Japanese Students Compete in Making Earthquake-Resistant Toothpick Towers

A Japanese engineering university in Kumamoto is famous for holding a unique competition, challenging students to build toothpick towers that can resist a simulated earthquake.

As you probably already know, because of its location in the Circum-Pacific Mobile Belt, where there is constant seismic and volcanic activity, Japan is the world’s most earthquake-prone country. Even though Japan takes up only 0.25% of the land area on our planet, 18.5% of earthquakes in the world occur here. So I guess you can say that building earthquake-resistant architecture is paramount for the Japanese nation. To that end, one engineering school has been challenging students to come up with toothpick tower designs that can resist a simulated earthquake.

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Hundreds of Sinkholes Appear Across Croatian Region After December Earthquake

Thousands of people are living fear of being swallowed up by the Earth after hundreds of sinkholes appear in an area that was shaken by strong earthquake just over two months ago.

On December 29, 2020, Croatia recorded its strongest earthquake ever. Measured at 6.4 points on the Richter magnitude scale, the quake directly affected 116,000 people, mainly in the cities of Petrinja, Sisak, and Glina, and the rural areas around them. Over 35,000 homes and 4,550 businesses were damaged by the strong tremor and its many aftershocks, and five fatalities attributed to the destructive natural phenomenon were reported. Now, over two months since the earthquake, people in the affected area are even more worried about the sink holes that keep appearing.

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Disaster Café – Where Every Meal Comes with a 7.8 Earthquake

If a 7.8 earthquake happened during lunch time, most of us would forget about food and run for our lives, but at the Disaster Café, in Lloret de Mar, Spain, quakes happen all the time, and all you can do is try to keep your balance and hope drinks don’t get spilled.

Normally, people are terrified of earthquakes, but at the Disaster Café, people actually pay to experience a simulated 7.8 quake while they enjoy a tasty meal. I’ve never been, but according to online customer reviews, the place is so popular you actually need to make reservations in advance, in order to be get a table. I guess people’s appetite for disaster is stronger than I thought.

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