Getting all scientifical

I've been collecting a few interesting links lately, and it hardly seems fair to keep them all to myself. Today's collection is largely focused on the ground beneath our feet. Of course, it could just be me (& most other locals) with a fascination for geotechnical & other scientific information...

Christchurch has become a magnet for seismologists, geoscientists and other curious earthy science folk. I'm not sure we should let Kevin Furlong back into the country though... earthquakes seem to be following him around...



The suburbs of Sumner and Redcliffs have been closely inspected by geologists, especially after the massive rock falls in February and June. Check out this story from The Press - video of a controlled explosion taking out a dangerous rocky outcrop above Nayland Street in Sumner.

Dr Dave Petley has been checking out the local hillsides and provides an interesting and informative commentary on some of the action & land damage on both sides of the Port Hills. To read the five part series - with some impressive photos - start here. See what happens when massive boulder meets house... (spoiler: boulder wins)

This video on sink holes, featuring Dr Jan Kupec, has to go down as a winner in the unintentionally-appropriate-accent category... this guy pronounces liquefaction the same way the rest of us do when we're not being polite!!

Seriously though - props to CERA for creating this, and other informational videos about land damage & sciency things. The Press 'Ask an expert' series has been a great Q&A gallery on all things geotechnical - from the neurotic to the nit-picky, every question (that is selected) is answered in a matter-of-fact, informative manner. Shock horror - some of the scientists even display a sense of humour in their answers... worth a read :)

To close, a video that is currently doing the rounds of Shakeytown locals. A drive-thru of the central city, complete with empty lots where fading memories are now the only things that remain.
'tis sobering stuff indeedy...