Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute, Ankara, Turkey, June 10-21, 1985

Strong ground motion measuring and recording instruments play a major role in mitigation of seismic risk. The strong ground motion near the source of an earthquake describes the effects that endanger our built environment, and is also the most detailed clue concerning the source mechanism of the earthquake. The range of complexity that engulfs our understanding of the source parameters of a major earthquake (extent of the source mechanism, stress drop, wave propagation patterns) and how buildings and other works of construction respond to ground-transmitted dynamic effects may be overpowered by improved direct observations. Strong motion seismographs provide the information that enables scientists and engineers to resolve the many issues that are intertwined with practical problems of building safe communities worldwide. They may be installed as arrays close to major fault zones, consisting of many instruments arranged in some geometrical pattern, or in the vicinity and mounted on buildings. This book, which contains papers by invited authorities, represents a unique interaction between seismologists and earthquake engineers who examine issues of mutual concern in an overlapping area of major interest. The papers have been grouped around three major areas. -Seismic Hazard and Extreme Motions -Engineering Uses of Strong Motion Seismograms -Arrays and Observations.

The best way to minimize damage from earthquakes is to predict their location and effects and reinforce against those possible effects. Toward that end, this book presents prediction methods useful for the design of earthquake-resistant structures. In the first of two parts, the book deals with issues relating to the characterisation and the rational definition of seismic input. It begins with a study of earthquake records that leads to the identification of their damage potential parameters, such as the peak ground acceleration and the strong motion duration. Subsequent chapters concern themselves with the deterministic and probabilistic methodologies for producing seismic inputs. Further chapters are dedicated to the generation of artificial seismic input on the basis of stochastic or probabilistic approaches. The second part of this volume deals with the effects of ground motion on foundation elements and structural integrity. Particular emphasis is given to the interaction of foundation piles with vibrating soils, homogeneous or heterogeneous. The final two chapters are concerned with the possible connection between soil structure interaction (SSI) and structural damage. In both instances records of actual earthquake induced motion are used for such assessments.

A New York Times Notable Book of the Year The Discomfort Zone is Jonathan Franzen's tale of growing up, squirming in his own über-sensitive skin, from a "small and fundamentally ridiculous person," into an adult with strong inconvenient passions. Whether he's writing about the explosive dynamics of a Christian youth fellowship in the 1970s, the effects of Kafka's fiction on his protracted quest to lose his virginity, or the web of connections between bird watching, his all-consuming marriage, and the problem of global warming, Franzen is always feelingly engaged with the world we live in now. The Discomfort Zone is a wise, funny, and gorgeously written self-portrait by one of America's finest writers.

Despite advances in the field of geotechnical earthquake engineering, earthquakes continue to cause loss of life and property in one part of the world or another. The Third International Conference on Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA, 22nd to 24th June 1987, provided an opportunity for participants from all over the world to share their expertise to enhance the role of mechanics and other disciplines as they relate to earthquake engineering. The edited proceedings of the conference are published in four volumes. This volume covers: Seismicity and Tectonics in the Eastern Mediterranean, Seismic Waves in Soils and Geophysical Methods, Engineering Seismology, Dynamic Methods in Soil and Rock Mechanics, and Ground Motion. With its companion volumes, it is hoped that it will contribute to the further development of techniques, methods and innovative approaches in soil dynamics and earthquake engineering.