Posted on 12/28/2004 12:42:47 AM PST by kattracks
Just how does an earthquake change the Earth's mass?
Maybe the real problem is with the 'bong.'
They've actually calmed down today. They were all black for the past two days.
Who knows what Dr. Wong told Andy Geller? This is popularized report. A particularly bizarre line, even by the standards of popular journalism is:
The quake caused a shift in the Earth's rotation, as the change in the planet's mass altered the effect of the pull of gravity on the Earth.I mean, like wots up with dat? Neither the Earth's mass nor angular momentum changed measurably. What changed was the distribution of mass, which changes the 3 x 3 inertial momentum tensor - the 3-D equivalent of moment of inertia. To conserve angular momentum, the rotational rates and instantaneous rotational axis will change, whether measurably or not remains to be seen. Exactly what gravity, in terms of classical mechanics, has to do with any of this is beyond me. Long term this might have a very minor effect on precession of the equinox and nutation, (certainly gravitational processes) but there have been earthquakes before.
The U.S. Naval Observatory has a web page devoted to "Earth's Rotation", http://maia.usno.navy.mil/eop.html For some reason they are unusually slow today. In a discussion of polar motion they say, "It is also possible that a large earthquake might affect polar motion, but to date, this effect has not been observed closely." Maybe they'll have to revise that statement.
It takes a long time to collect and process accurate information on the Earth's orientation, mostly using long baseline interferometry of distance astronomical radio sources. It will be days or weeks before the effects can be accurately gaged.
To pile on and nitpick further.... if it's truly "area" it should be square miles. If it is the length of the fault, he should say so.
I would sooner think it's a misrepresentation by the press of what was actually said. I know a few subjects very well, flying and medicine among them, and I am shocked at how frequently I see really silly things being reported in the paper or on TV and know full well that the person being quoted would never have said that. I have to wonder if they are so far off base on these things I understand, how many other stories do they botch. Often they get the quote right, but then go on to phrase other aspects of the story in their own words and they are simply wrong. Especially when it comes to aviation.
so which is it sport ?
A clapper goes in the crapper to prevent water from escaping...
My ears were ringing.....I thought it was the two six packs...
This explains why I felt light on my feet Monday.
L.O.L.........
I don't know much about tongs, gongs, and bongs;
but I do know that it's a flapper for the crapper, not a clapper. :)
Stop it people, I'm in tears here...damn if this thread isn't funny!
Good grief! These newspaper writers know absolutely nothing about science.
The Earth's mass did not change. It shifted a tiny bit, but the mass didn't change. All this psuedo-scientific talk from the press only distracts from the real tragedy of people being swept to their deaths by waves of water and debris.
- "Geophysical Eggs and Ham", Dr. Seuss
"I think he meant his neighbor"
ROTFLMAO!!!
so which is it sport ?
I believe you and I were talking about the 2nd Rule of Thermodynamics on a different thread. For purposes of the 2nd Rule, the Earth is not a closed system because energy comes in from the outside.
I can't comment on what is being discussed on this thread.
It is strange, the coffee in my cup is vibrating in a strange but regular pattern. Last night, everything metal slid towards one side of our house and it happened to 3 of our neighbors as well.
Bush should be impeached. This crap would not be happening if he had only signed the Kyotto Treaty and stopped the global warming.
>much like a church bell when struck by a tong,
said Stony Brook geophysicist Teng-fong Wong.<
Ooowwwwww!! I can't straighten up!!!
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