Project I 

 




 



Semester Project :  Plate Tectonics - The Cause of Earthquakes
 










Plate Tectonics - The Cause of Earthquakes is a very good introduction to earthquakes and plate tectonics.  Read through this section for a general review.  Incorporate your answers to the following questions into the article you are producing.
Read the following section on Seismic Waves.  Finish you reading by quickly going through the section on Richter Magnitude.  Don't get bogged down in the mathematics.  Focus on differences between Richter's scale and the older Mercalli scale.  

Questions
    

  1. In your own words, describe the Richter scale and the Mercalli scale for describing earthquakes.  Include the distinction between Intensity and Magnitude.  Why is there a concern about continued use of the Richter scale?
    

  2. What are some of the problems with using the Mercalli scale?  How do the users of this scale counter these criticisms?
    

  3. Use your rapidly improving ability to search the Internet for a list of the ten largest magnitude earthquakes on Earth.  Add these earthquakes to your table and plot their epicenters in orange
    




    

    

    Interval of TimeNumber of EarthquakesHighest Magnitude

    1905 - 1914

    1915 - 1924

    

    
Put your sense of the data you have recorded into words.  What is the smallest number of earthquakes per decade?  The largest number per decade?    On average (which may not be a satisfactory measure) there are about X +/- Y earthquakes per decade in the area of interest.  Give your values for X and Y.
    Use this as background information for the investigative report your are preparing.