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Strong Oklahoma Earthquake Felt From Nebraska to Texas

SKORPI0

Lifer
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/earthquake-shakes-swath-midwest-missouri-oklahoma-41842405

One of the largest earthquakes in Oklahoma rattled the Midwest on Saturday from Nebraska to North Texas, and likely will turn new attention to the practice of disposing oil and gas field wastewater deep underground.

The United States Geological Survey said a 5.6 magnitude earthquake happened at 7:02 a.m. Saturday in north-central Oklahoma, a key energy-producing region. That matches a November 2011 quake in the same region. No major damage was immediately reported.

People in Kansas City and St. Louis, Missouri; Fayetteville, Arkansas; Des Moines, Iowa; and Norman, Oklahoma, all reported feeling the earthquake. Dallas TV station WFAA tweeted that the quake shook their studios, too.

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10006juk#executive
 
If I were running the show, fuel that couldn't be extracted using traditional methods(simple drilling) would be seized as a national asset, and left in the ground as strategic reserve. If it's never needed, it would never be accessed. Otherwise, we'd be sitting pretty while the rest of the world wonders where it's getting it's energy from.
 
Japan had a 9.0 a few years ago. Fukushima nuclear problems are still horendous.
<typical Nebraskan>
5.6... 9.0... That's not even twice as bad!
</typical Nebraskan>

Actually, not just Nebraskans. Probably 80% of the population. The problem with logarithmic scales is that most people have never even reached logarithms in their high school education. It's too bad there aren't two scales - one for scientists, and one for the public. Use a different scale for reporting to the public; I suggest 10^(magnitude - 3.0) That is, a 3.0 earthquake is a 1.0 on the DrPizza earthquake scale. So, this Nebraskan earthquake would be a 398 on the DrPizza earthquake scale. While the big one in Japan would be a 1 million on the DrPizza earthquake scale. That might make more sense to innumerate people. And, for earthquakes less than a 3.0, round to the nearest tenth. "last night's earthquake, barely felt by some people, was only 4 tenths of a point on the DrPizza earthquake scale.
 
<typical Nebraskan>
5.6... 9.0... That's not even twice as bad!
</typical Nebraskan>

Actually, not just Nebraskans. Probably 80% of the population. The problem with logarithmic scales is that most people have never even reached logarithms in their high school education. It's too bad there aren't two scales - one for scientists, and one for the public. Use a different scale for reporting to the public; I suggest 10^(magnitude - 3.0) That is, a 3.0 earthquake is a 1.0 on the DrPizza earthquake scale. So, this Nebraskan earthquake would be a 398 on the DrPizza earthquake scale. While the big one in Japan would be a 1 million on the DrPizza earthquake scale. That might make more sense to innumerate people. And, for earthquakes less than a 3.0, round to the nearest tenth. "last night's earthquake, barely felt by some people, was only 4 tenths of a point on the DrPizza earthquake scale.
I approve!

(But, like most of America, I'd hear the news report, and only think, "mmmmmm Pizza!"
 
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