Test your disaster knowledge
True or false: Earth scientists are able to predict exactly when an earthquake will happen.
As Dr Austin Elliott points out, ‘The earth’s system is large, and operates at a big scale. Knowing precisely when an earthquake will happen, down to the seconds and minutes, maybe even hours that people want, is impossible’ – however, earth scientists can work to understand how frequently earthquakes recur, how long it’s been since the last earthquake, and how large previous earthquakes have been.
In the 1918 Flu Pandemic, which newspapers were an accurate source of information about the spread of the disease in England?
Due to wartime censorship, cases of flu in both Allied countries and Germany were under-reported, leading the pandemic to become known as ‘Spanish flu’ because cases in neutral Spain were more widely reported.
Where in the world might you find a Disaster Prevention Park?
Currently, only Japan has Disaster Prevention Parks, which provide emergency shelter, cooking and toilet facilities for citizens in the case of an earthquake or tsunami. However, delegates from other countries have visited Japan to learn more about emergency preparedness: Read more
Which of the following is NOT thought to have contributed to the catastrophic soil erosion of the ‘Dust Bowl’ event?
The ‘Dust Bowl’ was caused by a combination of soil being lifted by deep ploughing for intensive farming, removal of the area’s native grasslands for crops and pastures, and high-speed winds which picked the topsoil up and blew it away.
What surprising piece of technology does ‘Wee-g’ use to detect earthquake and volcanic activity?
To make the ‘Wee-g’ gravimeter, scientists at the University of Glasgow adapted the accelerometer technology used to change the orientation on mobile phone screens. They did this by replacing the metal springs with very thin, sensitive silicone ones – this allows the accelerometer to measure very slight changes in gravity that might indicate an eruption or earthquake on the way.
According to Professor Nikita Sud, what were the main urban planning problems that caused the city of Chennai to suffer catastrophic flooding in 2015?
According to Professor Sud, issues included building an airport on the floodplain of the Adyar River, meaning that the river had no space to safely overflow when the rains came, and building over more than 273 hectares of wetland that would normally allow floodwaters to soak away safely.
According to the OFDA/CRED International Disaster Database, what were the most and least deadly natural disasters in the years 2010-15?
According to the database, earthquakes killed an average of 43,302 people each year from 2010-15, while 52 people per year lost their lives in wildfires.
What is the name of the biological system that traps carbon dioxide in the ocean?
The Biological Carbon Pump is the system that traps carbon dioxide in phytoplankton, which are then eaten by zooplankton, locking CO2 away at the bottom of the ocean.
True or false: the Great Plague of the 1300s was caused by a virus transmitted to humans from domestic birds such as chickens and ducks.
False. The disease was caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, carried by fleas.