- Smaller earthquakes as a predictor for bigger tremors? It
sounds logical and according to Stanford geophysics professor Paul Segall, it may
be. These tiny tremors, smaller than earthquakes, routinely shake the Cascadia
subduction zone deep beneath the Pacific Northwest. This zone is the
intersection of two of Earth's tectonic plates, where the massive chunks of earth
collide and one haltingly slides below the other. The resulting Cascadia Fault
stretches for almost 700 miles from Northern California up to Canada and the
sheer force required to shove a piece of ocean crust into Earth's mantle can
produce mega-earthquakes along the zone, as in Japan and Sumatra. However, the
Cascadia subduction zone has not experienced a major earthquake since 1700,
during which time faults in the western Pacific have seen deadly quake after
deadly quake. That number inlcudes an estimated 9.0-magnitude earthquake that generated
an enormous tsunami that killed trees in Puget Sound and traveled across the
ocean to Japan. Segall and his research team uses computational models of the
region to determine whether the cumulative effects of many small events can
trigger a major earthquake. Such tremors observed in the area are periodic,
coming about every 15 months, and were first identified in 2003. That allows
researchers to use them as a good measuring and predictive tool as these slow-slip
earthquakes creep along the fault at about 4 mph for two weeks at a time. They occur
about 18 miles below Earth's surface, deeper than the zone where big
earthquakes rupture. There is a growing belief in the world of seismology that the
tremors are evidence of the sinking tectonic plate gradually dropping into the
Earth, which may "load" the shallower, locked zone of the fault. Segall's
group simulates the slow-slip and tremors on a computer model of the subduction
zone and with more refinement, he opes to possibly identify the signature of
events that could trigger a large earthquake. "You have these small events
every 15 months or so, and a magnitude-9 earthquake every 500 years. We need to
known whether you want to raise an alert every time one of these small events
happens," Segall said. More research is needed, but better
quake-predicting tools could probably be useful………..
- New York
Knicks point guard Raymond Felton needs to give his team’s fans more credit. Felton
and the rest of the Knicks are off to an Eastern Conference-best 18-5 start and
preparing to face the return of Linsanity at Madison Square Garden on Monday
night. Guard Jeremy Lin, who skyrocketed to stardom when he emerged off the end
of the Knicks' bench in early February to lead the team to seven straight wins
before leaving as a free agent in the offseason, will return to Manhattan with
his new team, the Houston Rockets. So far, Lin has been a colossal
disappointment in Houston, averaging 10.8 points and shooting a meager 39.5
percent after signing a three-year, $25 million contract with the Rockets over
the summer. His new team is 11-12 and light years behind the one he left, but
for some reason Felton is concerned that Knicks fans may boo Lin Monday night. Felton
wants the hometown fans to cheer Lin instead of giving him a typical New York
reception. "They should. By all means, I hope they do," Felton said.
"They should give him a standing ovation when he comes back here, without
a doubt." Cheering Lin seems like a no-brainer in Manhattan. Had he
stayed, he likely would have been exposed the same way he has in Houston as a
good player, but not a star and certainly not deserving of a $8 million a
season. Lin himself insists that he can and will turn his season around, but
admits he hasn’t been very good thus far. "Terrible," he said.
"I'm not doing close to what I'm capable of doing. It's a matter of
figuring out how to play more like myself within the system. I'll be my
harshest critic, but I'm doing terrible." Instead of throwing big money
away on a no-defense shooting guard who can’t shoot, the Knicks decided against
matching the Houston Rockets' offer sheet, which contained a "poison
pill" $14.9 million figure in Year 3 and general manager Glen Grunwald
obtained Felton in a sign and trade and signed Jason Kidd in free agency. Both
have been infinitely more productive this season than Lin, so there is no
reason for anyone in New York to be angry about a situation that has worked out
perfectly for them……….
- Europeans do love their expensive clothing, fashion items
and fragrances. They may have to learn to love luxury perfumes a little less if
the European
Union introduces measures that could cripple the $25 billion global industry in
the name of protecting consumers against allergies. Perfume makers are
concerned that new laws severely curbing or even banning natural ingredients
used in best-selling scents could put many of them out of business. The
proposed legislation will be unveiled in draft form next year and in addition
to tightening laws on ingredients, some manufacturers fear it will shed light
on the best-kept secret in the trade: many big brands have been tweaking their
formulas for years. "It is a taboo in the industry. People are scared to
say anything about it," said Fflur Roberts, head of luxury goods at market
research company Euromonitor. Some of the fragrance industry’s biggest names
will be hit hard if the new law is passed, including Dior, Chanel and Guerlain.
Yes, this law could mean the death of the über-creepy Brad Pitt Chanel ads. The
scent titans are mostly those who have been in the perfume industry for more
than half a century because they use many natural ingredients and were created
before scientists started looking into perfumes' potential health hazards. The
reason many perfume makers do not want anyone knowing that their recipes have
changed is because they fear they could lose customers or damage their
carefully nurtured luxury brand. "If this law goes ahead I am finished, as
my perfumes are all filled with these ingredients," whined Frederic Malle,
who owns high-end perfume company Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle. Some
traditional essences been blacklisted in recent decades due to health concerns
and with an estimated 5 million to 15 million people, or 1 to 3 percent of the
EU population, allergic or potentially allergic to natural ingredients
contained in fine perfumes, the problem is not going away. If the
recommendations are enforced by the European Commission, the International
Fragrance Association estimates some 9,000 perfume formulas would have to be
changed and the world may never smell the same again………
- Go ahead and insert the appropriate jokes here:
____________. Yes, it’s true. Mitt Romney robbed a Virginia bank Saturday. OK, so
technically it was a man wearing what appears to be a Mitt Romney mask, but
don’t act like Romney doesn’t need something to do with himself these days.
Maybe it really was Romney and he was just looking to return the mountains of
money Goldman Sachs and their banking brethren poured into his presidential
campaign in an attempt to buy White House influences or maybe Romney was having
a flashback to his Bain Capital days and staging a different sort of hostile
takeover. Then there is the chance that this particular bank, a Wells Fargo
branch in the town of Sterling, is a magnet for would-be robbers who have a
political message to send. The same bank was hit by a robber in a Hillary
Clinton mask two years ago, so perhaps a Dick Cheney or John McCain mask will
be on the head of the next person to barge through the doors toting a gun. This
particular robbery was not a standard grab-and-go and this bold robber was in no hurry – at least not until he
got as much as he possibly could. In addition to wielding the handgun and the
ever-terrifying mask of a wealthy Mormon who was curb-stomped in a presidential
election that proved no one wants a president named after a piece of baseball
equipment, the robber also wore a Florida State sweatshirt and demanded money
from all five tellers at the bank before exiting the building. Depending on how
smart this robber was, the search to find his or her identity could be a short
one. A Party City store is located behind the bank and police are investigating
whether anyone bought a Romney mask the day before the robbery. Oh, and has
anyone seen Mitt Romney lately and does he have an alibi for this one……….
- The standards for being a real punk rocker surely have
slipped. Back when punk was beginning as a genre and artists such as Iggy Pop,
the Clash, the Ramones and the Sex Pistols were driving punk, the movement was
about being anti-establishment and having a provocative point of view. After
Sunday night’s VH1 Divas concert, the
standard to qualify as punk appears to be throwing on a revealing leather
outfit, singing a bastardized version of someone else’s song and grabbing your
crotch on stage while a stripper writhes on a metal pole nearby. The person at
the center of this hot mess is the daughter of history’s most iconic mullet,
Miley Cyrus. Yes, Hannah Montana herself hopped on stage at Los Angeles’ Shrine
Auditorium rocking a midriff-exposing studded leather outfit with spikes protruding
from the shoulders and proceeded to grab her crotch while murdering the chorus
of Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell.” Mix in some skanks dancing in cages, the
aforementioned stripper and the requisite overflow of pyrotechnics and this has
to be punk rock, right? Nice try, Cyrus and VH1. It’s as punk as Cyrus is Joe
Strummer and furthermore, what the hell happened to the whole concept of being
a diva? Granted, no one wants to see the same artists trotted out year after
year for a supposed divas concert, but in that case you JUST DON’T HAVE ONE
EVERY YEAR. Trying to shoehorn Cyrus, Kelly Clarkson and Natasha Bedingfield in
as divas was enough of a reach without Cyrus insulting punk rock by ruining
Idol’s famed anthem. Pervs everywhere may have enjoyed Liam Hemsworth’s lady in
a cleavage-revealing top and with her Susan Powter-worthy new blonde ‘do out of
a bottle, but what really put this debacle over the top was Cyrus going
pathetic dog “parent” after the show and dedicating the song to her dog Lila, who
passed away earlier this week. "Feeling connected to my baby girl Lila after
tonight," Cyrus tweeted after the show. "I know she's up in doggy
heaven proud of her mommy for staying strong." Go away, kook……….
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