Vulnerability

Researchers at a Silicon Valley company are hard at work developing an experimental network of electromagnetic sensors that could predict large earthquakes as much as two weeks in advance; the theory behind the research is disputed, but Tom Bleier, the inventor and chief engineer behind project QuakeFinder, hopes to prove seismologists wrong.

Researchers at a Silicon Valley company are hard at work developing an experimental network of electromagnetic sensors that could predict large earthquakes as much as two weeks in advance.

The theory behind the research is disputed, but Tom Bleier, the inventor and chief engineer behind project QuakeFinder, hopes to prove seismologists wrong. Under the project, engineers will install roughly 200 five-foot tall sensors near fault lines in California to measure changes in underground magnetic fields and to detect electrically charged particles in the air.

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Disaster Risk Reduction

Earthquake

Vulnerability

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Britain Debates ‘Slow-Motion Moral Collapse’

Mon, 2011-08-15 21:09 — Kathy Gilbeaux

by John F. Burns and Alan Cowell - The New York Times - August 15, 2011

LONDON — Divided over Prime Minister David Cameron’s plan to bring in a retired American police officer after last week’s riots, politicians staked out competing positions Monday for both the causes of the violence and the cures for what the British leader called his country’s “slow-motion moral collapse.”

The speeches by Mr. Cameron and the Labour opposition leader, Ed Miliband, seemed to signify a further retreat from a cautious consensus as the riots flared and some politicians were forced to return early from vacations after apparently underestimating the fury of the arson and looting.

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Video - Interconnected World at Risk from Global Shocks, OECD Warns

Thu, 2011-08-11 23:32 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Joyce Fedeczko

The interconnectedness of the global economy makes it more vulnerable to major shocks. In the wake of the 2008 financial meltdown, global leaders are acutely aware of the threats another such crisis would pose to economic recovery, social cohesion and political stability. How can governments and business prepare for and respond to such unanticipated events?

The OECD presented the findings of a two-year "Future Global Shocks" project at the OECD on Monday 27 June 2011.

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OECD - Project on Future Global Shocks

Thu, 2011-08-11 23:24 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Joyce Fedeczko

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) - January 17, 2011

In this project, public and private experts explore how to increase resilience to Future Global Shocks. The Project will generate options for governments to enhance capacity to identify, anticipate, control, contain and/or mitigate large disasters. It recognises that shocks can provide opportunities for progress, not just negative consequences. Amongst the inputs from which the final report will draw are six background papers and case studies on the following themes: Systemic Financial Risk; Pandemics; Cyber Risks; Geomagnetic Storms; Social Unrest and Anticipating Extreme Events.

http://www.oecd.org/department/0,3355,en_2649_33707_1_1_1_1_1,00.html

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How Risk Perceptions Influence Evacuations From Hurricanes

Wed, 2011-08-10 00:48 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Joyce Fedeczko

http://web.docuticker.com/go/docubase/64807

August 5, 2011 23:09

Source: James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy
From the catalog description:
This study shows that people are more sensitive to overall perceived hurricane-related hazards than they are to individual risk types. Emergency managers can use this information to achieve greater compliance to emergency government directives and evacuations.

+Direct link to document (PDF; 806.2 KB) - http://bakerinstitute.org/publications/POL-pub-SteinHurricaneRiskPerception-080311.pdf

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Software Uses Twitter To Track Dengue Outbreaks In Brazil

Wed, 2011-07-20 16:15 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Mary Suzanne Kivlighan

Kaiser Family Foundation - July 19, 2011

The New Scientist reports on a software program that is being used "to identify a high correlation between the time and place where people tweet they have dengue and the official statistics for where the disease appears each season."

Researchers at two Brazilian National Institutes of Science and Technology worked together to create the software, which filters tweets containing the word "dengue" and user location details. "Dengue outbreaks occur every year in Brazil, but exactly where varies every season. It can take weeks for medical notifications to be centrally analyzed, creating a headache for health authorities planning where to concentrate resources," the publication notes. Using Twitter could speed up response time, according to Wagner Meira, a computer scientist at the Federal University of Minus Gerais who led the study (Corbyn, 7/18).

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