Demonstrations

Earthquake Model

Code Number :	8A20.60?
Disclaimer:	Reprinted by permission of Dick Berg, University of Maryland, for use on this website. The demonstrations contained and referenced herein are listed for the purposes of cataloging and describing physics demonstrations which should be conducted only under the direction of a trained instructional support professional or physicist. These demonstrations are not presented for the purpose of being conducted by persons unconnected to this Facility and/or persons not consulting with or being supervised by the recognized instructional support professional or physicist and his/her staff. The University is responsible only for those demonstrations carried out using its own equipment using established safety and scheduling policies, and bears no responsibility for those choosing to use this source material for their own purposes. All demonstrations described and contained herein are public domain, and can also be found in reference materials in libraries, bookstores, and electronic sources. Further information regarding legal liability in use of demonstrations and labs will be found on the web site Injuries in School/College Laboratories in USA. The University of Iowa Disclaimers: University of Iowa Disclaimer All Rights Reserved..
Condition :	Excellent
Principle :	Plate Tectonics
Area of Study :	Chem. and Physics
Equipment :	Earthquake Model Blocks and Springs, Hand driven reduction gear drive, 200 gram weights.
Procedure :	Attach springs to the blocks as shown. Also attach the weights to the crossbar block. These keep the block straight and level on the table when the demo is being pulled. Slowly pull the model across the table using the gear reduction. Observe the uneven and jerky motion of the individual blocks even though the crossbar block is moving at a constant velocity across the table.

References

Bernard J. Feldman, "The Nimitz Freeway Collapse", TPT, Vol. 42, # 7, Oct. 2004, p. 400.

Fred Carrington, "The Northridge Earthquake - A Giant Physics Laboratory", TPT, Vol. 32, # 4, Apr. 1994, p. 212.

E. S. Oberhofer, "Different Magnitude Differences", TPT, Vol. 29, # 5, May 1991, p. 273.

William P. Crummett, "Hard Rock Optics", TPT, Vol. 24, # 7, Oct. 1986, p. 414.

William P. Crummett, "Seismic Exploration", TPT, Vol. 24, # 8, Nov. 1986, p. 462.

John E. Mylroie, "Student Participation in a P- and S- wave Demonstration", TPT, Vol. 16, # 7, Oct. 1978, p. 479.

Kazutoshi Najita, Paul C. Yuen, "Ionospheric Method of Detecting Tsunami-generating Earthquakes", TPT, Vol. 16, # 9, Dec. 1978, p. 606.

Alvaro Gonzalez, Javier B. Gomez, Amalio F. Pacheco, "The Occupation of a Box as a Toy Model for the Seismic Cycle of a Fault", AJP, Vol. 73, # 10, Oct. 2005, p. 946.

A. Hallam, "Alfred Wegener and the Hypothesis of Continental Drift", Scientific American, Feb. 1975, p. 88.

Frank Press, "Earthquake Prediction", Scientific American, May, 1975, p. 14.

Don L. Anderson, "The San Andreas Fault", Scientific American, Vol. 224, # 7 to 12, 1971, p. 53.

William E. Carter, Ramesh L. Shrestha and K. Clint Slatton, "Geodetic Laser Scanning", Physics Today, Dec. 2007, p. 41.

Matthew E. Pritchard, "InSAR, A Tool for Measuring Earth's Surface Deformation," Physics Today, July 2006, p. 68.

Charles Day, "Web Watch: Earthquake Hazards Program", Physics Today, Feb. 2006, p. 23.

Mark Wilson, "Modeling the Sumatra-Andaman Earthquake Reveals a Complex, Non-uniform Rupture", Physics Today, June 2005, p. 19 - 21.

Barbara Goss Levi, "What's Making Earth Hum?", Physics Today, Mar. 2005, p. 22.

M. Murakami, T. Tsuchiya, "A New High-Pressure Phase", Physics Today, June 2004, p. 9.

Toni Feder, "Ambitious Earth Sciences Project Aims to Crack Mysteries of Continents," Physics Today, Dec. 2003, pg. 32

David P. Hill, Fred Pollitz, and Christopher Newhall, "Earthquake-Volcano Interactions," Physics Today, p. 41, (Nov. 2002).

Hiroo Kanamori and Emily E. Brodsky, "The Physics of Earthquakes," Physics Today, Vol. 54, No. 6, pp. 34 - 40.

"Category 1: Planet Earth: Predicting Earthquakes," International Masters Publishers.

"When Earth Attacks", Popular Science, p. 46, May 2005.

Gordon McComb, "The Richter Scale," Lasers, Ray Guns, & Light Cannons, pp. 224.

Janice VanCleave, "Side-to-Side," Guide to More of the Best Science Fair Projects, pp. 88.

Janice VanCleave, "Long Enough," Guide to More of the Best Science Fair Projects, pp. 86.

Janice VanCleave, "Easy Over," Guide to More of the Best Science Fair Projects, pp. 74

#129, "Normal," Janice VanCleave's 204 Sticky, Gloppy, Wacky, and Wonderful Experiments.

Janice VanCleave, "33, Slower," Earth Science for Every Kid, p. 76.

Janice VanCleave, "34, Quick," Earth Science for Every Kid, p. 78.

Janice VanCleave, "35, Ripples," Earth Science for Every Kid, p. 80.

Mail Questions and Comments to: Dale Stille