Deep Earthquakes
Moonquakes
Sports Physics

Dr. Cliff Frohlich Associate Director, Senior Research Scientist Ph.D., M.S., Cornell University BS, Grinnell College

IRIS/SSA Distinguished Lectureship—Dr. Cliff Frohlich University of Texas at Austin

Dr. Cliff Frohlich University of Texas at Austin will present a series of lectures at Michigan Tech in March.

Deep Earthquakes and the Secrets of Seismology PDF
Monday—7:00pm March 3, 2008 7:00pm Fisher 135

Moonquakes PDF
Tuesday—March 4, 2008 4:00-5:00 pm—Dow 641

Sports Physics PDF
Tuesday—March 4, 2008 Noon-1:00 pm—Dow 641

 

Deep Earthquakes

We learn about the interior of the Earth by applying physics to our study of it. Dr. Frohlich will use familiar items to illustrate Earth structure and explain many the study of the Earth and earthquake mechanics using seismological techniques. Seis-mology as presented by Frohlich will involve raw and cooked eggs, baseballs, coffee pots, champagne bottles, diamonds, air hockey, and ultrasound. In every profession there are ‘secrets’, that is, basic information that is known to those who practice the profession but are either unknown or misunderstood by the public. Frohlich will reveal those secrets to all, and you will be surprised at how "easy" the most-complicated concepts turn out to be! About a quarter of all earthquakes originate at depths more than 60 km (40 miles) beneath the Earth’s surface, and some at depths as great as 700 km (440 miles). Since their discovery in 1927, these ‘deep’ earthquakes have been an enigma because pressures and temperatures are too great at these depths for ordinary brittle frac-ture to occur. Deep earthquakes pose a serious hazard in a few parts of the world, including Romania, parts of South America, and (possibly) in the northwestern United States. Dr. Frohlich’s talk will address what is known and unknown today about the mechanical origin of deep earthquakes and explain why they have been used disproportionately in studies of the Earth’s interior structure, as well as provid-ing insight to the methods used by scientists when nobody is looking.

Deep Earthquakes and the Secrets of Seismology PDF
Monday—7:00pm March 3, 2008 7:00pm Fisher 135

 

Moonquakes

Possible extra-Solar System cause for certain lunar seismic events (moonquakes) Reanalysis of lunar seismic data collected during the Apollo program indicates that 23 of the 28 rare events known as high-frequency tele-seismic (HFT) events or shallow moonquakes oc-curred during one-half of the sidereal month when the seismic network on the Moon’s near side faced approximately towards right ascension of 12 h on the celestial sphere. Statistical analysis demonstrates that there is about a 1% probability that this pattern would occur by chance. An alter-nate possibility is that high-energy objects from a fixed source outside the Solar System trigger or even case the HFT events.

Moonquakes PDF
Tuesday—March 4, 2008 4:00-5:00 pm—Dow 641

 

Sports Physics

My Affair with Physics and Sport:

The Mechanics of Bowling and Springboard Diving Much of the scientific literature describing many sporting activities is authored by sportsmen who don't understand physics or physicists who don't understand the sport. I will discuss my two sports, springboard diving and bowing, where my experience as a participant provoked me to undertake some physical analysis. For diving, I explain how divers initiate twisting in midair, appearing to violate angular momentum conservation. For bowling, I evaluate the relative importance of various factors that make balls curve or 'hook'. I conclude with some advice for physicists who might wish to publish about other sports.

Sports Physics PDF
Tuesday—March 4, 2008 Noon-1:00 pm—Dow 641

 

For more information about this talk , please contact the Department Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences—487-2531

 

BACK to News

12/4/2007