Using math formulas to predict earthquakes
[July 13, 2020: Phys.org]
A team of researchers at Lyell Centre in Edinburgh, has developed a way to use math formulas to help predict when an earthquake is likely to happen. In their paper published in Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, the group describes translating the movement of a particular type of rock to mathematical equations, which led to the creation of a predictive formula.
A lot of time and effort has been spent over the past several decades trying to figure out a way to predict when a major earthquake will strike, but to date, such efforts have come up short. In this new effort, the researchers have taken another approach to the problem: using math.
“What we’re discovering is that molecular, carbonaceous residues almost always preserve a microscopic clue within fossils,” said Jasmina Wiemann, a graduate student in the Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences at Yale and first author of the study. “Fossil organic matter is a wild mix of things, based on the chemical degradation products of original biomolecules.” ...MORE
