are there ways to reduce earthquakes by reducing the pressure on fault lines?
408202
According to the USGS, not really. In fact, such an attempt could actually have the opposite effect. The types of forces involved in an earthquake are enormous, and significantly beyond the strength of modern human-made structures. Even if we had the technology to stop earthquakes, it would be impossible for us to predict where the next big one would be. The best we can do is to be able to prepare better in the case of an earthquake, and to build structures that are able to withstand large earthquakes. \n\nThe link below will give you further information. It's pretty good.
989327
Naturally occurring earthquakes\n\nMost naturally occurring earthquakes are related to the tectonic nature of the Earth. Such earthquakes are called tectonic earthquakes. The Earth's lithosphere is a patch work of plates (see plate tectonics) in slow but constant motion caused by the heat in the Earth's mantle and core. Plate boundaries glide past each other, creating frictional stress. When the frictional stress exceeds a critical value, called local strength, a sudden failure occurs. The boundary of tectonic plates along which failure occurs is called the fault plane. When the failure at the fault plane results in a violent displacement of the Earth's crust, the elastic strain energy is released and elastic waves are radiated, thus causing an earthquake. It is estimated that only 10 percent or less of an earthquake's total energy is ultimately radiated as seismic energy, while most of the earthquake's energy is used to power the earthquake fracture growth and is eventually converted into heat. Therefore, earthquakes lower the Earth's available potential energy and thermal energy, though these losses are negligible. To describe the physical process of occurrence of an earthquake, seismologists use the Elastic-rebound theory.\n\nThe majority of tectonic earthquakes originate at depths not exceeding a few tens of kilometers. Earthquakes occurring at boundaries of tectonic plates are called interplate earthquakes, while the less frequent events that occur in the interior of the lithospheric plates are called intraplate earthquakes.\n\nWhere the crust is thicker and colder, earthquakes occur at greater depths of hundreds of kilometers along subduction zones where plates descend into the Earth's mantle. These types of earthquakes are called deep focus earthquakes. They are possibly generated when subducted lithospheric material catastrophically undergoes a phase transition (e.g., olivine to spinel), releasing stored energy—such as elastic strain, chemical energy or gravitational energy—that cannot be supported at the pressures and temperatures present at such depths.\n\nEarthquakes may also occur in volcanic regions and are caused by the movement of magma in volcanoes. Such quakes can be an early warning of volcanic eruptions.\n\nA recently proposed theory suggests that some earthquakes may occur in a sort of earthquake storm, where one earthquake will trigger a series of earthquakes each triggered by the previous shifts on the fault lines, similar to aftershocks, but occurring years later, and with some of the later earthquakes as damaging as the early ones. Such a pattern was observed in the sequence of about a dozen earthquakes that struck the Anatolian Fault in Turkey in the 20th Century, the half dozen large earthquakes in New Madrid in 1811-1812, and has been inferred for older anomalous clusters of large earthquakes in the Middle East and in the Mojave Desert.\n\nInduced earthquakes\nSome earthquakes are the result of a number of anthropogenic sources, such as extraction of minerals and fossil fuel from the Earth's crust, the removal or injection of fluids into the crust, reservoir-induced seismicity, massive explosions, and collapse of large buildings. These seismic events caused by human activity are referred to by the term induced seismicity. They however are not strictly earthquakes and usually show a different seismogram than earthquakes that occur naturally.\n\nA rare few earthquakes have been associated with the build-up of large masses of water behind dams, such as the Kariba Dam in Zambia, Africa, and with the injection or extraction of fluids into the Earth's crust (e.g. at certain geothermal power plants and at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal). Such earthquakes occur because the strength of the Earth's crust can be modified by fluid pressure. Earthquakes have also been known to be caused by the removal of natural gas from subsurface deposits, for instance in the northern Net
905919
An earthquake is a phenomenon that results from and is powered by the sudden release of stored energy in the crust that propagates seismic waves. At the Earth's surface, earthquakes may manifest themselves by a shaking or displacement of the ground and sometimes tsunamis, which may lead to loss of life and destruction of property.\n\nEarthquakes may occur naturally or as a result of human activities. In its most generic sense, the word earthquake is used to describe any seismic event—whether a natural phenomenon or an event caused by humans—that generates seismic waves.\n\nTypes of earthquakes\n\nNaturally occurring earthquakes :-\nMost naturally occurring earthquakes are related to the tectonic nature of the Earth. Such earthquakes are called tectonic earthquakes. The Earth's lithosphere is a patchwork of plates in slow but constant motion caused by the heat in the Earth's mantle and core. Plate boundaries grind past each other, creating frictional stress. When the frictional stress exceeds a critical value, called local strength, a sudden failure occurs. The boundary of tectonic plates along which failure occurs is called the fault plane. When the failure at the fault plane results in a violent displacement of the Earth's crust, the elastic strain energy is released and seismic waves are radiated, thus causing an earthquake. This processes of strain, stress, and failure is referred to as the Elastic-rebound theory. It is estimated that only 10 percent or less of an earthquake's total energy is radiated as seismic energy. Most of the earthquake's energy is used to power the earthquake fracture growth and is converted into heat. Therefore, earthquakes lower the Earth's available potential energy, though these losses are negligible\nEarthquakes occurring at boundaries of tectonic plates are called interplate earthquakes, while the less frequent events that occur in the interior of the lithospheric plates are called intraplate earthquakes.\n\nThe majority of tectonic earthquakes originate at depths not exceeding a few tens of kilometers. In subduction zones, where older and colder oceanic crust descends beneath another tectonic plate, earthquakes may occur at much greater depths (up to hundreds of kilometers). These seismically active areas of subduction are known as Wadati-Benioff zones. Deep focus earthquakes are another phenomenon associated with a subducting slab. These are earthquakes that occur at a depth at which the subducted lithosphere should no longer be brittle, due to the high temperature and pressure. A possible mechanism for the generation of deep focus earthquakes is faulting caused by olivine undergoing a phase transition into a spinel structure.\nEarthquakes may also occur in volcanic regions and are caused by the movement of magma in volcanoes. Such quakes can be an early warning of volcanic eruptions.\n\nA recently proposed theory suggests that some earthquakes may occur in a sort of earthquake storm, where one earthquake will trigger a series of earthquakes each triggered by the previous shifts on the fault lines, similar to aftershocks, but occurring years later, and with some of the later earthquakes as damaging as the early ones. Such a pattern was observed in the sequence of about a dozen earthquakes that struck the North Anatolian Fault in Turkey in the 20th Century, the half dozen large earthquakes in New Madrid in 1811-1812, and has been inferred for older anomalous clusters of large earthquakes in the Middle East and in the Mojave Desert.\n\n\nInduced earthquakes :- \n\nSome earthquakes have anthropogenic sources, such as extraction of minerals and fossil fuel from the Earth's crust, the removal or injection of fluids into the crust, reservoir-induced seismicity, massive explosions, and collapse of large buildings. Seismic events caused by human activity are referred to by the term induced seismicity. They however are not strictly earthquakes and usually show a dif
856700
The tectonic plates were already broken before oil was drilled, it has always been that way since the earth cooled. Oil drilling is not the reason earthquakes exist.
742010
Earthquakes: \nIt all comes down to stress and strain from the interaction of different plates, chiefly at the boundaries. It is not 'the plates rubbing together' as many people say; or at least that's a very simplistic view.\n\nPlate tectonics causes stress on the continents and oceans, all over the surface of the earth. In some places, the stress is very small (usually within the plates). Elsewhere, the stress is high, usually where the plates meet each other. Since each plate moves, when two come in contact, the stress each other. They can push on each other and cause compressional stress, they can pull with extensional stress, and they can slide past or shear each other with tensional stress.\n\nFaulting, causing earthquakes, comes from the fact that this stress is building up all the time, but rocks and continents are strong materials. Just like hitting a rock with a small hammer, you do put stress on it, but a small amount. It would take a sledgehammer to put enough strain (effects and accumulation of stress) to build up and cause breakage. In the earth, the area around an active fault builds up strain from the stress of plate tectonics. Most faults become locked, because of this strength, and thus can not release their strain. Away from the fault, the stress produces very small and slow movement of the rock masses as a whole. Eventually, the strain is too much and the rest of the plate has moved too far and the fault releases the strain build-up all at once in a big stress release called an earthquake. This is called the elastic rebound theory, and it explains most (but not all) movements.\n\nThis is why an earthquake's size is relative to the fault size. The bigger the fault, the bigger the strain build up, and the bigger the release in an earthquake. Subduction zones and collision zones, where large portions of plates actually can rub together as a whole, have the really big earthquakes, like the 2004 Sumatra earthquake. In other plate boundaries, the entire plate boundary does not act together, so the faults become spread out and many faults take up the strain from the tectonic stress, like with the San Andreas Fault in California (it only takes up ~3/4 of the stress between the plates).\n\nEarthquakes are really tricky things; there is still so much we need to learn. As of now, there is no way to predict them, but we can say where the danger is highest and about how long between events.
38766
It does not. The strength of the earthquake and the geologic make up of the ground would be factors in possible liqufacation.
121746
Most earthquakes are causally related to compressional or tensional stresses built up at the margins of the huge moving lithospheric plates that make up the earth's surface (see lithosphere). The immediate cause of most shallow earthquakes is the sudden release of stress along a fault, or fracture in the earth's crust, resulting in movement of the opposing blocks of rock past one another. These movements cause vibrations to pass through and around the earth in wave form, just as ripples are generated when a pebble is dropped into water. Volcanic eruptions, rockfalls, landslides, and explosions can also cause a quake, but most of these are of only local extent. Shock waves from a powerful earthquake can trigger smaller earthquakes in a distant location hundreds of miles away if the geologic conditions are favorable.
890167
volcanoes and earthquakes (faults)
349011
Los Angeles and San Francisco would be the big ones but there are a lot of smaller ones in the same danger area. Basically anything that is on or near the San Andreas Fault. Check the map at the link--- actually explore the rest of the site, too--- good info there!
668139
I remember reading somewhere that the great New Madrid earthquake in the early 1800s was so powerful that it caused the Mississippi River to flow in the opposite direction for a time.  I imagine that tectonic activity - movement that changes the shape of the earth's crust - would do it.
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Use a floating point, or gimbaled hydralic plates to adjust as needed. this is also a known Earthquake Resistant design.
787538
It also may be known as strain Gage.\n\nYou can use this device in place of pressure strips.
968512
When a bolt is tightened, it stretches.\nThink of the thread as just two, long inclined planes in contact with each other. The tension in the bolt results in the two planes being pressed together, the harder you press, the greater the friction. As you undo the bolt, the tension is reduced, the pressure is reduced and so the friction is reduced.
940029
No amount of engineering can as yet stop a fault from moving. A house, skyscraper, dam, nuclear power plant built on a fault can be destroyed in an instant.\nJoints can not be grouted closed or cemented over, especially if you are building a levee or a dam. Mainly because it is so difficult to map the full extent of the joints.\nFolds can cause variation in the depth and hardness of solid rock.\nUnconformity's are simply that. Unconformity's, a beak in the uniformity of the soil or rock thus affecting the safe placement of support structures and thus the future stability of the building.
113993
Yes. Earthquake activity in this region is due to plate tectonics. In Kashmir the two plates involved are the Eurasion and Indian tectonic plates. \n\nHere are a few good ways to demonstrate this for elementary school children:\n\n*Have them use their hands with thumbs hooked together and move push one hand forward while pulling one hand back. Force builds up, but when one of the thumbs breaks free both hands makes a big movement (earthquake).\n\n*make playdough "plates" and have slowly pushed together to see uplifting and subduction.\n\n*take model cars/trucks. Predict what would happen if they have met head-on and continue to move. Let cars represent oceanic plates (less dense) and trucks represent continental plates (more dense). This is a good visual to see uplifting (rumpled hoods when they are the same density--car/car or truck/truck) and subduction (truck runs over top of car).\n\nGreat website for kids is:\n\nhttp://earthquake.usgs.gov/learning/kids.php?\n\nGreat website for kids with links to many science websites is:\n\nhttp://members.tripod.com/~ozpk/00000science1-4\n\nHope this helps!
667349
Geologic faults or simply faults are planar rock fractures which show evidence of relative movement. Large faults within the Earth's crust are the result of shear motion and active fault zones are the causal locations of most earthquakes. Earthquakes are caused by energy release during rapid slippage along faults. The largest examples are at tectonic plate boundaries, but many faults occur far from active plate boundaries. Since faults usually do not consist of a single, clean fracture, the term fault zone is used when referring to the zone of complex deformation associated with the fault plane.\n\nThe two sides of a fault are called the hanging wall and footwall. By definition, the hanging wall occurs above the fault and the footwall occurs below the fault.\n\n\nStrike-slip faults\nThe fault surface is usually near vertical and the footwall moves either left or right or laterally with very small vertical motion. Strike-slip faults with left-lateral motion are also known as sinistral faults. Those with right-lateral motion are also known as dextral faults. A special class of strike-slip faults is the transform faults which are a plate tectonics feature related to spreading centers such as mid-ocean ridges.\n\n(i wish i could type the photo i have as well)
10032
due to the tremendous pressure from inside the earth or due to the presence of faults , takes the adjustment of tactonic plates , this results in movment of one plate into the other or just simple movements resulting in tremors caleed earthqukes