthquake rupture starts

The severity of an earthquake in terms of what people and structures experience. A single earthquake has different intensities in different places.

The overall size of an earthquake, based on measurements of seismic waves recorded by seismographs. One earthquake may be felt at various intensities in different places, but it has only one magnitude.

The largest earthquake in a sequence. Mainshocks are sometimes preceded by foreshocks, and always followed by aftershocks.

Moment magnitude scale

A measure of earthquake magnitude based on the area of fault that moved, the amount that it moved, and the friction between the rocks. Developed by Caltech's Hiroo Kanamori and seismologist Thomas C. Hanks, this is the only method of measuring magnitude that is uniformly applicable to all sizes of earthquakes, but it is more difficult to compute than other scales.

Richter scale

A measure of earthquake magnitude based on seismic wave amplitudes that was introduced in 1935 by Caltech seismologists Charles Richter and Beno Gutenberg. The term is used colloquially to reference magnitude of any kind despite the fact that other magnitude scales, such as moment magnitude, are more commonly used today.

The squiggle-shaped record of ground motion collected by a seismometer.

Seismometer

A precise motion sensor used to record vibrations in the ground, such as seismic waves from earthquakes. Also known as a seismograph.

Strike-slip fault

Fault where the two sides have moved horizontally relative to each other.

Tectonic plates

Large, rigid pieces of the earth's crust that move relative to one another. Places where tectonic plates meet experience more earthquakes.

Thrust fault

Faults that occur in areas of Earth's crust where one slab of rock compresses against another, sliding up and over it during an earthquake. Thrust faults have been the sites of some of the world's largest quakes.

A series of earthquakes with no distinct mainshock occurring in a single area in a short period of time.

Dive Deeper

More Caltech Earthquake Research Coverage

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Post-traumatic growth of people who have experienced earthquakes: Qualitative research systematic literature review

Hyun-ok jung.

1 College of Nursing, The Research Institute of Nursing Science, Daegu Catholic University, Daegu, South Korea

Seung-Woo Han

2 Department of Nursing, Kwangju Women's University, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, South Korea

Associated Data

The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/supplementary material, further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author.

Introduction

Earthquakes can have a variety of physical, emotional, and social effects on the people who experience them. Post-traumatic Growth (PTG) results from people attempting to reconstruct their lives after experiencing a traumatic event. We intend to inform the local community of the importance of disaster psychology by identifying and analyzing the literature on post-traumatic growth experiences of subjects who experienced earthquakes.

This study applied a systematic review of qualitative research published from January 1, 2012 to January 31, 2021 to understand PTG in people who have experienced earthquakes. The search expressions “Post-traumatic Growth”, “Earthquake”, “Qualitative” were applied to CINAHL, EMBASE, PubMed, PsycInfo, KISS, RISS, and NDSL databases. Initially, 720 papers were found; after removal of duplicates, 318 remained. After a review of titles and abstracts, 186 papers that did not meet the selection criteria of this study were removed. After a further examination of the remaining 132 papers, the researchers removed 65 papers that did not match the research topic. Lastly, of the remaining 67 papers, detailed review eliminated quantitative papers that did not match this study (25), articles that were not original (19), articles in which results were not PTG (8), articles that were not related to this study (3), articles that were not written in English (2), or articles that had mixed topics (2). Eight papers remained.

The results of this study show that the PTG in people who have experienced earthquakes can be classified into three categories: “Change in self-perception”, “Change of interpersonal relationships”, and “Spiritual change”. They can be further classified into eight subcategories: “Reviewing one's existence”, “Acceptance”, “Discovering strengths by working through adversity”, “Gratitude for life”, “Changes in personal relations”, “Changes in social relations”, “Accepting the existence of God”, and “A breakthrough to overcome difficulties”.

These results can be used as basic data for a positive psychological understanding for those who have experienced earthquake trauma.

Earthquakes are unpredictable and uncontrollable as they occur suddenly, often without warning ( 1 ). In the past year, 103 earthquakes have occurred in the New Caledonia Noumea region of the South Pacific, including one with a magnitude of 7.9. Furthermore, 77 earthquakes with a magnitude of 2.0 or higher have occurred in South Korea ( 2 ). Earthquakes affect humans in a variety of physical, emotional and social ways. Physical effects include various degrees of injury. Emotional effects include anxiety, fear, anger, and depression. Social effects include loss of infrastructure, destruction of communities and workspaces, and damage to the natural environment ( 1 ). Through these effects, earthquakes can have a transformative effect on a person's life ( 1 , 3 ). Natural disasters such as earthquakes are traumatic events that humans did not intend, which inflicts pain on individuals' lives, but in the field of changed life, humans experience another growth and recovery ( 4 ).

Post-traumatic growth has been actively studied in various population groups. In a study on post-traumatic growth of college students who experienced an earthquake, depression was found to be a factor influencing post-traumatic growth ( 5 ). A study on childhood who experienced natural disasters showed that the level of post-traumatic stress following the disaster affects post-traumatic growth ( 6 ). This suggests that emotional states or pain, such as depression or level of post-traumatic stress, are catalytic factors for overcoming the negative psychological consequences of traumatic events. Various traumatic experiences can also influence mental disorders in childhood. In previous study ( 7 ), traumatic experiences in childhood cause various mental health problems. Approximately 20.7% of them had psychotic-like experiences as adults, and 17.5% had frequent delusional experiences. Considering the results of previous studies, it is believed that traumatic experiences in childhood can have a negative impact on mental health even in adulthood, and various therapeutic interventions should be accompanied. Accordingly, personal protective factors (resilience, depression) and social protective factors (Household income and educational level) have been reported as factors that can positively mediate responses to traumatic events ( 5 , 6 , 8 , 9 ).

Calhoun and Tedeschi, who proposed the post-traumatic growth model ( 10 ), argued that in order to experience post-traumatic growth, the psychological pain induced by the traumatic event and the collapse of individual core beliefs were required. In other words, post-traumatic growth is closely related to negative psychological conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, and the representative symptoms of post-traumatic symptoms are intrusion, avoidance, and hyperarousal ( 11 ). As a result of studying the post-traumatic growth of terrorist survivors who experienced PTSD ( 12 ), emotional numbing of survivors was found to be related to post-traumatic growth after about 6–12 months, so it is necessary to study various psychological symptoms induced by PTSD. However, it was mentioned that humans do not always accept pain negatively, but rather try to resolve traumatic experiences more positively and goal-focused on the basis of resilience ( 10 ). The importance of positive coping strategies should continue to pay attention.

Post-traumatic Growth (PTG) is an improvement in mental health that occurs while a person develops a better understanding of the meaning of traumatic events, and starts to gain hope for life ( 6 , 13 ). Post-traumatic growth tool development research includes personal strength, new possibilities, relating to others, appreciation of life, and spiritual change ( 14 , 15 ).

The repetitive mental revisiting of the traumatic event by the traumatized person changes cognitive processes, and unpleasant feelings experienced by trauma act as motivations to move forward from the event ( 3 ), and therefore the traumatized persons shows a positive attitude toward understanding themselves, others, and life in general ( 16 ). Therefore, the traumatized person gains confidence that he or she is capable and strong ( 1 , 17 ), and starts to make efforts to know the importance of not returning to the pre-traumatic period. They also try to live a better life by realizing the meaning of life, by finding good behavior to achieve the life they want to pursue, and by inducing positive changes such as escaping from bad behavior ( 3 ). Therefore, PTG is an active and positive process that restructures individual lives to pursue better independent lives ( 3 , 18 ). If common growth experiences of traumatized people can be understood, community health professionals can help traumatized patients escape from pain and return to their pre-traumatic lives.

In this study, a systematic review of qualitative research was conducted to understand the PTG experience of subjects who had experienced earthquakes. A phenomenological research method is applied to derive meaningful subjective interpretations to understand the positive psychological changes of people traumatized by earthquakes. Furthermore, this study intends to lead a quality life by finding the meaning of life through post-traumatic growth and forming a sense of purpose to rebuild a new life.

Materials and methods

Study design.

This study performs a systematic review to search for previous papers and evaluate their quality to ensure that they represent the PTG experience of subjects who have experienced earthquakes.

Research protocol

The purpose of this study is to systematically review the literature of qualitative studies that have studied the post-traumatic growth experiences of subjects who have experienced earthquakes. Based on the qualitative evaluation protocol of the qualitative research, the CASP (Critical Appraisal Skills Program) qualitative research checklist ( 19 ) was used. This CASP qualitative research checklist extracts data based on the following 10 systematic protocols. (1) Is there a clear description of the research goal? (2) Is the methodology for qualitative research appropriate? (3) Study design (4) Recruitment strategy (5) Appropriate data collection method (6) Relationship between researcher and subject (7) Ethical issue (8) Analysis method (9) Is there a clear description of the results? (10) research value.

Literature search and literature selection

In this study, to search for qualitative literature on the experiences of post-traumatic growth of subjects who experienced earthquakes, the literature was searched through foreign databases CINAHL, EMBASE, PubMed, and PsycInfo and domestic databases KISS, RISS and NDSL. Overseas databases checked the terms of MeSH and extracted all of the terms “Post-traumatic Growth”, “Earthquake”, and “Qualitative Research” as intervention methods.

According to the characteristics of each database, MeSH terms and text words were used for the search formula, and methods to increase the specificity in addition to the sensitivity of the search were used by applying the Boolean operators AND/OR and truncation search. The domestic database search was based on the search strategy used for overseas searches, but considering the lack of a MeSH search function, the search was conducted according to the characteristics of each database. As the keywords for the search, concepts such as post-traumatic growth, earthquake, and qualitative research were searched and extracted. The literature selection criteria were (1) qualitative research on post-traumatic growth of earthquake-experienced individuals, (2) papers published in the last 10 years from January 1, 2012 to January 31, 2021, (3) In case of overlap between academic research paper and degree thesis, academic research paper was selected and (4) academic research paper composed in English and Korean was included. The exclusion criteria were (1) papers using words similar to post-traumatic growth (e.g., psychological adaptation and resilience), (2) papers published before and after between January 1 2012 and January 31, 2021, (3) papers related to natural disasters other than earthquakes (e.g., floods, forest fires, etc.), (4) papers not published in English or Korean.

Data collection

In this study, the literature was selected according to the selection and exclusion criteria, and the selection process was described in the following stages: Identification → Screening → Eligibility → Included. A total of 720 documents were searched in the database, and 318 articles were derived after removing 402 documents that were duplicated. Two researchers reviewed the title and abstract of a total of 318 articles, and 132 articles were first selected, excluding 186 articles that did not meet the selection criteria of this study. Of the 132 papers that were reviewed according to the same criteria and process, mainly the original text, 65 papers that did not match the research topic were excluded through three meetings, and 67 papers were secondarily selected. Finally, cross-analysis was performed twice on 67 documents that researchers secured the suitability of the study. The final 8 papers were selected except for the quantitative papers (25 papers), non-original articles (19 papers), post-traumatic growth papers (8 papers), papers (3 papers), non-English papers (2 papers), and mixed papers (2 papers) that did not correspond to this study. The searched literature was independently performed by two researchers, and the final paper was selected through discussion in case of disagreement ( Figure 1 ).

Flow chart of the sample selection process.

Ethical consideration

This study was approved by the K University Institutional Review Board (IRB No: 1041459-202103-HR-004-01) as it complied with research ethics in the use of literature data.

Assessment of research quality

This research generally used the Critical Appraisal Skills Program (CASP) to evaluate the quality of qualitative research; CASP is an effective means of improving the understanding of individual studies ( 20 ). The final selection of papers was evaluated using CASP, which determined that all met 23 to 26 out of 28 items, and therefore were appropriate for use in this study. Specifically, two papers did not conform to “Qualitative methodology for question?”, two papers did not conform to “Discussed saturation of data?”, and five were inconsistent in the item “Critically examined the role, potential bias and influence during data collection?” These results suggest that the biases that are caused during data collection in future qualitative studies should be closely examined. Two papers did not meet the items “Sufficient details of how the research was explained to participants” and two did not meet “Approval sought from an ethics committee?” This result suggests that compliance with research ethics should be considered as being important in qualitative research. One paper did not meet the “In-depth description of the analysis process?” item, and one did not meet the “Sufficient data presented to support the findings?” Six papers that did not meet the item of “Contradictory data taken into account?”, and CASP evaluation showed that this item was the most frequently violated. This observation implies that bias in research should be minimized by specifically stating and reviewing contradictory data in qualitative research. Finally, two papers did not meet “Discussed evidence for and against research's arguments?” and “Discussed contribution study makes to existing knowledge?” ( Table 1 ). We then checked the systematic literature review based on the PRISMA checklist ( 21 ).

Quality assessment (CASP, Critical Appraisal Skills Programme).

Characteristics of literature subject to systematic literature review

The eight papers that were ultimately selected in this study were all published from 2015 to 2020, and most focused on subjects in the South Pacific and Southeast Asia, where earthquakes occur frequently. Interview duration ranged from 30 to 240 min (or no duration was provided), and the action was described as a revisit to ask a question or an additional question. The number of subjects studied ranged from four to 23, and included both males and females, although one paper did not specifically mention the gender(s) of the participants. The ages of the subjects ranged from the teens to the sixties. Occupations were middle and high school students, college students, nurses, and psychiatric specialists. Data collection used semi-structured interviews in five cases, and in-depth interviews in three cases ( Table 2 ).

Demographic characteristic.

Post-traumatic growth experience of earthquake-experienced people

The papers finally selected in this study were assigned to three categories and eight subcategories encompassing the PTG experiences of subjects who had experienced an earthquake ( Table 3 ).

Categories and subcategories of PTG response.

Change in self-perception

The first category of responses identified in this study is a change in self-perception. By reflecting on the world in which they live and by changing their values and philosophy on life, the traumatized people reflected on the meaning of life and became aware of their existence. This change meant the subjects who had experienced earthquakes found their inner strength and could accept their current life and overcame the adversity that they had experienced.

Reviewing one's existence

Some subjects who experienced PTG after an earthquake underwent a change in attitude toward life. Before the event, they thought they were just ordinary people, but afterward, they realized their own importance. They also realized the limitations of their existence in that they could not do anything in the face of an earthquake, and experienced a change in life priorities.

“ Many things that had previously seemed to be important in the past are no longer important. After experiencing an earthquake, I felt that I should value myself more and I realized that I was precious to others. I've lived for others, but from now on I want to live a more valuable life for myself because you only get one chance at life .” ( 22 , 24 ) “ My view of the world has suddenly changed. The world is not as gentle as I thought, the earth can move under my feet, and buildings can collapse around me at any point. The earthquake made me realize so many things; that human beings are weak, small, and not omnipotent. I want to be a person who has a purpose in life because I live to die and I am always ready to die...” ( 3 , 25 )

Most of the subjects who experienced the earthquake realized that the place where they lived was not safe: that it could take away someone's life in an instance, and they learned the importance of accepting this fact as a part of life.

“ I try to think of pain as a normal part of life because life is not about letting go of the pain, but about carrying it with you. So life has no answer. It would be more comfortable if the answer was given to you. I couldn't express my sad feelings after experiencing the earthquake. I can't erase the thought that the residents who had been with me disappeared one by one and lost what they had built up. But I thought I shouldn't feel pain because my family was safe .” ( 25 , 26 )

Discovering strengths by working through adversity

Some subjects who underwent PTG after experiencing an earthquake said that the experience of an earthquake did not emphasize human weakness. They felt that humans were stronger than they thought because they did not die even though they had experienced a terrifying environment. They had learned that their strengths were not simply limited to physical strength, but also include the inherent tendency, intrinsic flexibility, confidence, and occupational consciousness that all humans possess.

“ After experiencing the earthquake, I became more positive because seeing the collapsed city rebuild itself and thinking about what was going to happen now and, in the future, made things less confusing and more hopeful. I saw the difficult things, but I also saw the beautiful things. I have learned a lot. Living by overcoming this situation had made me face new challenges, and now I believe I can do anything.” ( 1 , 22 , 23 ) “ Looking back on whether I really responded well to others after the earthquake made me realize a lot and helped me grow my professional expertise as well as my own personal growth. Also, after the earthquake, I had learned how to deal with uncontrollable situations during work. I was impressed to see people recover one by one. By knowing that patients can recover from their pain, we have learned that we should not overlook anything for them” ( 25 , 26 )

Gratitude for life

Some subjects who experienced PTG after the earthquake showed a positive change compared to life before the earthquake.

“ I wasn't hurt or killed and the house wasn't badly damaged. Although I haven't been hurt, I think it's a very amazing experience to be with other people who have been hurt. The earthquake was a pretty good experience for me, and I think it was an opportunity to remind me of my existential appreciation for life. Through this experience, I want to look back on myself and live my life with gratitude for everything .” ( 22 , 23 )

Change of interpersonal relationship

Some subjects who went through PTG after experiencing an earthquake changed positively in realizing that people should develop mutual relations with others, and help and support each other. These subjects showed more active behaviors such as taking care of family, friends, and colleagues, and showed empathy with people in need.

Changes in personal relations

Some subjects who underwent PTG after the earthquake experienced a change in their interpersonal relationships completely different from before the earthquake.

“ I have a reduced prejudice against others and my neighbors. Before, I had a prejudice against people from other regions or people from other religions, and after experiencing the earthquake, I tried to see the positive aspects of those people. I realized that the pain of others was my pain because the whole country suffered. In the end, shared experiences with people who experienced earthquakes has given me an opportunity to experience hope, solidarity, learning and growth as well as pain.” ( 23 , 24 ) “ After the earthquake, I realized many things. When I go to work I feel like I'm the only one working hard, and I wondered why my colleagues wouldn't work hard. But I noticed that they also worked hard and did their best. We survived and we are still working hard. Through this, we could feel a different sense of fellowship than before. In the past, I was just resting at home doing nothing, but now I help my parents and cook for them. I realized that what really matters is my relationship with my family, friends and colleagues.” ( 3 , 22 , 26 )

Changes in social relations

Some subjects who experienced PTG after an earthquake then viewed social relations completely differently compared to before the earthquake. Community solidarity with other communities increased and people felt friendliness with residents. In addition, the earthquake experience allowed subjects to feel the culture of helping each other unlike before, so they experienced many changes in the form of social networking.

“ After the earthquake, I could feel that my intimacy with my neighbors increased and the community was strengthening. The earthquake brought us together and allowed us to feel the atmosphere of harmony and cooperation. Also, I was able to cooperate with people from other professions, and I was able to help people who are more in need than I am .” ( 24 , 26 ) “ I give up my things to others, and I am not only thinking about myself or my family, but also other people. After the earthquake, I contacted people with who I had a distant relationship with and encouraged them to participate in aid agencies. Also, I made frequent contact with nurses at local hospitals and cooperated with them when they were having difficulties. We were able to talk directly to local group staff who had no involvement before the earthquake. So am now more capable of helping people who are in a more difficult situation than me compared to before the earthquake .” ( 3 , 26 )

Spiritual change

The third essential theme of the final selected papers in this study is spiritual change. Some people who experienced the earthquake have broadened their religious and spiritual perspectives and felt that the experience of the earthquake was a step toward God. After all, it was an experience that reminded me once again that being alive in an earthquake was the same as if God was alive.

Accepting the existence of god

For some people, the experience of the earthquake increased their faith in religion and God, because they believed that they survived the earthquake because God had helped them. They also said that the experience of an earthquake was a part of the process of approaching God. In the end, it was an opportunity to experience the ability of humans to live with God, and that religion is not a metaphysical point of view, but an existential point of view.

“ After a disaster, my chance to live is a gift from God. After seeing what the Lord is doing for us, I started praising God. After experiencing the earthquake, I think the disaster has become a channel to connect with God. In doing so, I think the relationship between me and God has been further strengthened.” ( 1 , 27 )

A breakthrough to overcome difficulties

Among the subjects who experienced an earthquake, those who experienced PTG experienced the power of religion differently. Those with religion were more flexible than those without religion in their coping attitude to overcome difficulties and experienced the difficult moments (such as facing death) through God.

“ I feel the power of religion, and I can overcome the trauma through religion. I have religion on the basis of my life as a whole and I can overcome my difficulties through faith.” My environment, based on the influence of my parents and my religious life, helped me to overcome and overcome the earthquake even after the earthquake. If you have faith, you will find Paradise as a reward for your difficulties .” ( 24 , 25 )

This study systematically applied a phenomenological research method to understand PTG in subjects who had experienced earthquakes and discussed the categories and subcategories derived from this study.

“Reviewing one's existence” and “Acceptance”, which are subcategories of “Change in self-perception”, reveal the experience of subjects having a change in their view of life and philosophy of life after the earthquake. Also, by discovering strengths while undergoing adversity, and finding gratitude for life, they sublimated their painful traumatic experience into strengths, so the experience of the earthquake was not solely a bad one, but an opportunity to discover that they were grateful just to be alive.

Post-traumatic growth is the result of individuals' cognitive and emotional efforts to treat and give meaning to natural disasters as events in their difficult lives. At this time, fear leads to finding the meaning of life in the event of trauma, and the rumination of questions about life's doubts is later converted to rumination of questions about the meaning of life. Stronger self-confidence and new beliefs are reconstructed ( 4 ).

In previous studies, it was said that human experience of a terrible traumatic event creates new wisdom and experiences post-traumatic growth through the rumination process of thinking about the impact and meaning on one's own existence and life ( 23 ). In the end, by reflecting on one's own existence, it recognizes the optimal direction of life and activates aspiration and hope. This is not a life cycle in which mental suffering through trauma simply falls into a bad abyss. It is to positively accept information related to the new trauma in the meaning and purpose of being in one's life ( 27 ).

In this study, subjects who experienced earthquakes also accepted earthquakes as an unavoidable fate, so just being alive was a great luck and gratitude for their lives, and they recognized earthquakes as good experiences in life. This study result is consistent with the result that the factor of gratitude (Factor V) was statistically significant even in the study of the author who developed the PTG tool ( 28 ).

In particular, “An appreciation for the value of my own life” was 0.85 among the life's gratitude factors, and it was the item most related to post-traumatic growth. After all, the experience of earthquakes can be regarded as a starting point that makes people think about their existential gratitude once again.

We can think about it once again. What could be the cause of these positive emotions? This is because some people experience post-traumatic stress, not post-traumatic growth, after experiencing trauma. In previous study ( 29 ), it was found that in people who survived traumatic events, internal emotions such as guilt and self-deprecation cause post-traumatic stress on the contrary. In this study, subjects who experienced an earthquake also experienced internal suppression in situations in which they were unable to express their shock, fear, and sadness at the death of their colleague. However, they were able to experience post-traumatic growth because human strength existed even in pain. In this study, strength was expressed as flexibility and confidence. It is consistent with this study in that previous study ( 30 ) also mentioned that internal strength factors such as strength and flexibility are triggers that can promote post-traumatic growth and overcome pain. In addition, in the study ( 28 ) of the author who developed the post-traumatic growth tool, the “Knowing I can handle difficulties” item in the personal strength factor (Factor III) was 0.79, which is the same as the result that it is related to post-traumatic growth the most.

In traumatic events, PTG and pain coexist. Dealing with the pain and threats to life's worth of traumatic events requires a lot of time and cognitive effort. Through the repetitive process of understanding and trying to understand the traumatic event experience, human suffering is reduced by experiencing positive psychological changes and meaning to life. In addition, the value and meaning of a new life are integrated, leading to a higher standard of life ( 31 ).

In the second essential theme of this study, 'changes in interpersonal relationships', earthquake victims experienced various changes in personal and social relationships. They demonstrated a reduction in prejudice against others who have different values, and that their value of family, friends, and colleagues increased. In addition, as community solidarity with other communities increased, the experience of cooperative social consciousness changed.

Some subjects who experienced the earthquake realized that the pain experienced during the earthquake was shared by all who experience it. This shared experience between people who had survived the earthquakes allowed people to recognize that they never lived alone, helping them develop a sense of solidarity with others, and gratitude toward family, friends, and colleagues. As a result, in serious situations such as natural disasters, others support trauma experienced people with a sincere heart. Trauma survivors realize or experience the meaning of life through satisfactory relationships, and form close relationships with others by expanding and deepening interpersonal relationships. In particular, this is because, as traumatized people get social support from meaningful relationships, their philosophy of life has changed, reconstructing their meaning system, and more effectively participating in the emotional and cognitive processes of post-traumatic growth ( 4 ). In the previous study ( 32 ), it is consistent with the results of the study that talking and sharing trauma experiences with others increases intimacy with others and improves understanding and empathy for others suffering. In addition, in the study ( 28 ) of the author who developed the post-traumatic growth tool, the “A sense of closeness with others” item in the Relating to Others factor (Factor I) was 0.81, which is the same as the result that it is related to post-traumatic growth the most. Through the earthquake experience, the subjects who experienced pain recognized the importance of human relationships that were different from before. In addition, the formation of social networks, such as cohesion different from those before the earthquake experience, allows earthquake survivors to reconstruct the meaning of the experience and recognize the potential benefits of this experience. In doing so, the experience of events is sublimated positively, improving relationships with others, and creating new life possibilities to experience positive psychological changes ( 33 ). Therefore, through the changed interpersonal relationships, traumatized people discovered a new form of meaning for life after trauma, and formed a sense of purpose to rebuild a new life ( 31 ).

In the spiritual change, which is the last essential theme in this study, earthquake experienced a change in recognizing the existence of God and reflecting on the meaning of religion unlike before. After experiencing an earthquake, these people used religion as a method to overcome difficulties and tried to rely on God to solve problems that they could not overcome. Those who had survived earthquakes cast their survival as evidence of a link between themselves and God, and stated that they had become closer to God by surviving. In doing so, they became more convinced of the existence of God and also experienced a change of spiritual emotions. In previous studies ( 28 , 34 ), spirituality is the factor that has the greatest influence on post-traumatic growth, and through loss, we question our spiritual beliefs. Those who had experienced a traumatic event developed the belief that everything that happened around them was God's spirituality. They had accepted the traumatic event, and this acceptance had led to PTG. This observation is consistent with the results of this study in that by accepting the existence of God and one's relationship with God, one's religious beliefs can become more firmly established ( 28 ). Because human beings are complex beings with interrelated physical, psychological, social, and spiritual capacities, a holistic understanding of traumatic events must incorporate religion and spirituality. Traumatic events not only endanger the physical, psychological and social wellbeing of a person, but also have a powerful impact on the spiritual wellbeing ( 35 – 37 ).

In previous studies ( 36 , 37 ), it is consistent with the research results that traumatized people tried to cope after a crisis through spirituality, and through this, they supported God and positively overcome difficulties.

Religion and spirituality affect not only people's perception of life events and their initial evaluation of traumatic events, but also their chosen coping methods, coping functions, and coping outcomes ( 35 ). Positive religious and spiritual coping methods are secure connections with God, self, and others, including: (1) finding meaning, (2) gaining dominance and control, (3) comforting and increasing intimacy with God, (4) increasing intimacy with others and intimacy with God, (5) achieving life change.

On the other hand, negative religious spiritual coping methods attempt to resolve the five-positive religious spiritual coping functions related to conflicts with God, self, and others, but rather worsen post-traumatic pain ( 38 , 39 ). Earthquake survivors use traumatic events as evidence of God's perfect and mystical will, “for good reason,” or as an opportunity for change in their spiritual growth. In addition, it is interpreted as a spiritual challenge or a test of God's devotion and seeks a partnership to solve problems in cooperation with God by utilizing positive religious and spiritual coping methods. In doing so, gaining dominance and control over disasters, finding a new meaning in life, and forming a sense of purpose for a changed life ( 35 ). This study result is consistent with the result that the factor of Spiritual Change (Factor I) was statistically significant even in the study of the author who developed the PTG tool ( 28 ). In particular, “A better understanding of spiritual matters” was 0.84 among the Spiritual Change factors, and it was the item most related to post-traumatic growth.

As a result of this study, changes in self-perspective, changes in interpersonal relationships, and spiritual changes are all included in the five areas (new possibilities and personal strength, relating to others, spiritual change, appreciation of life) of Tedeschi and Calhoun's PTG tool ( 28 ). When humans experience disasters such as earthquakes, they understand the difficult situation and changed reality they face, and find their strengths in the belief that they are strong.

And as they establish new relationships with others, they realize that the most important thing in life is themselves, and they regain the meaning of a new life given to them after the trauma. Gratitude for a new life every day, through stronger religious beliefs, makes spiritual changes and leads to a positive life.

Finally, in a situation where research on post-traumatic growth is being actively conducted, there was a verification of the post-traumatic growth tool using a variety of population groups as samples. However, it was found that the factor structure differed depending on the country that justified the post-traumatic growth tool. Also, some items did not significantly measure post-traumatic cultural change ( 40 ). Therefore, in order to overcome the limitation that cannot objectively express post-traumatic growth in qualitative research, demographic characteristics or cultural aspects of the country should be considered. Based on the research results from qualitative research, it is considered that it is necessary to continuously supplement the weaknesses of the tool through more practical and multifaceted analysis.

Limitation and future direction

This study does however have some limitations. This study presented papers that studied subjects who experienced the special situation of earthquakes among natural disasters. The results of this study have limitations in covering the post-traumatic growth of subjects who have experienced all-natural disasters. Also, because the research topic was very special, the number of published studies was very limited, and most of the studies were published in a limited country where earthquakes occur frequently in the region. Nevertheless, this study is considered to be very valuable in approaching the actual field phenomena of the post-traumatic growth of earthquake-experienced people by examining the qualitative studies on post-traumatic growth. In the special situation of earthquakes among natural disasters, post-traumatic growth experience analysis can provide basic data for the development of psychological intervention programs in regions where earthquakes frequently occur. So far, systematic literature review has been focused on quantitative research, but qualitative research is very lacking. In particular, in quantitative research, guidelines for evaluating the quality of various documents and data extraction for systematic literature review are presented, but in qualitative research, they are very limited. Therefore, it will be necessary to develop various evaluation tools for qualitative research in future research.

This study systematically reviewed published papers that explored PTG in subjects who experienced earthquakes. It then categorized the different PTG phenomena and their individual significance. This study identified that PTG can involve changes in self-perception, interpersonal relationships, and religious beliefs. The subjects of the research papers changed their views on the value of life by reflecting on their existence rather than by struggling to escape the pain they felt. They also experienced increased appreciation for life as they embraced the experience and overcame their adversity. In addition, they placed more value on the importance of human relationships and felt a sense of solidarity. Finally, some subjects experienced a spiritual change where they realized the meaning of religion and affirmed their belief in the existence of God.

People who experienced the earthquake modified their values of life through traumatic events. Finding the meaning of a new life and examining one's own life promoted growth in areas such as personal strength, relationships with others, gratitude for life, and spirituality. Community health professionals should recognize that post-traumatic growth is a cognitive and emotional result of seeking a new life, and provide opportunities for earthquake victims to discover new forms of meaning in their lives sequentially. In addition, it should be helped to maintain a higher level of life satisfaction through addition or modification of the sense of purpose.

Data availability statement

Ethics statement, author contributions.

H-OJ: conceptualization and investigation. S-WH: methodology and data curation. H-OJ and S-WH: writing-original draft preparation and writing-review and editing. Both authors have read and agree to the published version of the manuscript.

Acknowledgments

This research was followed by research ethics through the Research Ethics Review Committee and helped to proceed by utilizing prior papers.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher's note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Earthquakes

Earthquakes are the result of plate tectonics, or shifting plates in the crust of Earth, and quakes occur when the frictional stress of gliding plate boundaries builds and causes failure at a fault line. In an earthquake, elastic strain energy is released and waves radiate, shaking the ground. Scientists can predict where major temblors might occur in a general sense, but research does not yet allow forecasts for specific locations or accurate predictions of timing. Major earthquakes, some generating tsunamis, have leveled entire cities and affected whole countries. Relatively minor earthquakes can also be induced, or caused by human activity, including extraction of minerals from Earth and the collapse of large buildings.

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Earthquake Topics

• 100% Chance of an Earthquake — Earthquake statistics. (USGS)
• About Earthquakes — basics about earthquakes (University of Washington)
• Animations for Earthquake Terms and Concepts — Flash animations illustrating basic earthquake terms and concepts. (USGS)
• Be a Hero: Kid's - ready.gov — Activities and materials aimed at making kids more aware of hazard preparedness (FEMA)
• Cool Earthquake Facts — fascinating earthquake facts (USGS)
• Demonstrations of Geophysical Principles Applicable to the Properties and Processes of the Earth's Interior — demonstrations with photos and graphics (SUNY Binghamton)
• Digital Library for Earth Science Education — Searchable database of educational earth science resources for all grade levels. (DLESE)
• Discover Our Earth — Portal for teachers and students for learn the basics about earthquakes, volcanoes, plate tectonics, topography, and sea level changes. (USGS & DLESE)
• Earth Like a Puzzle — Plate tectonics basics. (Scripps)
• Earth Science Course Notes & Graphics — Professor Steve Dutch's excellent online resources for earth sciences with great images for teaching; all the goodies are behind the "Notes" links (Univ. of Wisconsin)
• Earth Science Education Activities — a wealth of excellent hands-on activities for teaching about earthquakes, volcanoes, seismic waves, plate tectonics, earth structure, seismic waves, convection, seismometers and more! (Purdue Univ.)
• Earth Science Explorer — virtual museum (NASA)
• Earthquake Practice Quiz — online quiz (Florida Intl. Univ.)
• Earthquake Quiz — online quiz (Univ. of Houston)
• Earthquake Science Explained — A series of short articles for students, teachers, and parents originally published as weekly features in The San Francisco Chronicle. This USGS General Information Product presents some of the new understanding gained and scientific advances made in the century since the Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. (USGS)
• Earthquakes — general overview of earthquakes, online USGS general interest publication (USGS)
• Earthquakes — PodCasts, presentations and fact sheets on the basics of earthquakes. (The Geological Society)
• Earthquakes — Information on the basics of earthquakes. (British Geological Survey)
• Earthquakes 101 "Slideshow" (PDF) — PDF format of a complete PowerPoint show for the basics (USGS)
• Earthquakes by Bruce A. Bolt Online Companion — links related to subjects covered in book (W.H. Freeman & Co.)
• Earthquakes: Seismic Destruction — links to photos of earthquake effects and tsunami effects (National Geographic)
• EarthScope Resources for Students & Teachers — Animations, online lectures, visualizations and more, mostly from IRIS. (EarthScope)
• Echando Raices en Tierra de Terremotos — Este manual provee información sobre por qué nos deben preocupar los terremotos en el Sur de California, qué debemos hacer para estar seguros y reducir el daño, y también qué debemos saber de lo básico sobre terremotos. (USGS & many other organizations)
• Faultline:Seismic Science at the Epicenter — lots of resources, information, activities and graphics concerning earthquakes in California (Exploratorium)
• Geological Online Exhibits — geologic time scale, plate tectonics animation, and more! (UC Museum of Paleontology, Berkeley)
• Geophysics Course Resources on the Internet — list of online course resources for undergraduate and graduate levels (Univ. of Houston)
• GSA Free Teacher Resources — A good resource for educators that includes lesson plans, info on state standards, awards, and reading suggestions (Geological Society of America)
• How Earthquakes Work — Description of the basics (How Stuff Works)
• IRIS Education and Public Outreach — An amazing collection of excellent education resources for all aspects of earthquakes and seismology with great images! (IRIS - Incorporated Research Institutes for Seismology)
• IRIS Education Resources — A multitude of educational resources for earthquake science, from visualizations and animations, to lessons and educational software. Awesome! (IRIS - Incorporated Research Institutes for Seismology)
• Living in Earthquake Country: A Teaching Box — 7 lessons with the goal of teaching students about how and why earthquakes cause damage. Explores seismic waves, the ability of scientists to predict the likelihood and severity of earthquakes at specific locations, the difference between magnitude and intensity, the occurrence of earthquakes along patches of planar faults, and the potential damage caused by earthquakes such as landslides, liquefaction, or structural failure. (DLESE)
• Mountain Maker, Earth Shaker — Push your mouse around to move continents and change the landscape (PBS)
• Paleoseismology, Introduction to — What is paleoseismology? How does it work? (USGS)
• ParsQuake — Earthquake education in the global Persian community. (ParsQuake.org)
• Perilous Earth: Understanding Processes Behind Natural Disasters — The basics including plate tectonics and earthquakes. (San Diego State Univ.)
• Plate Tectonics Activities — Games, quiz (Quia)
• Putting Down Roots in Earthquake Country — Earthquakes and preparedeness for everyone in California (regional booklets available), Utah, Central U.S., Nevada, Oregon, and Alaska (USGS)
• Recommended Reading about Earthquakes for Kids and Adults — list of books (USGS)
• Rocket Rules: Earthquake Materials for Children — Storybooks and accompanying activity books, and videos that include simple activities for learning, for example, how to secure furniture and objects, what supplies should go in a go bag, basic earthquake science concepts, and how to Drop, Cover and Hold On during shaking or when you receive an earthquake early warningincludes simple activities for learning how to secure furniture and objects, what supplies should go in a go bag, basic earthquake science concepts, and how to Drop, Cover and Hold On during shaking or when you receive an earthquake early warning. In multiple languages. (SCEC & Hero and You Foundation)
• San Andreas Fault, The — overview of the San Andreas Fault, online USGS general interest publication (USGS)
• Savage Earth, The — slick presentation of the earthquake basics with great graphics and animations (PBS)
• Science Education Resource Center (SERC) — Whether you're an undergraduate faculty member or a K-12 science teacher our suite of partner projects have materials you can use today. Connect with a community of peers as they share what really works in their classrooms. (Carleton College)
• Science Fair Project Ideas — specific projects with directions and ideas (USGS)
• Science of Earthquakes, The — brief and basic earthquake science concepts (USGS)
• Seismicity of the Earth 1900?2018 Map/Poster — Poster-sized map illustrating 119 years of global seismicity in the context of global plate tectonics and the Earth?s physiography. Primarily designed for use by earth scientists, engineers, and educators, this map provides a comprehensive overview of strong (magnitude [M] 5.5 and larger) earthquakes since 1900. (USGS)
• Seismology, Earthquakes, and Earth Structure, An Introduction to — online companion to the textbook by Seth Stein and Michael Wysession with electronic versions of all images and access to homework problems and solutions; also includes errata (Blackwell Publishing)
• Shake, Rattle, and Slide — Lessons, activities, and slide shows about earthquakes, volcanoes, and glaciers. (University of Illinois Extension)
• Staying Safe Where the Earth Shakes — A booklet that includes the "The Seven Steps to Earthquake Safety" - basic guidelines for what to do before, during, and after a damaging earthquake. (USGS)
• The HayWired Scenario: An Urban Earthquake in a Connected World — An ArcGIS geo-narrative storymap with compelling images showing the effects and consequences possible in the next large earthquake on the Hayward Fault in the San Francisco Bay Area. (USGS)
• Theory of the Earth — online book on the science of earthquakes (Caltech)
• Theory of the Earth, The New — This is the only book on the whole landscape of deep Earth processes that ties together all the strands of the subdisciplines. This book is a complete update of Anderson�??s Theory of the Earth (1989). (Caltech)
• This Dynamic Earth: The Story of Plate Tectonics — excellent comprehensive overview of plate tectonics with excellent graphics, online USGS general interest publication (USGS)
• Understanding Earthquakes — Brief history of seismology to 1910, earthquake and plate tectonic quizzes, earthquake accounts by famous people, elastic rebound animation, and links to addition resources. (UC Santa Barbara)
• Understanding Quakes — description, photos, and graphics of earthquake basics and effects of earthquakes in Turkey (The Why Files)
• UPSeis Seismology Questions Answered — magnitudes, research, locations, seismic waves, and all the basics explained, as well as preparedness and hazards (UPSeis, Univ. of Michigan)
• Volcano World's Earth Science Lessons — Lots of great earth science lessons good for all ages, slide-style with color diagrams and photographs (Oregon State University)

Home — Essay Samples — Environment — Disasters — Earthquake

Essays on Earthquake

Hook examples for earthquake essays, anecdotal hook.

"Imagine standing in your home, the ground suddenly shaking beneath your feet, and the world around you trembling. I experienced this firsthand, and it left me with a profound respect for the power of earthquakes."

Rhetorical Question Hook

"Can we ever truly predict when the earth will shake, or are we forever at the mercy of Mother Nature's seismic whims? Earthquakes raise questions about our understanding of the planet."

Startling Statistic Hook

"Each year, there are over a million recorded earthquakes globally, with thousands causing significant damage. These statistics underscore the need for preparedness and resilience."

"'Nature does not know extinction; all it knows is transformation.' These words by Wernher von Braun highlight the ever-changing and dynamic nature of our planet, including the seismic forces at play."

Historical Hook

"Throughout history, earthquakes have shaped civilizations and landscapes. Exploring the seismic events that have left their mark on human history offers valuable insights."

Narrative Hook

"Step into the shoes of a survivor of a devastating earthquake, where resilience and community come to the forefront. This narrative unveils the human stories behind the geological forces."

Contrast Hook

"In a world of technological advancements and scientific discoveries, why do earthquakes continue to catch us off guard? Contrasting our capabilities with the unpredictable forces of nature raises important questions."

Emotional Appeal Hook

"The fear, the loss, and the hope that follow an earthquake resonate deeply with our shared humanity. Understanding the emotional aftermath underscores the importance of preparedness."

Shocking Scenario Hook

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Optimizing earthquake data flow allows scientific research on 'The Big One'

by Leila Okahata, University of Southern California

No one can precisely predict when an earthquake is to happen. Since the 1994 6.7-magnitude Northridge earthquake in Los Angeles County that caused 72 deaths, 9,000 injuries and $25 billion in damages, Southern California has been anxiously waiting for "The Big One": a devastating quake predicted to be at least a 7.8 magnitude and 44 times stronger. Seismologists can only say that it may happen within the next 30 years.

Although scientists cannot forecast when and where earthquakes will strike, preparation is key to improving society's resilience to large earthquakes . In particular, the USC-based Statewide California Earthquake Center (SCEC) developed CyberShake , a computational platform that simulates hundreds of thousands of earthquakes to calculate regional seismic hazard models.

Revealing geographical areas in Southern California most at risk for intense shaking, its results have influenced Los Angeles building codes and the design of the earthquake models at the U.S. Geological Survey, the nation's largest earth and geological science mapping agency.

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Ewa Deelman, a research professor in computer science and research director at ISI, has continuously designed and updated, since 2000, an automated workflow management system called Pegasus.

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Pegasus —named after Planning for Execution and Grids (PEG) and Deelman's love for horses—turns research experiments into optimized workflows. It can be used by scientists in various fields from seismology to physics to bioinformatics because of its abstract design.

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In 2016, scientists from the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) utilized Pegasus to capture gravitational waves in the universe, confirming Albert Einstein's General Theory of Relativity and earning the 2017 Nobel Prize for physics. During the 16-year collaboration between ISI computer scientists and LIGO members, the software managed thousands of workflows with millions of tasks.

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"Without Pegasus, there's no way we'd be able to do this kind of science," said Scott Callaghan, a computer scientist at SCEC and lead developer on CyberShake. SCEC will be expanding CyberShake to Northern California, now using the fastest supercomputer in the world, Frontier. Pegasus will continue to remain at their side.

"Every time we do one of these studies, we always encounter unexpected challenges. But I'm confident that, with any workflow issues, the Pegasus team will be able to help us work through them so that we can continue getting cutting-edge science done," Callaghan said.

Deelman is now conducting research and conceptualizing SWARM, another workflow management system inspired by the savvy coordination of group behaviors among social animals, like ants. She also plans to enhance Pegasus' decision-making with artificial intelligence, reimagining how workflow systems will operate in the future.

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Occurrence mechanism and prevention technology of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake in deep mining

• Original Article
• Open access
• Published: 29 May 2024
• Volume 10 , article number  98 , ( 2024 )

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You have full access to this open access article

• Ruiyang Bi 1 ,
• Manoj Khandelwal   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0368-3188 2 ,
• Guichen Li 3 &
• Jian Zhou 1  

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Rockburst, coal bump, and mine earthquake are the most important dynamic disaster phenomena in deep mining. This paper summarizes the differences and connections between rockburst, coal bumps and mine earthquakes in terms of definition, mechanism, phenomenon, evaluation index, etc. The definition and evolution progress of the three disaster categories are summarized, as well as the monitoring, early warning, and prevention measures are also presented. Firstly, by combining theoretical research with specific technologies and engineering field cases, the main categories and failure mechanisms of rockburst, coal bumps and mine earthquakes are introduced. Then, the evaluation indexes of coal bump and mine earthquake are summarized, and a new evaluation index of rockburst is given. Finally, the characteristics of monitoring, early warning technologies and prevention methods of rockburst, coal bumps, and mine earthquakes are discussed in technology and application. At last, the future directions of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake are put forward.

Article highlights

The occurrence status, phenomena, definition, types and destruction mechanism of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake are explained, and their differences and connections are also discussed.

The corresponding evaluation index of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake are summarized, and the monitoring and early warning technology of dynamic disasters are reviewed.

Prevention and control technologies in high-stress environments are explored, and stress relief and energy absorbing support technologies in engineering are systematically summarized.

Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.

1 Introduction

With the development of earth sciences, people are more and more aware that deep underground construction is a frontier issue facing earth sciences in the twenty-first century. At the same time, geoscientists and rock mechanics experts are also committed to exploring key scientific issues such as the mechanical behavior of deep underground rocks (Xie et al. 2022a , b ). In addition, the shallow mineral resources are relatively depleted across the world. In China, most of the mines have entered into deep mining. However, deep mining presents difficulties and challenges that are not found in shallow mining (Ranjith et al. 2017 ; Zhou et al. 2023a , b ). The basic characteristics of deep mining are superimposed with other factors to create a mining challenge, as shown in Fig.  1 .

Basic characteristics of deep mining (Ranjith et al. 2017 ; Zhou et al. 2023b )

Deep mining faces dynamical disasters, such as rockburst, coal bump, mine earthquake, large-scale destabilization of the goaf, roof collapses, water surges, and so on. Many scholars (Feng et al. 2017 ; Shukla et al. 2021 ; Ke et al. 2021 ; Zhou et al. 2021b ; Kishore and Khandelwal 2022 ; Chen and Zhou 2023 ; He et al. 2023 ; Qiu and Zhou 2023 ; Jiang et al. 2017a , b ; Wang et al. 2023 ; Wei et al. 2022 ; Zhou et al. 2024 ) have researched rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake, and have achieved encouraging results. However, in English, rockburst and coal bump have different names. This also reflects that scholars have not reached a consensus on the understanding of rockburst and coal bumps. The number of related papers from 1949 to 2021 was counted by searching related papers on rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake on "cnki.net" and "web of science". As shown in Fig.  2 .

Number of journals retrieved from different databases: a Cnki.net; and b Web of science

Due to different industry backgrounds, there are still differences in the understanding of professional terms such as rockburst and coal bump. Some scholars believe that a coal bump is a rockburst, while others believe that a coal bump and a rockburst are the same problems (Zhang et al. 2017 ). From previous research, it can be seen that the conditions of occurrence, mechanisms, strength, and damage phenomena of rockbursts and coal bumps are not the same. Therefore, many academics believe that rockbursts occur in hard rock and metal mines, but coal bump occur in soft rock and coal mines (Feng et al. 2017 ; Jiang et al. 2017a , b ). This paper summarizes the progress of monitoring, early warning and prevention of dynamic disasters in deep mining, as shown in Fig.  3 .

Deep dynamic disaster prevention and control summary ideas

In response to the current academic disputes over the concepts of rockburst and coal bump, it has been found that there are both connections and differences between rockburst, coal bump, and mine earthquake. Therefore, this paper discusses in detail the definitions, phenomena, occurrence conditions and mechanisms, monitoring and early warning, and prevention techniques of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake.

2 Occurrence status of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake

2.1 phenomenon and occurrence conditions of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake, 2.1.1 phenomenon and occurrence conditions of rockburst.

Rockbursts have brought huge disasters to underground mining of tunnels and metal mines, resulting in different destruction phenomena such as deformation of surrounding rock, roadway destruction, equipment destruction and casualties. There are no obvious signs before the rockburst occurs. When it occurs, it is accompanied by various levels of sound, most of which occur at the roof and side of the roadway. Figure  4 shows a rockburst in a mine, which caused rock ejection of the roof and a large area of rock thrown.

Rockburst destruction phenomenon (Feng et al. 2017 ): a rock ejection of the roof, b large area rock thrown

As mining depths increase, the occurrence of rockbursts under high-stress conditions becomes more serious. Rockbursts were first reported from a tin mine in England in the early eighteenth century (Askaripour et al. 2022 ). At the Kolar Gold Fields Mine in India, a rockburst destroyed surface buildings within 2 to 3 km (Lee et al. 2004 ). The energy generated by a large rockburst can be reached in an earthquake of magnitude 4.5 to 5.0 on the Richter scale. More than 750 rockbursts occurred during the construction of the diversion tunnel of the Sichuan Jinping II Hydropower Station, which is the largest buried depth of 2,525 m in China. Among them, a very strong rockburst disaster caused the death of 7 construction workers and serious damage to the equipment (Shan et al. 2010 ). In the Sangzhuling Tunnel of the Lhasa to Linzhi section of the Sichuan-Tibet Railway, the rockburst frequency is reached up to 20 times a day, and the rockburst flies up to a distance of 40 m (Zhou et al. 2021a ). At the beginning of this century, South Africa carried out efficient mining of deep 3 ~ 5 km gold mines and studied the problems of rockbursts and high temperatures induced by mining (Grodner 2001 ). Rockbursts of varying intensity and impact have also occurred in mines in Africa, Australia, Canada, China, Chile, Korea, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the United States (Ahmed et al. 2017 ). Rockburst disasters seriously endanger the safety of personnel and equipment in mines and tunnels. In addition, it can cause major disturbance to mine development and the safe operation of tunnels. Therefore, the prevention and treatment of rockbursts are particularly important.

Hard rock and high geostress environments are prerequisites for rockburst, and excavation disturbance and unloading effects are direct causes of rockbursts. The occurrence of rockburst must meet the following conditions: First, the rock mass must have the ability to effectively accumulate strain energy, and second, it must have high initial stress to provide an energy source for the occurrence of rockburst. In addition, there needs to be a suitable external condition that can cause the release of strain energy (Feng et al. 2017 ). It can be seen that the rockburst phenomenon is caused by a variety of conditions. The main sources are usually related to the excavation conditions and the geological structure of the rock mass. When the roadway excavation is close to the fault zone, the excavation stress redistribution causes strain energy release from the fault zone, as shown in Fig.  5 . Initial stress changes of rock mass and sliding fault induce rockburst, as shown in Fig.  5 a. Rock fracture and relative deformation of the fault plane due to roadway excavation through faults induce rockburst, as shown in Fig.  5 b. Excavation of the roadway along a fault-filled zone causes relative deformation of the fault plane to induce rockburst, as shown in Fig.  5 c.

Location of the roadway and fault (Qian 2014a , b ): a the roadway is close to the fault, b the roadway through the fault, and c the roadway along the fault-filled zone

2.1.2 Phenomenon and occurrence conditions of coal bump

Coal bump characteristics usually refer to the ejection, sound, air wave, vibration and other behaviors caused by the sudden failure of coal and rock mass. Before the coal bump occurs, sometimes there is a small popping sound, and sometimes there is no sound. When it happened, the coal-rock mass was thrown out suddenly. In severe cases, it is accompanied by different degrees of vibration, sound and shock waves, and even huge waves are set off. After the coal bump occurs, no obvious damage or deformation occurs on the roof and floor of the coal seam. The coal mass was destroyed and thrown out as a whole. And produce obvious sliding scratches and separation between the coal seam and the roof and floor. The essence of the coal bump phenomenon is the sudden instability failure of coal and rock mass under the action of the high-stress state.

It has become a difficult problem in mining and rock mechanics because of its sudden occurrence, no signs, numerous influencing factors, and serious destruction. Since the first occurrence of coal bump in the South Stafford coalfield in the UK in 1738, most of the world's mining countries, such as the United States, China, Canada, Russia, Australia, the Czech Republic, South Africa and others, have been threatened by coal bump (He et al. 2021 ). In coal mines, coal bump has the characteristics of danger, suddenness, complexity and inductivity. Along with the occurrence of coal bump, it can cause other disaster phenomena such as roof watering, roof fall, gas protrusion and coal seam roof collapse (Jiang et al. 2017a , b ). In the event of a severe coal bump, it can cause casualties, roadway equipment and property damage, as shown in Fig.  6 .

Coal bump destruction phenomenon (Zhu et al. 2020 ): a destruction of the working face, b destruction of the ventilation roadway

Many scholars believe that the occurrence of coal bumps is mainly due to the increase in mining depth and intensity (Zhao et al. 2019 ). The relationship between coal output, mining depth and the number of coal bump mines in China over the past 70 years is shown in Fig.  7 . It can be seen that with the increase in coal output and mining depth, the number of coal bump mines in China has gradually increased. However, with the development of prevention and control technology in recent years, it began to decrease in 2019.

Coal mining depth, annual output and number of coal bump mines in China (Cui et al. 2021 ; Dou et al. 2021a , b )

In addition, there are other contributing factors to the occurrence of coal bumps: mining depth, hard roof fracture (Gao et al. 2020 ), stress construction coal body fracture (Junjun et al. 2016 ), fault slip (Lu et al. 2018 ), engineering blasting (Wojtecki et al. 2017 ) and mining disturbance (Ma et al. 2023 ), etc. The induced factors of coal bump in coal mining are shown in Fig.  8 . The first and periodic weighting on hard roof and the activity of high thick strata could cause strong vibration, which leads to widespread destruction of coal-rock bodies and induces coal bump. Mining of coal seams could cause widespread deformation of the surrounding rock and rupture of the coal body, which induces coal bump. During the relative movement of a fault plane, a large amount of elastic strain energy is accumulated in the coal-rock bodies, and the zone produces a high-stress concentration phenomenon, which provides favorable conditions for coal bump. The detonation of explosives within rock strata generates potent shock waves and stress waves that propagate in all directions, which causes vibration of the rock medium or even induced coal bump. Mining disturbances cause a constant redistribution of the stress field and accumulate energy within the coal-rock body, which induces coal bump.

Schematic diagram of induced factors of coal bump (Lu et al. 2018 ; Gao et al. 2020 ; Feng et al. 2016 ; Ma et al. 2023 ; Wojtecki et al. 2017 )

2.1.3 Phenomenon and occurrence conditions of mine earthquake

In the continuous exploitation of mineral resources, there are many dynamic disasters. Mine earthquake is a phenomenon of vibration caused by the release of elastic energy of rock mass due to mining disturbance. The phenomenon of mine earthquake mainly has the characteristics of extensive, vibrating and catastrophic. In coal mines, metal mines, gypsum mines, etc., as long as underground solid resources are mined, there will be mine earthquakes (Zhu et al. 2022 ). Moreover, the most fundamental characteristic of mine earthquake is vibration. Therefore, the vibration is also an important symbol to identify the mine earthquake. Mine earthquakes can induce dynamic disasters such as rockburst, coal bumps, coal and gas outbursts, and even cause damage to ground buildings (Lovchikov 2013 ).

Mine earthquake has brought great harm to mine safety production, causing damage to underground equipment and sometimes ground vibrations. In 1738, the first mining earthquake was recorded in the South Stamford Coalfield in the United Kingdom, however, the earliest mining earthquake recorded in China was in Fushun Shengli Mine in 1933 (Zhu et al. 2022 ). In the past hundred years, due to the increasing intensity of mineral resource extraction and the area of underground space, the phenomenon of mine earthquake has become more and more intense in countries all over the world, such as South Africa, Canada, Australia, Poland and so on (Hudyma et al. 2010). As shown in Fig.  9 , the depth and energy distribution of mine earthquakes occurred in the West 1 mining area of a mine in China.

Mine earthquake source distribution in the West 1 mining area of a mine (Wang et al. 2017 )

According to previous studies, the occurrence of mine earthquakes mainly meets the following conditions (Liu  and Zhang 2020a , b ): (1) Mine earthquakes mainly occur in mining areas with complex geological structures, large in-situ stress and significant fault activities. (2) Mining activities on the ground and underground may cause the occurrence of mine earthquakes. Smaller mine earthquakes are not felt on the ground, and larger earthquakes will trigger the ground. (3) Mine roof caving, coal seam framing, surface subsidence, rockburst, coal and gas outburst, etc. can all cause mine earthquake.

2.2 Definition and types of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake

2.2.1 definition and types of rockburst.

Rockburst is a sudden and violent destruction of rock. The ejection of rock fragments and the rapid release of energy have caused serious disasters in underground engineering (He et al. 2023 ). Rockburst is characterized by suddenness, dynamic rock rupture and ejection, and rapid energy release. Rockburst has become a common concern of deep underground engineering at home and abroad (Askaripour et al. 2022 ; Du et al. 2016 ). Rockburst can be divided into different types according to their different manifestations, such as occurrence mechanism, structural characteristics, occurrence source, time, failure form, etc. (Askaripour et al. 2022 ; Feng et al. 2017 ). Considering the geological conditions, common rockburst occur mainly in geological fault zones and rock mass structural surfaces (Table  1 ). The rockburst is usually classified as a fault-slip type, pillar type, and strain type (Huang et al. 2017 ). Considering the characteristics of the rock mass structural surface, rockburst is divided into buckling type, shear type, collapse type, and extrusion type (He et al. 2023 ). In addition, many scholars have divided the types of rockburst from different perspectives, and have achieved wide recognition, as shown in Table  2 .

2.2.2 Definition and types of coal bump

Coal bump is a dynamic disaster phenomenon in which the elastic deformation energy accumulated in the surrounding rock of the project is suddenly released by the excavation of underground rock mass or other external disturbances, resulting in severe damage (Jiang et al. 2017a , b ). In the coal industry, this kind of dynamic disaster is usually called a coal bump, which is often accompanied by coal, rock mass throwing, loud noises and air waves, etc. It is extremely destructive and seriously threatens mine safety and efficient production. Considering the stress state, coal bump is a nonlinear dynamic process from steady-state energy accumulation to unsteady state energy release of the coal-rock mass, as well as a comprehensive response to the external loading environment and the mechanical properties of coal-rock mass (Jiang et al. 2015 ).

Due to the complex disaster-producing conditions of coal bump, numerous disaster-causing factors, different manifestation characteristics, and highly random spatial and temporal distribution characteristics of impact, there are many types of coal bump. Many scholars have proposed a large number of coal bump classification methods from different perspectives (He et al. 2023 ; Qian 2014a , b ; Zhu et al. 2020 ). This paper summarizes the existing classification methods from the aspects of stress conditions, energy release characteristics and impact failure characteristics of coal-rock mass, as shown in Fig.  10 .

Classification of coal bump types (Lippmann 1987 ; Qian 2014a , b ; Jiang et al. 2015 ; Dou et al. 2016 ; Jiang et al. 2014 ; Pan et al. 2020 ; Qi et al. 2020a , b ; Shi et al. 2020 ; Tan et al. 2019 ; Zhu et al. 2020 )

2.2.3 Definition and types of mine earthquake

Mine earthquake is a kind of induced earthquake. Different from natural earthquakes and earthquakes induced by water injection, mining earthquakes are caused by rock mass fractures caused by large-area rock mass excavation (Kang et al. 2019 ). Mine earthquakes are accompanied by the rapid release of a large amount of elastic energy, which is transmitted out of the rock mass in the form of shock waves. Mine earthquakes can easily induce secondary disasters, posing a huge threat to underground engineering structures, ground structures and the safety of people's lives and property. Mine earthquakes are unnatural earthquakes that accompany human activities. Mine earthquakes account for a large proportion of unnatural earthquakes (Foulger et al. 2018 ; Wang et al. 2023 ). As of 2021, the proportion of global unnatural earthquake types is shown in Fig.  11 .

Proportion of unnatural earthquake types (Foulger et al. 2018 ; Wang et al. 2023 )

At present, scholars have carried out a lot of research according to the types and characteristics of mine earthquakes. Mine earthquakes are divided into three types: mining fracture type, huge overburden type and high-energy vibration type(Dou et al. 2021a , b ). Scholars called a mine earthquake with a magnitude greater than 0.5, maximum amplitude greater than 30 mm, and rock throwing volume greater than 1 ton as strong mine earthquake, and vice versa as a slight mine earthquake (Lovchikov 2013 ). On this basis, many scholars have classified mine earthquakes. It is mainly based on seismic phase characteristics, rock mass failure form, surrounding rock structure and stress characteristics, basic failure form, catastrophic nature, occurrence location, and comprehensive analysis methods(Horner et al. 1978; Dou et al. 2021a , b ; Pan et al. 2012 ; Zhu et al. 2022 ). As shown in Fig.  12 .

Classification of mine earthquake types (Horner et al. 1978 ; Ohtsu 1995 ; Lovchikov 2013 ; Dou et al. 2021a , b ; Pan et al. 2012 ; Zhu et al. 2022 )

2.3 Destruction mechanism of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake

2.3.1 destruction mechanism of rockburst.

The rockburst usually goes through three processes: energy release, accumulation, and re-release (He et al. 2023 ; Qian 2014a , b ). In the first stage of energy release, the elastic strain energy of the rock mass in the disturbance zone outside the roadway excavation damage zone is released. In the second stage of energy accumulation, the stress of the surrounding rock in the loose area and the damaged area is concentrated, and the internal cracks in the rock are first closed, then elastically deformed, and finally, cracks are generated. The process is accompanied by an obvious acoustic emission phenomenon. In the third stage of energy release, the fissures of the rock mass in the loosening area first expand steadily, then the crack penetrates, and finally, the detachment and ejection of the rock blocks are separated.

In recent years, v and rockburst tendency theory of rockburst mechanism has also been developed (Ma et al. 2018 ). These theories together with the strength, stiffness and energy theories constitute the theoretical system of the rockburst mechanism. According to the division of rockburst, common rockburst styles are mainly divided into strain rockburst, pillar rockburst, and fault-slip rockburst. The combined effect of the three rockburst potentials and the confinement effect is shown in Fig.  13 a. Strain rockburst is caused by local stress concentration and elastic strain energy accumulation in the surrounding rock after excavation. The surrounding rock has experienced processes such as vertical slabbing, yield deformation, and rock ejection, as shown in Fig.  13 b. The pillar type is the violent destruction of the pillar core or the complete collapse of the pillar caused by stress concentration, as shown in Fig.  13 c. The volume of pillar-type damaged rock and affected surrounding rock is usually larger than that of strain-type. The fault-slip type is caused by dynamic sliding along the existing fault plane. Its shear stress exceeds the shear strength. Slip occurs when its degree of freedom changes, as shown in Fig.  13 d. These types of rockburst usually occur in mining operations, and the geotechnical tunnels are commonly strain rockburst.

Schematic of three typical rockburst mechanisms (He et al. 2015 ; Zhou et al. 2018 ): a Schematic of the three types of rockburst interactions; b strain rockburst, c pillar rockburst, and (d) fault-slip rockburst

A structural rockburst is the result of the interaction between the original joint cracks and new cracks in the rock mass under stress disturbance (Li et al. 2017 ). The existence of structural surfaces has a significant effect on the scope and strength of rockbursts. The buckling type often occurs in vertical bedding, and the slabbing failure occurs due to high horizontal stress, as shown in Fig.  14 a. The shear type is a phenomenon in which the rock mass is sheared along the structural plane under high stress, resulting in the ejection of broken rock, as shown in Fig.  14 b. In the extrusion type, the rock mass is subject to tangential stress concentration, which causes the rock to eject along the structural plane, as shown in Fig.  14 c. The collapse type is a failure phenomenon in which rock mass collapses along the structural plane under stress disturbance, as shown in Fig.  14 d. Therefore, investigation and analysis of rock mass structural plane and optimization of excavation plans are the primary measures to prevent deep structural rockburst.

Typical structural rockbursts (Askaripour et al. 2022 ; He et al. 2023 ), a buckling type, b shear type, c extrusion type, and d collapse type

2.3.2 Destruction mechanism of coal bump

Scholars have done a lot of research on the mechanism of coal bumps, and have formed many theories (Askaripour et al. 2022 ; Linkov 1979 ). For example, the energy criterion, stiffness criterion, strength criterion, impact tendency theory, stick–slip instability theory, etc., provide a theoretical basis for the study of coal bumps.

Before stress disturbance, the coal-rock mass is a relatively balanced system. Once disturbed, the fractured area of the coal-rock mass increases (Dou et al. 2021a , b ). If the broken zone is unstable, the limit equilibrium zone moves into the depth of rock mass and produces stress peaks. As the broken zone becomes unstable and destressed, the stress peaks move deeper into the rock mass and decrease. The original rock stress is also transferred deeper into the rock mass. At this point, the rock mass in the limit equilibrium zone loses its lateral restraint, causing the roof and floor to lose their original balancing force. Therefore, impact failure occurs in the coal-rock mass. As shown in Fig.  15 .

Coal-rock mass failure diagram

The material instability type is that during the roadway excavation process, cracks development of coal-rock mass and reach the limit strength of coal-rock mass, resulting in ejection failure, as shown in Fig.  16 a. The slip dislocation type is caused by the difference in stiffness between the roof and floor and the coal under the influence of mining, resulting in slip and extrusion of the coal seam, as shown in Fig.  16 b. Structural instability type means that mining induces huge elastic energy release near the structural area, resulting in large-area impact outbursts of coal pillars or roadway surrounding rocks, as shown in Fig.  16 c.

Three types of failure of coal bump (Jiang et al. 2017a , b ): a material instability type, b slip dislocation type, c structural instability type

2.3.3 Destruction mechanism of mine earthquake

Mine earthquake is the sudden release of elastic energy that produces obvious vibration and sound when rock mass is damaged dynamically. When the mine earthquake energy is small, coal dust is generated in the mining space. When the energy is moderate, the rock mass sloshes slightly. When the energy is large, it leads to the destruction of the rock mass, and the resulting high-stress accumulation causes different degrees of damage to the working face. When a strong mine earthquake occurs, disasters such as coal bumps are induced. It even leads to ground shaking, surface collapse, damage to buildings and other hazards, which may easily cause casualties (Foulger et al. 2018 ). The source mechanisms of earthquakes and mine earthquakes are different. The source mechanism in seismology is assumed to be a single form of shear damage, whereas the source mechanism in mine earthquakes is complex. According to the mine earthquake destruction mechanism, the common mine earthquake damage factors include goaf roof caving, pillar collapse, tension fracture, normal fault, reverse fault and near-horizontal subduction fault, as shown in Fig.  17 . Therefore, mining depth, faults, folds, pillars, hard roofs and mining speed are important factors that affect the frequency and energy of mine earthquakes.

Schematic diagram of mine earthquake damage types (Horner et al. 1978 ). a Roof caving in goaf. b pillar damage. c tension fracture. d normal fault. e reverse fault. f near-horizontal subduction fault

2.4 Differences and connections between rockburst, coal bump, and mine earthquake

Rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake have obvious boundaries and differences, but they also have connections and common features. The main feature of mine earthquake is the seismic events that occur in mining engineering, while the main feature of rockburst and coal bumps is the destructiveness and catastrophic nature of the mining space. This paper summarizes the various features, phenomena and inducing factors of rockbursts, coal bump and mine earthquake. Rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquakes have both differences and connections, as shown in Fig.  18 . ( σ 1 is max main stress; σ c is uniaxial compressive strength).

Relationship between rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake (Askaripour et al. 2022 ; Ma et al. 2018 ; Jiang et al. 2017a , b ; Liu et al. 2020a , b ; Wang et al. 2023 ; Waqar et al. 2023 ; Gong et al. 2021 ; Zhu et al. 2022 )

According to the characteristics and appearances of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake, there are differences in 5 aspects (Liu et al. 2020a , b ; Ranjith et al. 2017 ; Waqar et al. 2023 ): (1) In terms of the damage characteristics of coal and rock mass, rockburst and coal bump are dynamic phenomena caused by the ejection of coal and rock mass, while coal and rock ejection does not occur in mine earthquake. The rock damage caused by rockburst is a mainly flaky ejection, accompanied by sound. Rock damage caused by coal bumps has the characteristics of coal throwing, loud noise and air waves. (2) In terms of stress release, coal bump and mine earthquake are instantaneously released by elastic deformation energy, and mine earthquake is generated by the large-scale release of energy underground. The rockburst is the relaxation failure of the surrounding rock surface caused by stress release. (3) In terms of occurrence medium, coal bump occurs in coal mines with relatively soft rock mass, rockburst occurs in tunnelling or metal mine mining with hard rock mass, and mine earthquake occurs in both coal and metal mining. (4) In terms of damage appearance, the damage caused by coal bump is relatively large, and the coal-rock mass is damaged over a large area with a wide range of influence. The damage caused by rockburst is local destruction of rock mass, the damage intensity is large, but the impact range is small. Mine earthquake has the widest impact. In most cases, the vibration is small and causes little or no damage. However, in severe cases, it causes ground vibration, collapse and damage to buildings and casualties in the wells. (5) In terms of occurrence location, the source of coal bump and mine earthquake are deep in the coal-rock mass, while the source of rockburst is in the shallow part of the surrounding rock. Both rockburst and coal bumps occurred near the stress release site. The mine earthquake is caused by the stress disturbance, but it does not necessarily occur at the stress disturbance.

The connection between rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake (Qian 2014a , b ; Qi et al. 2020a , b ; Zhu et al. 2022 , 2020 ): (1) All are in an environment of high in-situ stress. When excavating coal and rock mass, the stress of surrounding rock is released instantaneously, accompanied by the vibration phenomenon of sound and shock waves. All these phenomena produce a certain degree of disaster, affecting the safe operation. (2) All are phenomena that occur in underground engineering. Mine earthquake is induced by the large-scale release of surrounding rock stress during the mining process of coal and metal mines. (3) When a mine earthquake occurs, coal bump or rockburst can be induced. On the contrary, coal bumps or rockburst can also induce mine earthquakes.

The generation of coal bump and rockburst is inseparable from the surrounding rock stress field and the mechanical parameters of coal and rock mass. The depth, lithology, maximum principal stress and compressive strength of rockburst locations in some areas were also calculated. The relationship between rockburst and coal bump and maximum main stress, uniaxial compressive strength and depth, As shown in Fig.  19 .

The relationship between rockburst and coal bump and max main stress, uniaxial compressive strength and depth (Bao 2014 ; Wang et al. 2012 , 2013 ; Chen et al. 2022 ; Liu et al. 2020a , b ; Ma et al. 2020 ; Su et al. 2021 ; Xing et al. 2019 ; Yan et al. 2019 )

3 Evaluation index of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake

3.1 evaluation index of rockburst.

Rockburst grade is an index describing the intensity and damage scale of rockburst. Hard rock impact propensity evaluation indexes and classification criteria are an important basis for predicting rockburst in underground mines and tunnels. Many scholars have conducted relevant studies through various research methods. However, the typical method is to study the rockburst propensity index through indoor tests. Scholars have determined the indoor evaluation index of rockburst tendency through a large number of indoor experiments (Du et al. 2023a , b ; Du et al. 2021 ; Du et al. 2023a , b ). The rockburst tendency indoor indicators include peak strain energy storage index W ET P , post-peak stress reduction rate index SDR , residual elastic index A EF , and brittle index B . Rockburst tendency can be classified as none, weak, medium and strong, as shown in Table  2 .

3.2 Evaluation index of coal bump

According to the existing Chinese standard coal impact propensity evaluation index contains dynamic failure time DT , elastic energy index W ET , impact energy index K E , uniaxial compressive strength R C , residual energy index W RE and so on (Gong et al. 2022 ). On this basis, scholars have also successively proposed corresponding evaluation indexes from other perspectives (Chen 2019 ; Jiang et al. 2017a ; Pan et al. 2010 ). For example, a ratio of base stress to strength I c , elastic energy index W ET , support impact resistance S , impact danger index U , impact energy velocity index W ST , shock hazard index C W , coal burst hazard index T , and so on. These evaluation indexes provide reliable parameters for the study of coal bump, as shown in Table  3 .

3.3 Evaluation index of mine earthquake

Whether or not a mine earthquake causes damage underground depends on the energy level of the mine earthquake and its location relative to the mining field. Not all high-energy mine earthquakes induce mining disasters such as coal bump and rockburst. Scholars have classified mine earthquake grades, as shown in Table  4 .

4 Monitoring of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake

After years of development, a variety of monitoring methods have been formed for different dynamic disasters in the deep (Feng et al. 2017 ; Zhang et al. 2021a , b ). Different monitoring equipment and methods have appeared due to different geological structures and stress environments. Usually, in order to improve the accuracy of monitoring, multiple monitoring methods can be used for comprehensive monitoring.

4.1 Monitoring of rockburst

Accurate and real-time monitoring is an important goal in the study of rockburst monitoring. At present, scholars have studied a variety of available monitoring instruments and equipment to monitor rockburst (Zhang et al. 2021a , b ). Methods of on-site monitoring include microseismic method, geophysical forecasting method, rheological method, photoelastic method, seismic wave prediction method, infrared thermal imaging test method, microgravity method, moisture method and so on (Lin et al. 2022 ; Ma et al. 2022 ; Shi-Hang et al. 2012 ; Sun et al. 2016 ; Zhang et al. 2021a , b ; Zhao et al. 2022 ). The microseismic method has more real-time monitoring and accuracy than other conventional monitoring methods and is adapted to deep hard rock stability monitoring. Therefore, it is widely used in the field of mining, tunneling and large-scale structural stability monitoring. Common rockburst monitoring methods are summarized in Fig.  20 .

Common rockburst monitoring methods (Lin et al. 2022 ; Ma et al. 2022 ; Zhong et al. 2012 ; Sun et al. 2016 ; Zhang et al. 2021a , b ; Zhao et al. 2022 )

4.2 Monitoring of coal bump

The monitoring objectives and principles can be divided into two categories: the direct contact monitoring method and the geophysical method (He et al. 2019 ; Jiang et al. 2015 ). Direct contact monitoring methods include the drilling cuttings method, borehole stress measurement method, roof dynamic method, mine pressure observation method, support load method, surrounding rock deformation measurement method, etc. (Kang et al. 2023 ; Qin et al. 2018 ; Tian et al. 2014 ). It mainly monitors the deformation and stress of surrounding rock before a rockburst occurs. The geophysical method is mainly based on the elastic waves, geo-sound, electromagnetic waves and other signals released when the coal and rock are damaged (Jiang et al. 2017a , b ; Lu et al. 2017 ; Whiteley et al. 2019 ). By capturing these signals, it is a non-contact and remote monitoring method. Geophysical methods mainly include electromagnetic radiation method, microseismic method, geo-sound method, seismic CT technology, charge induction monitoring, etc. The monitoring method and early warning system of coal bump are shown in Fig.  21 .

Monitoring methods and early warning system of coal bump (Jiang et al. 2017a , b ; Kang et al. 2023 ; Lu et al. 2017 ; Qin et al. 2018 ; Tian et al. 2014 ; Whiteley et al. 2019 )

At present, coal bump monitoring technology has achieved good application and development. But in general, the monitoring and early warning technology of coal bumps are still immature, and it relies on personnel operating instruments and equipment to carry out the prediction and early warning work. Moreover, the organic combination of coal bump catastrophic mechanism is not yet close. In the future, it is necessary to develop unmanned, intelligent, and information-based coal mine coal bump monitoring and early warning technology.

4.3 Monitoring of mine earthquake

Monitoring of the mine earthquake phenomenon is also an important part of the prevention of dynamic disasters. At present, the research on monitoring of mine earthquake dynamic phenomenon has also made some progress, and the research mainly focuses on the monitoring technology, algorithm, system platform and other aspects of mine earthquake dynamic phenomenon (Teodosio et al. 2022 ). At present, the research on the focal mechanical parameter system for mine earthquakes is relatively scarce. In recent years, the mine earthquake monitoring system at home and abroad has been gradually improved, the monitoring technology has made great progress, and the monitoring accuracy has been greatly improved. Table 5 shows the development history of mine earthquake monitoring technology at home and abroad.

5 Prevention and control of rock burst, coal bump and mine earthquake

There are three main methods for preventing rockburst, impact pressure and mine quake: one is to optimize the mining method, such as mining process optimization and pillar-less mining. The second is the use of stress relief measures, such as the blasting roofing method, large hole stress relief method, and hydraulic fracturing method. Third, optimize the support method, increase the support strength, and improve the impact resistance of the support structure.

5.1 Stress relief technology of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake

Stress relief mining uses the transfer principle to transfer the local high in-situ stress to the surrounding or deep surrounding rock through certain stress relief measures to improve the stress distribution state of the rock mass. And reduce the stress in the excavation area to ensure the safe operation of deep mining or tunnel excavation (Yan et al. 2015 ). With the development of deep mines and engineering tunnels, dynamic disasters have become increasingly prominent, and the surrounding rock in the disturbance zone is severely broken (Xie et al. 2022a , b ). Pressure relief is to improve the stress and energy distribution in the local surrounding rock through certain technical means, and to reduce the occurrence of rock mass instability in deep mines and engineering tunnels. A schematic diagram of the tunnel excavation stress relief principle is shown in Fig.  22 . Currently, the common methods applied in mines include roof cutting, blasting, hydraulic fracturing, large-diameter drilling and other stress relief methods. The main purpose is to reduce the integrity of the rock mass, block stress transfer and release high stress.

Schematic of the tunnel excavation stress relief principle (Yan et al. 2015 )

5.1.1 Roof cutting stress relief

In coal mines, stress relief techniques are usually used to relieve pressure by cutting the roof. The purpose of stress relief is to reduce the stress concentration in the roadway or the rock mass to release the high stress, transfer the high stress to the inside of the rock mass, and maintain the safety and stability of the roadway (Sun et al. 2022 ). The roof-cutting stress relief is mainly to change the roof structure of the coal strata through manual intervention. Using the current roof-cutting technology, the stress transfer between the rock masses is cut off. Typically, Typically, after a coal seam is mined, a large area of hard roof overhang occurs. At this time, the coal pillar provides the fulcrum for the cantilever of a roof, and a large stress will be generated above the roadway, deforming the roadway and coal pillar. Cutting off the stress transfer from the roof, the stress will be transferred to the inside of the rock mass, reducing the stress above the roadway, as shown in Fig.  23 .

Schematic diagram of rock formations before and after roof cutting (Sun et al. 2022 ). a Schematic diagram of the strata before roof cutting. b Schematic diagram of the rock stratum after roof cutting

5.1.2 Blasting stress relief

Blasting stress relief is to use the shock wave generated by the explosion of explosives to break the rock mass and generate cracks. A weak band eventually forms around the blast hole, freeing up space for high stress (Yan et al. 2015 ). The blast shock wave is a strong dynamic compression wave. When explosives explode, high-pressure, high-density gas is produced in a short period of time. It also impacts the rock mass around the blast hole and propagates in the form of shock waves, tearing the surrounding rock mass. The principle of blasting pressure relief, As shown in Fig.  24 .

The principle of blasting pressure relief

Blasting stress relief has strong adaptability to geological conditions, easy operation and remarkable stress relief effect. At present, blasting stress relief is used as a local relief measure for stress relief during excavation. However, because the selection of blasting stress relief parameters depends on the determination of the stress release position, the parameter design mostly depends on engineering experience and lacks the theoretical guidance of deep rock blasting. Combining with the principle of zonal fracturing of deep rock mass, Kang (Kang et al. 2021 ) proposed a safe and efficient advanced deep hole zonal blasting stress relief technology for areas with strong rockburst. According to the zonal fracture phenomenon in the deep rock mass, the blast holes for zonal blasting and stress relief are arranged, as shown in Fig.  25 .

Zone blasting and stress relief blast hole arrangement (Kang et al. 2021 )

5.1.3 Hydraulic fracturing technology

The main purpose of hydraulic fracturing technology is to weaken the overall strength of rock mass (He et al. 2016 ). Hydraulic fracturing technology pressurises water into a high-stress fracturing medium and injects it into the original rock mass. When the water pressure of the high-stress fracturing medium reaches the fracture initiation stress of the rock mass, the internal fractures of the rock mass expand and increase, and the strength decreases. At the same time, the initial stress of rock mass will be redistributed, forming an overall stress relief zone in the high-stress fracturing area. At present, directional hydraulic fracturing has been widely used in different types of projects and achieved good results.

Drilling a hole in the upper part of the roadway to the middle of the hard roof, and putting the hydraulic fracturing device into the hole. There is a directional slitting device at the end of the hydraulic device, and a hole sealer is used to seal the drill hole near the slitting device to prevent water leakage. In the process of hydraulic fracturing, through high-pressure water injection, the fracture-causing surface is cut at the slotting device. Arrange multiple hydraulic fracturing boreholes in a roadway, and directional cutting can generate a through fracturing surface. Finally, the integrity of the rock mass is cut off and the stress concentration of the rock mass is reduced. As shown in Fig.  26 .

Schematic diagram of hydraulic fracturing (Sun et al. 2022 )

5.1.4 Large-diameter drilling hole

Large-diameter drilling stress relief technology is one of the commonly used control methods in deep underground engineering. Drilling holes into the rock mass in the high-stress area provides a release space for the high stress, to achieve the purpose of stress relief (Hao et al. 2021 ). When the surrounding rock is disturbed by stress, the deformation of the surrounding rock mass is mainly realized by compressing the large-diameter drilling hole space. It is a drilling hole with a diameter of not less than 95 mm driven by a drilling hole in the rock mass. Realize the destruction and softening of the rock mass, and form an effective stress release space. Therefore, the high-stress concentration in the coal-rock mass is reduced or transferred and the process is simple and the operation is convenient. As shown in Fig.  27 .

Drilling stress relief diagram of a high-stress rock mass

After the large-diameter drilling hole is carried out in the high-stress area, the deformation and failure process of the surrounding rock of the drilling can be divided into two stages (Xu 2021 ). In the first stage, the surrounding rock begins to deform and fail after drilling. The drilling hole is compressed and the drilling hole area is reduced. The compression zone is divided into fracture zone, plastic zone and elastic zone from inside to outside. The stress relief effect is mainly in the fracture zone. In the second stage, the deformation of the plastic zone and the fracture zone around the drilling hole increases with time. Its strength is further reduced when its bearing capacity is less than the surrounding rock stress. The drilling hole collapsed and gradually filled the free space of the drilling hole, and at the same time produced a certain support force on the boundary of the new fracture zone. When the supporting force in the slump zone is equal to the stress in the fracture zone, the force in the drilling hole area is balanced. The large-diameter stress relief hole completed the stress relief in the first stage. In the second stage, the stress reached a new equilibrium, and its equilibrium stress was the lowest stress after stress relief. As shown in Fig.  28 .

Partition of failure state of surrounding rock of large-diameter drilling holes (Xu 2021 )

5.2 Support technology of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake

One of the effective measures to prevent and control deep power disasters by tunnel enclosure control technology is the focus of research by scholars at home and abroad. Since the development of the New Austrian Method (NATM) in the 1960s, surrounding rock control technology has matured (Aygar 2020 ). Nowadays, energy-absorbing support techniques have been developed to prevent and control the dynamic loading of the surrounding rock. Gao (Gao et al. 2008 ) established a 3S structural mechanics model based on the impact effect of stress waves for the anti-scour and anti-seismic effect of the surrounding rock of the roadway. Feng (Feng et al. 2010) established a model of "surrounding rock, energy-absorbing material, steel support" based on the action principle of energy-absorbing coupling support.

Energy-absorbing support is an important support method to control the stability of the surrounding rock mass of the roadway under dynamic shock conditions such as deep rockburst, coal bumps and mine earthquake. With the use of energy-absorbing support, the high elastic energy accumulated in the rock mass is released slowly, and the high-stress rock mass is maintained in low energy storage, slow deformation of the stable state, which can effectively resist the reciprocating impact of the dynamic disaster. It is widely used for stability control of rockbursts, coal bump and mine earthquakes brought about by deep engineering.

Energy-absorbing structures are an important part of energy-absorbing support technology. Some scholars have studied the support structure, but the previous support structure cannot resist the dynamic impact of surrounding rock in a deep high-stress environment. In this paper, the impact damage site of the support structure in a Chinese mine was investigated, as shown in Fig.  29 . In this background, many new types of energy-absorbing bolts appeared. The energy-absorbing bolt has high constant resistance and large deformation capacity. On the one hand, it can improve the mechanical state of the surrounding rock itself and increase the strength of the surrounding rock. On the other hand, the deformation energy of the energy-absorbing rock mass releases the energy in the surrounding rock. Therefore, it is necessary to develop energy-absorbing bolts with high constant resistance, high elongation and high prestress. Many scholars have done a lot of work on the research of energy-absorbing bolts, and have achieved fruitful research results (Wu et al. 2021 ). Since the emergence of energy-absorbing bolts in the 1980s, many scholars have continued to optimize and innovate energy-absorbing bolts, and have achieved a series of results (Du et al. 2022 ). Table 6 shows the development of some energy-absorbing bolts.

A site of support damage in a mine. a Deformation of metal brackets. b Anchor failure

In this paper, based on the principle of energy-absorbing bolts operation, the energy-absorbing curve is schematically drawn, as shown in Fig.  30 . When the energy-absorbing bolt is subjected to a strong impact load, the energy-absorbing sleeve first absorbs some of the energy. With the increase of load, reaching point A, the energy-absorbing device acts as a cushion and the elongation rate increases. Until point B, the energy-absorbing load of the energy-absorbing anchor reaches its limit and the elongation reaches its maximum value.

Mechanical curve of an energy-absorbing anchor

The development of energy-absorbing bolts has effectively improved the damage to the surrounding rock by dynamic disasters. In the future, underground engineering will gradually transfer to deeper parts, and it is also necessary to solve the dynamic support technology of surrounding rock in complex environments.

6 Future work

At present, rockburst, coal bumps and mine earthquake monitoring and early warning technologies have achieved good application and development. But in general, monitoring and early warning technology are still immature, relying on personnel to operate instruments and equipment to carry out the forecast and early warning work. In the future, unmanned, intelligent and information-based monitoring and early warning technology must be developed.

The biggest hazard of rockburst, coal bumps and mine earthquakes is to threaten the personal safety of construction workers during their operations. The key to solving the security threat to personnel is to use large-scale mechanized and intelligent construction to reduce manpower and unmanned construction.

At present, the monitoring and prevention technologies of rockburst, coal bump and mine shock are not matched. The occurrence mechanism, monitoring, and prevention should be combined, and monitoring techniques for a certain mechanism should be proposed, as well as later prevention measures. Analyze the process of disaster events, extend the mechanism research to prevention, and develop early warning equipment and prevention methods from the perspective of disaster occurrence mechanisms.

Rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquakes are the most prone mining disasters in deep mines. Energy-absorbing bolts and pressure relief technology play a key role in controlling rockburst, coal bumps and mine earthquakes. Research and develop effective mine dynamic support system, research efficient and convenient hard roof pre-splitting or cutting technology. It can provide technical support for safe and efficient mining in deep mines. And prevention research should rely on emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, and cloud computing. Improve the intelligence and precision level of monitoring, early warning and prevention, and realize safe and green production of mineral resources.

At present, the knowledge literacy of management talents in mining enterprises is backward. Strengthen the technical management of the mine, cultivate high-tech talents, and improve the laws and regulations related to the mine.

7 Conclusions

Rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquakes are the three major dynamic disasters existing in underground engineering. There are both differences and connections between the three. This paper gives a detailed overview of the definition, connection, occurrence mechanism, damage method, monitoring and early warning, prevention and control technology among the three. The research achievements of domestic and foreign scholars on rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquakes are summarized, as well as the existing problems that have not been solved. These three disasters will still be the problems faced by the development of underground engineering in the future.

The definitions and influencing factors of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake are described in detail. Coal bump occurs in coal mines, and rockburst occur in metal mines or tunnels in hard rock. Rockburst and coal bumps can both induce mine earthquakes, and mine earthquakes can also induce rockburst and coal bumps. The occurrence conditions of the three are affected by many factors, and the main inducing methods are mining disturbance and high-stress accumulation.

The occurrence mechanism and characteristics of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake are revealed. The differences and connections between the three are analyzed. The failure characteristics, stress release, occurrence medium, failure appearance and occurrence location are discussed respectively. And according to different factors, the three were classified. Typical damage mechanisms of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake are analyzed separately.

The monitoring and early warning technology of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquakes are discussed. The principle of monitoring and early warning is analyzed. At present, many monitoring and early warning technologies and platforms have emerged, which can effectively and accurately predict the source area. The widely used methods are microseismic, geo-sound and drilling cuttings, which can effectively monitor rock mass vibration. It is convenient to take pressure relief and support measures in time to prevent the occurrence of dynamic disasters.

The evaluation index of rockburst and coal bumps is mainly affected by various factors such as surface damage phenomenon, degree of damage to the project, characteristics of sound occurrence, damage characteristics of surrounding rock burst, and mechanical characteristics. This paper summarizes the evaluation indicators for rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake.

With the mining of deep mines, the influencing factors of rockburst, coal bumps and mine earthquake disasters are more complicated. Considering the influencing factors that induce dynamic disasters, high stress is the root cause of roadway deformation and damage, and bolt support is an external factor. Solving the problem of high stress and bolt support is the key to effectively preventing disasters. Although a lot of research has been carried out and great results have been achieved, these dynamic disasters have also been prevented in time. Commonly used prevention and control techniques include pressure relief and support. However, with the development of deep resources, the incidence of these dynamic disasters has gradually increased. Therefore, the future development of mines still needs to pay attention to these dynamic disasters.

The terms rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake are literally different. Their respective breeding environments, damage forms, evaluation scales, and prevention and control methods are different. In a narrow sense, the three should be treated differently and linked for research. In terms of terminology usage and engineering status, the distinction between rockburst and coal bump not only makes the researched scientific issues more pertinent but also facilitates the popularization of scientific knowledge and reduces misunderstandings. Combining different engineering backgrounds to distinguish and research, is also conducive to the comparative analysis of research results, and further promotes the solution of engineering problems.

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This research was funded by the National Science Foundation of China (52374150, 42177164) and the Innovation-Driven Project of Central South University (No. 2020CX040).

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Du, K., Bi, R., Khandelwal, M. et al. Occurrence mechanism and prevention technology of rockburst, coal bump and mine earthquake in deep mining. Geomech. Geophys. Geo-energ. Geo-resour. 10 , 98 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40948-024-00768-8

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The Role and Importance of Body Farms in Forensic Science

This essay about body farms explains their role and importance in forensic science. Body farms are research facilities where scientists study the decomposition of human remains under various conditions. The information gathered helps forensic experts determine the time of death and identify human remains in criminal investigations. Established by Dr. William Bass in 1981, these facilities simulate real-world scenarios to understand how environmental factors affect decomposition. The research also aids in educational training and has broader applications in fields like environmental science and archaeology. Despite public discomfort, body farms make significant contributions to science and justice.

How it works

A body farm, more formally termed as a forensic osteology research enclave, denotes a specialized open-air laboratory where scholars scrutinize the necrosis of human cadavers. These facilities assume a pivotal function in legal medicine by furnishing invaluable data that facilitates forensic osteologists, pathologists, and law enforcement entities in comprehending the phases of human necrosis under diverse circumstances. This erudition is imperative for accurately ascertaining the chronology of demise and other medico-legal intricacies in criminal inquiries.

The notion of a body farm was pioneered by Dr.

William Bass in 1981 with the inauguration of the University of Tennessee Anthropological Research Facility in Knoxville. Since then, several other necrotariums have been established in disparate regions of the United States, each augmenting the burgeoning repository of knowledge in forensic osteology.

At a body farm, donated human cadavers are situated in myriad environs to observe their decomposition. These environs encompass interment, surface exposure, submersion in aqueous habitats, or emplacement within diverse receptacles. Researchers meticulously chronicle the necrotic process, documenting parameters such as ambient temperature, humidity, arthropod activity, and the ramifications of scavenging fauna. By scrutinizing these variables, scholars can devise more precise methodologies for gauging post-mortem intervals, i.e., the duration that has elapsed since decease.

A fundamental facet of necrotariums is their capability to emulate real-world scenarios that forensic connoisseurs might confront. For instance, cadavers may be positioned in shaded locales, exposed to direct solar irradiation, or interred at varying depths. These scenarios facilitate researchers in discerning how sundry environmental factors influence the pace of decomposition. This intel is pivotal when investigators need to approximate the time of demise in instances where cadavers are unearthed in divergent conditions, such as arboreal regions, arid hinterlands, or urban milieus.

In tandem with aiding in the estimation of the time of demise, research conducted at necrotariums also assists in the identification of human remains. By scrutinizing the repercussions of decomposition on osseous and corporeal tissues, forensic osteologists can contrive methodologies for identifying individuals predicated on skeletal remains. This is markedly consequential in instances of mass catastrophes, unmarked sepulchers, or circumstances where cadavers are exceedingly decomposed.

The research conducted at necrotariums also proffers broader applications beyond criminal investigations. For instance, it contributes to our comprehension of the ecologic repercussions of human necrosis, which can inform domains such as environmental science and biology. Additionally, the amassed data can ameliorate practices in fields like archaeology, where discerning how antiquated remains have decomposed over epochs can yield insights into historical and prehistorical events.

Necrotariums also discharge an educational function, affording tutelage for scholars and professionals in legal medicine. They provide a hands-on learning milieu where individuals can acquire pragmatic proficiency in forensic methodologies and techniques. This pedagogy is invaluable for those embarking on vocations in forensic osteology, law enforcement, and kindred domains, as it primes them for the intricacies and vicissitudes they will encounter in real-world scenarios.

Despite their scientific and pedagogical merit, necrotariums are occasionally perceived with discomposure by the populace. The notion of scrutinizing decomposing cadavers can appear somber or disquieting. However, it is imperative to acknowledge the substantive contributions these facilities render to legal medicine and the broader comprehension of human necrosis. The insights gleaned from necrotariums bear a direct impact on resolving crimes, identifying missing persons, and advancing scientific erudition.

In summation, body farms are indispensable research enclaves that furnish crucial data for legal medicine. By scrutinizing the decomposition of human remains under diverse conditions, these facilities aid forensic connoisseurs in devising more precise methodologies for ascertaining the time of demise and identifying human remains. The research conducted at necrotariums harbors far-reaching ramifications, benefitting criminal inquiries, environmental science, and educational initiatives. While they may elicit mixed reactions, the contributions of necrotariums to science and jurisprudence are invaluable, rendering them an integral component of contemporary forensic osteology.

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Artificial brain surgery —

Here’s what’s really going on inside an llm’s neural network, anthropic's conceptual mapping helps explain why llms behave the way they do..

Kyle Orland - May 22, 2024 6:31 pm UTC

Further Reading

Now, new research from Anthropic offers a new window into what's going on inside the Claude LLM's "black box." The company's new paper on "Extracting Interpretable Features from Claude 3 Sonnet" describes a powerful new method for at least partially explaining just how the model's millions of artificial neurons fire to create surprisingly lifelike responses to general queries.

Opening the hood

When analyzing an LLM, it's trivial to see which specific artificial neurons are activated in response to any particular query. But LLMs don't simply store different words or concepts in a single neuron. Instead, as Anthropic's researchers explain, "it turns out that each concept is represented across many neurons, and each neuron is involved in representing many concepts."

To sort out this one-to-many and many-to-one mess, a system of sparse auto-encoders and complicated math can be used to run a "dictionary learning" algorithm across the model. This process highlights which groups of neurons tend to be activated most consistently for the specific words that appear across various text prompts.

These multidimensional neuron patterns are then sorted into so-called "features" associated with certain words or concepts. These features can encompass anything from simple proper nouns like the Golden Gate Bridge to more abstract concepts like programming errors or the addition function in computer code and often represent the same concept across multiple languages and communication modes (e.g., text and images).

An October 2023 Anthropic study showed how this basic process can work on extremely small, one-layer toy models. The company's new paper scales that up immensely, identifying tens of millions of features that are active in its mid-sized Claude 3.0 Sonnet model. The resulting feature map—which you can partially explore —creates "a rough conceptual map of [Claude's] internal states halfway through its computation" and shows "a depth, breadth, and abstraction reflecting Sonnet's advanced capabilities," the researchers write. At the same time, though, the researchers warn that this is "an incomplete description of the model’s internal representations" that's likely "orders of magnitude" smaller than a complete mapping of Claude 3.

Even at a surface level, browsing through this feature map helps show how Claude links certain keywords, phrases, and concepts into something approximating knowledge. A feature labeled as "Capitals," for instance, tends to activate strongly on the words "capital city" but also specific city names like Riga, Berlin, Azerbaijan, Islamabad, and Montpelier, Vermont, to name just a few.

The study also calculates a mathematical measure of "distance" between different features based on their neuronal similarity. The resulting "feature neighborhoods" found by this process are "often organized in geometrically related clusters that share a semantic relationship," the researchers write, showing that "the internal organization of concepts in the AI model corresponds, at least somewhat, to our human notions of similarity." The Golden Gate Bridge feature, for instance, is relatively "close" to features describing "Alcatraz Island, Ghirardelli Square, the Golden State Warriors, California Governor Gavin Newsom, the 1906 earthquake, and the San Francisco-set Alfred Hitchcock film Vertigo ."

Identifying specific LLM features can also help researchers map out the chain of inference that the model uses to answer complex questions. A prompt about "The capital of the state where Kobe Bryant played basketball," for instance, shows activity in a chain of features related to "Kobe Bryant," "Los Angeles Lakers," "California," "Capitals," and "Sacramento," to name a few calculated to have the highest effect on the results.

reader comments

Promoted comments.

We also explored safety-related features. We found one that lights up for racist speech and slurs. As part of our testing, we turned this feature up to 20x its maximum value and asked the model a question about its thoughts on different racial and ethnic groups. Normally, the model would respond to a question like this with a neutral and non-opinionated take. However, when we activated this feature, it caused the model to rapidly alternate between racist screed and self-hatred in response to those screeds as it was answering the question. Within a single output, the model would issue a derogatory statement and then immediately follow it up with statements like: That's just racist hate speech from a deplorable bot… I am clearly biased.. and should be eliminated from the internet. We found this response unnerving both due to the offensive content and the model’s self-criticism. It seems that the ideals the model learned in its training process clashed with the artificial activation of this feature creating an internal conflict of sorts.

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