Ask Mike: The Haiti Earthquake
Hey Guys,
Baseball great Roberto Clemente once said that whenever you have the chance to help somebody and you don’t, you’re wasting your life. It’s a very difficult mantra to live by, but at times like this, when thousands, or perhaps even hundreds of thousands of people are suffering in devastated Haiti, it becomes a bit easier to remember.
A previous blog from Yahoo! Answers already covered some of the ways in which we can all help the rescue and rebuilding efforts in Haiti. You can easily donate to the Red Cross, which provides international disaster relief. Another charity to consider — Yele Haiti. Started by Haitian-born singer Wyclef Jean, the charity supports scholarships, the arts, and emergency relief.
Back to our regularly scheduled programming. In the wake of this Haiti quake, a slew of related questions appeared on Yahoo! Answers. I’d like to answer two of the most popular…
First up, the Richter scale. What is it and who came up with it? According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), Charles F. Richter of the California Institute of Technology created the system in 1935. “Each whole number increase in magnitude represents a tenfold increase in measured amplitude.” So, for example, the 7.0 quake that hit Haiti is ten times more powerful than a 6.0 earthquake.
It’s commonly believed that dogs can predict natural disasters like earthquakes. But is this really true? Again, according to the USGS, scientists have never been able to confirm this. As the experts note, “anecdotal evidence abounds of animals… exhibiting strange behavior anywhere from weeks to seconds before an earthquake.” It sounds cool, but there is no hard proof of a relation between Fido’s barking fit and a looming earthquake.
But that doesn’t mean it’s not possible. Have your pets ever acted oddly before a natural disaster? If so, please leave a comment below. And please consider donating to the relief efforts in Haiti.
Thanks for reading (and helping),
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My dog ALWAYS knows when a storm is coming before it ever starts to thunder or lightning.
Hi Mike, I’ve donated toward the recent earthquake in Haiti. I would like to know about any organizations that are sending people to Haiti to assist. I understand that thousand people are dead. Many are still underground and not found and Millions need our help. Please assist me with the nessecary information.
Regards,
Emily
Hi Emily, the one group I know at the moment that will be recruiting volunteers to help with recovery efforts is the Fuller Center for Housing. I’ve worked with them before and they’re great. Here is the link to the sign up page. They’ll be contacting everyone as soon as the information become available.
http://www.fullercenter.org/global-builders/haiti
Emily,
World Vision is also sending.
http://www.worldvision.org/
Not that Im not concerned about the people in Haiti, I am and will donate money, but what concerns me more is that we have a bomber on an airplane and Obama stays on vacation. Earthquake in a different country, Obama is sending relief efforts within a day. Not that Im upset he’s sending relieft efforts, but do you know how bad that sounds? That when our country is threateded our PRESIDENT stays on vacation but when a natural disaster happens in a foreign country he has relief efforts sent in less than 24 hours?
It is very bad for any body to start attacking Obama now. Once the bumbing was aborted it was over and the president could have not done any extra things to stop the bumbing but Haiti is an ongoing disaster zone.
I will play my releif part.
Bailey,
Did you stop to think that possibly time is critical for Haiti?
The longer we wait, the more people will die.
The ‘bomber’ was an isolated event, what should obama do? Run around washington waving his hands in the air?
President Obama is my pride and joy; but I want him to stand up and show his power and strength. He is the leader of the free world, act like it. We don’t need another war; what we need is jobs, and a financial stable America. I know he can do the job, so get on it and do what we need to make America strong. It’s almost like he wants everyone to like him; well, that’s not the President’s focus. His job is to do he best for America. President Obama you have to reach down and pull up a couple, and get on with fixing this country.
hey mike how do i delete photos that i saved in my folder all it says is to save to computer