Mag 8.9 Sendai Earthquake
By
Acemace,
Posted on: 2011-03-11 04:28 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
I finally forced myself to watch some of the tsunami videos. I wish I hadn't. For me, the worst one showed the raging ocean overwhelming a town, where you could hear a dog barking frantically... and then suddenly stop as the wave crushed the house.
From the Atlantic Monthly, waiting to be scanned for radiation exposure:
House washed out to sea:
More here.
The Alt Alphabet ~ OPC: Other People's Characters ~ Terrific Screenshots of Cool ~ Superhero Fiction
There was one I watched yesterday which was only sampled for about 15 seconds on TV news.
It certainly shows the shear power of moving water.
Father Xmas - Level 50 Ice/Ice Tanker - Victory
$725 and $1350 parts lists --- My guide to computer components
Tempus unum hominem manet
Some new pictures I hadn't seen in there yet. Thank you.
There are no words for what this community, and the friends I have made here mean to me. Please know that I care for all of you, yes, even you. If you Twitter, I'm MrThan. If you're Unleashed, I'm dumps. I'll try and get registered on the Titan Forums as well. Peace, and thanks for the best nine years anyone could ever ask for.
Quote:
Note that earthquakes of every increase in magnitude occur one magnitude less frequently than earthquakes of the previous magnitude. |
Originally Posted by Father Xmas
Also I should have said "that nobody was paying close attention". The Daiinch complex was designed to handle a tsunami up to around 20 feet.
|
Suppose the cost of increasing the sturdiness of the reactor scales with earthquake, then the cost would exponentially increase (earthquake magnitude scale is logarithmic), while the frequency of the event you are protecting against falls exponentially too.
Even a rich country like Japan has to call it quits at some point because the cost becomes prohibitive very quickly. The Japanese do not give me the impression of being sloppy and lazy engineers. My impression is that this falls under "act of God".
Unfortunately it's the big, rare quakes that cause the most damage.
"Honesty is for the most part less profitable than dishonesty." -- Plato
Playing Gods (51106) - Heroic Lvl 5-20
What Rough Beast (255143) - Villainous Lvl 40-50
Quote:
Although, these reactors were apparently bought from the US.|
Originally Posted by Freem
The Japanese do not give me the impression of being sloppy and lazy engineers. My impression is that this falls under "act of God".
|
Its easy to overgeneralize, but this I can say from first hand knowledge. Japanese culture emphasizes duty, and that tends to cause the Japanese to not cut corners as much as you might find in other cultures. On the other hand, it also causes them to be less likely to admit failure or ask for help immediately. Just like every other culture, Japanese culture has its strengths and weaknesses.
When the chips are down, the true professionals transcend culture. A culture of risk taking and pushing the envelope to keep up with the west was partly responsible for the Chernobyl accident, but the reactor operators, engineers, and fire and safety crews risked and in most cases gave their lives to prevent the accident from getting worse. I don't believe any culture changes that sense of duty when people think other people's lives are in their hands. They don't always do the right thing, but they do it selflessly.
Having said that, regardless of the earthquake magnitude models, the lack of a plan for portable backup electricity and alternate sources of cooling water still seem like odd preparedness errors to me. And I'm not just saying that idly. I was actually involved in a risk assessment of a nuclear power plant where one of the things I specifically focused on was the emergency cooling system. I believed that even though that system was not necessary most of the time (if ever to that point) it needed to be protected to as high a degree as the reactor itself. Prior auditors failed to make the same recommendation. I have no idea why.
[Guide to Defense] [Scrapper Secondaries Comparison] [Archetype Popularity Analysis]
In one little corner of the universe, there's nothing more irritating than a misfile...
(Please support the best webcomic about a cosmic universal realignment by impaired angelic interference resulting in identity crisis angst. Or I release the pigmy water thieves.)
Quote:
Thank you, Ironik, for this link. There are three other "sister" articles with equally compelling, heartbreaking images: during, aftermath, rescue (Ironk's link comes "next" in the "series"). The heartbreak is immense. This disaster is just astoundingly horrific, and sometimes I just can't handle it. I sat here and cried as I looked over these images, because there is nothing more I can do to help these people and their devastated country. I have given every penny I can afford to (I'll be living lean this month and next due to it), and I am left with nothing else to do.|
Originally Posted by Ironik
|
However, I am amazed by the strength most are displaying (and do not begrudge the weakness others are showing). Katz from YokosoNews, who I've linked in the tri-view news feed in the first post, keeps saying, "Don't donate if you can't afford to. Save your money. Instead, come visit Japan next year when we are recovered." And amazingly, I don't doubt that a good portion of the devastated area will be recovered by this time next year; the Japanese are resilient if nothing else. Maybe not everywhere, and probably not to the level that it was pre-quake, but well on its way.
Paragon Wiki: http://www.paragonwiki.com
City Info Terminal: http://cit.cohtitan.com
Mids Hero Designer: http://www.cohplanner.com
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Dispari
I don't know why Dink thinks she's not as sexy as Jay was. In 5 posts she's already upstaged his entire career.
|
Quote:
That's some seriously heavy stuff. It's too much for me. I cried. I am so incredibly thankful that my brother is okay.
|
Originally Posted by Ironik
|
Playstation 3 - XBox 360 - Wii - PSP
Remember kids, crack is whack!
Samuel_Tow: Your avatar is... I think I like it
It is horrible to contemplate how the nuclear disaster seems to dwarf the havoc caused by the earthquake itself (including the tsunami)
Japan may never truly recover from this event
I disagree, and in the nicest sense of the word. They are the only country in the world (to date) to have had nuclear attacks on their soil and they not only recovered from it, it was the spur to make them the third largest economy in the world.
They have an indomitable spirit, and I have admired them most of my adult life. They will rebuild because they can rebuild.
S.
Part of Sister Flame's Clickey-Clack Posse
I have to second what SuperOz said. They are a wonderful, generous, and kind culture with immense determination. And a good sense of humor.
They'll be back harder, faster, and better than any of their peers.
There are no words for what this community, and the friends I have made here mean to me. Please know that I care for all of you, yes, even you. If you Twitter, I'm MrThan. If you're Unleashed, I'm dumps. I'll try and get registered on the Titan Forums as well. Peace, and thanks for the best nine years anyone could ever ask for.
Didn't think of the fact that they actually have experienced nuclear attack. That is hard to even understand.
I put my trust in the spirit of the japanese people and hope that we, the rest of the world, do what we can to help them
Quote:
That they will.|
Originally Posted by DumpleBerry
I have to second what SuperOz said. They are a wonderful, generous, and kind culture with immense determination. And a good sense of humor.
They'll be back harder, faster, and better than any of their peers. |
There was a radio interview with one of the survivors-- now seeking shelter with 500 others in school gym, surrounded by ruins... no running water, no electricity, no heat. He had been a teacher for 40 years and acknowledged that so many of his students are now missing- likely dead- by the disaster. The voice was calm, but full of emotion... but the more remarkable part to me was how he addressed his interviewer and sound crew. To each one, "You're from America? Thankyouforcoming." Then again, at the end: "Thankyouforcoming" to each of them. It was full of the grace, dignity, and poise of a host greeting an honored guest.
I know there are people that are just breaking down- filling up with despair, pain, panic, and even rage- and I don't blame them one bit-- but witnessing the strength of spirit shown by everyone in the face of so much overwhelming loss... I have no doubt they'll rebound.
Thank you, I really should have mentioned the too costly aspect in my example. Engineers can over design a building or bridge to withstand forces well outside of anything their imagination can think of. Problem is the cost can quickly become prohibitive or it may simply impractical to build.
Also I should have said "that nobody was paying close attention". The Daiinch complex was designed to handle a tsunami up to around 20 feet. However the tsunami was much larger and like a river levy, it works right up to the point the water crests over it and then it's just like it was never there. Comparing sat photos from the Daini complex about 10Km to the south with the Daiichi complex shows that at Daini there was very little damage along the water front, unlike what you can see at Daiichi. I'm guessing the wave simply wasn't as high.
Father Xmas - Level 50 Ice/Ice Tanker - Victory
$725 and $1350 parts lists --- My guide to computer components
Tempus unum hominem manet