Search

I'm interested in better understanding the ongoing geological processes that shape St. Louis and the Mississippi Valley region. So far, I've been looking into the history of seismicity in the region, focusing on the fascinating but little known history of the New Madrid earthquakes of 1811 and 1812 -- the most devastating earthquakes to have hit the US east of the Rockies. I've also been exploring how St. Louis and surrounding areas are dealing with the possibility of another earthquake occurring in the future. According to one article I read, one of the biggest uncertainties is what would happen to the heavily engineered Mississippi River in the case of another major tremblor. The shaking could break the levees, flooding wide areas along the river and creating cascading effects. The flow of the river might also reverse completely, as occurred during the New Madrid earthquakes.

On these possibilities and the lack of scientific consensus surrounding intraplate seismicity in this zone, see this article in The Atlantic.

On current efforts to create earthquake hazard maps in St. Louis, see this overview on the US Geological Survey site.

For a deeper dive into the history of the New Madrid earthquakes, see this book by historian of science Conevery Bolton Valencius. 

Emily Goldman is an epidemiologist with a background in public health, she currently works for NYU College of Global Public Health and teaches a course in psychiatric epidemiology. Sandro Galea is an epidemiologist and physician working at Columbia University, he currently sits on two New York City councils for Hygiene and Public Health.

The US Department of Veteran Affairs does not do extensive research but instead uses the existing research and discoveries to keep up to date with medical practices.

As the disasters studied occurred many years ago and have been thoroughly studied previously this study did not present sufficiently new information to be disseminated through news reports. The study did however provide information of interest for future studies, and has been cited in other articles indicating it was used as reference in determining the effectiveness of research techniques.

The data collected in the scientific studies included in the report began in March 2011 shortly after the nuclear disaster at Fukushima and continued for periods spanning months and years depending on the tests being done.

Emergency response is not portrayed, in fact the film shows the importance of understanding when not to respond. While it is the instinct of responders to always try something else if treatment is ineffective the patient’s wishes always come first, for a medical professional this can feel like giving up but in cases like these it is the right thing to do.

The program is funded primarily by Handicap International, with additional funding from the United States Agency for International Development.

The apps described were built to serve anyone who was a victim of sexual assault, which is not limited by demographics. One app was however aimed at college students, likely because there is a higher risk of sexual assault for that age range.

Stakeholders from every level of the health care system were mentioned, as well as he portrayal of Liberians in the quarantine zones and living in Monrovia. For the citizens in quarantine zones, the film emphasized the challenges that come from an outbreak including food and water shortages, fear, and the rising tension caused by a lack of information and the government’s actions. The main family followed throughout the film was faced with the challenge of trying to get out of Monrovia and bringing their children the United States to join the rest of the family, an understandable decision in a time of crises. The decision to leave Monrovia however directly opposes the decisions made by the government and health officials who imposed quarantines as a way of containing the virus, and were forced to lift the quarantines due to rioting.