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. 

Based on available resources, it does not appear that this paper has been discussed or cited in any publically available research or forums. While it is widely published and is readily available, this is a relitively new text, which could contribute to this.

Depending on the source, there have been greatly mixed reviews on this topic, even from within the Fire/EMS profession. While some feel that this is a great way for paramedics and EMTs to make their job safer, many also feel that the risks of bringing firearms into a profession where its providers are taught to "first, do no harm" is counterproductive and even dangerous. 

The information from this article was drawn from various primary sources such as letters, historical and modern news reports pertaining to the cases being studied, and other peer reviewed articles.

Because this document is the first chapter of a book, there was no source list provided, therefor no conclusions could be drawn.

The bibliography of this article is extensive, showing a clear depth of research. Information from this article was drawn from not only first hand resources such as interviews and news reports, but also from goverment reports and the work of other researchers.

According to Google Scholar, this piece has been cited in 39 other articles, mostly relating to disaster recovery and phychopathology.

This film would best address an audiance of young to middle aged adults, possibly with military ties such as being a veteran. These people would have an interest in the acountability of the goverment and its various agencies and branches.

The author of the article is Sonja D. Schmid. She is an associate professor in the Department of Science and Technology in Society at Virginia Tech. She holds a Ph D in STS from Cornell University. Dr. Schmid speaks fluent Russian and primarily investigates the history and organization of Soviet and Eastern European nuclear affairs, as well as the the challenges of global nuclear emergency response.