A UC Berkeley geologist spoke about the use of computers and smartphones to collect data on earthquakes at a lecture in Banatao Auditorium on Monday evening.
Richard Allen, director of the UC Berkeley Seismological Laboratory and a professor of Earth and planetary science, spoke at the 2013 Lawson Lecture on seismology about possible ways to use science and technology to mitigate the threat of an earthquake. Allen’s lecture focused on using smartphones to implement public early-warning systems and to collect data on earthquakes.
“The potential is huge in California,” Allen said. “There are over 16 million people using smartphones.”
Allen is involved in developing a prototype app called ShakeAlert, which sends out earthquake alerts via computers and smartphones up to 30 seconds before users feel a quake. But Allen is confident that smartphones can be used to measure seismic movement as well.
According to Allen, researchers can use smartphones’ built-in accelerometers and gyroscopes to detect motion during an earthquake and GPS to pinpoint location. He found that smartphones can currently detect a magnitude-5 earthquake within a distance of about 30 kilometers.
Possible applications of this technology in the seismically active Bay Area include allowing people to move to a safe zone, slowing down or stopping BART trains and initiating a response before an earthquake hits.
“There is about a two-in-three chance of a major damaging earthquake in the Bay Area over the course of the next 30 years,” Allen said.
The most dangerous areas are the San Andreas and Hayward Faults, with the latter running directly under UC Berkeley, Allen noted.
According to UC Berkeley spokesperson Bob Sanders, the campus makes use of an emergency broadcast channel, a cellular phone network and a police unit as part of the Seismic Action Plan for Facilities Enhancement and Renewal, a plan to seismically retrofit buildings on campus and develop emergency response procedures for earthquakes.
The campus initiated approximately $500 million of seismic and related improvements in buildings across campus since 1997. Buildings including Evans and Tolman Halls and smaller, unoccupied facilities, such as the Old Art Gallery, still require seismic retrofitting, according to SAFER’s website.
Amina Assefa, a manager in the Office of Emergency Management, said that she supports the idea of incorporating technology in emergency preparedness.
“There are some gaps in our preparedness and our ability to meet the immediate needs of our population after a disaster,” Assefa said. “I think the use of emerging technology and teaching people how to use it is really important on a college campus, where most students use technology.”
Contact Matt Trejo at [email protected].
Correction(s):
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the Greek Theatre was part of a list of campus facilities that needed retrofitting. In fact, the Greek Theatre was retrofitted last year.