Chapter 182
Chapter 182
As the anxiety spread like a contagious disease, a group of seismicists came forward.
In an interview with the press, Josh Brown, an authority on seismology and a professor at MIT, refuted Prof. Mohan’s claims one by one.
Rather than coming to a conclusion by objectively analyzing the data, they are making an argument in a way that selects and selects data according to the conclusion.
Professor Brown said:
“The San Andreas Fault is only 800 miles long and is a strike fault. Moreover, since it is a conservation boundary, it is impossible for a major earthquake greater than M8 to occur even under the worst-case scenario. Even that has a less than 5 percent chance of happening in 10 years.”
The state of California has also taken action. Democrat Governor Franklin Rabin issued an official statement.
“The California state government has all the manuals for earthquake observation, early forecasting, and response. As a result of inquiring with the USGS, the possibility of a Big One is close to zero, and no danger has been detected so far, so please rest assured.”
Thanks to the quick response, the spread of anxiety has subsided.
The residents were on the one hand to watch the situation return. But one question still remains.
If there is really little chance of Big One coming, why does Jinhoo Kang act like that?
The media has given the answer.
[OTK Company invests in raw materials with the proceeds of issuance of corporate bonds!][Billions of dollars in profit even if sold now!][A typical vulture fund’s method to gain profits by spreading anxiety][Is it because of PTSD or a huge scam?][Possibility of violating federal law?]* * *
Not long ago, Professor Kiran Mohan was in a disappointment.
He published a book warning about the dangers of the Big One. I thought that the book would create a big sensation and actively discuss countermeasures, but the result was the exact opposite.
The book didn’t even sell the first edition, and the publisher went bankrupt. And academics completely ignored his argument.
It was okay up to that point, but it was a problem that the state’s research funding was cut off.
He feels the anxiety and tension that he doesn’t have much time. There is not much left until Big One arrives.
Before that, he had to find reasons to support his claims and inform people.
He was a world-famous investor and at the same time a very wealthy man came to him. Jinhoo Kang volunteered for a sponsor saying he would not worry about money in the future, and thanks to this, Professor Mohan was able to start research again with enthusiasm.
California Institute of Technology is home to a world-class seismology center.
It collected data by observing earthquakes across the United States and exchanged information in real time with other centers around the world.
After the Great East Japan Earthquake, the sense of urgency about earthquakes also increased in the United States, and the federal government provided funding to increase observation equipment along the Pacific coast and establish an early forecasting system. This is to identify the epicenter and magnitude of the earthquake as soon as possible, inform them in advance and evacuate the residents.
When the system started operating in earnest, various data poured in. The data could be accessed by anyone authorized to do so.
However, given the same ingredients, it does not mean that the same dish is produced. Similarly, given the same data, the same conclusions are not drawn.
It is the responsibility of individual scholars to interpret and analyze them, so different results may be obtained depending on the point of view.
Too little data is a problem, but too much data makes analysis difficult. New data is added to the existing data, and the academic community responded that it was rather confusing. It will take some time for the system to be firmly established.
Prof. Mohan closely analyzed earthquakes that occurred in the Pacific Rim orogeny after the great East Japan Earthquake. He included in the data all the subtle earthquakes that are easy to miss.
As each day passed, my heart grew more anxious. Meanwhile, the public was buzzing about Professor Mohan’s argument.
The books piled up in stock were sold out, and the press flooded with requests for interviews. Along with him, e-mails and letters of criticism and criticism poured in.
Professor Mohan, due to his personality, did not pay much attention to his views. As a result, he was able to continue to argue against the mainstream academic opinion.
No matter what other people say, just do what you have to do.
Professor Mohan recalled the words of his grandmother. Perhaps because of the influence of her family of shamans from generation to generation, her grandmother told stories about the land, the sea, and the sky.
Surprisingly, she was all right.
A typhoon made landfall in Boston if there was a strong wind from the west, and New Orleans flooded if a heavy rain was expected from the south.
To her curious grandson, her grandmother told her it was just a coincidence.
Was it really a coincidence?
There have been countless earthquakes in the history of the indigenous peoples, and the stories have been passed down orally to future generations.
Her grandmother said the ground would crack, buildings would crumble, and water would come in, so she told him she should go as far away as possible, she said.
Her words lingered in his mind even after her grandmother passed away.
No one is denying the possibility of an earthquake on the San Andreas Fault. However, the truth is that it will not lead to a major earthquake.
When they think of a fault near San Francisco, almost everyone thinks of San Andreas (the previous two earthquakes were all caused by the San Andreas fault), but in reality there was one more fault.
This is the Hayward Fault.
Centering on San Francisco Bay, the San Andreas Fault is on the left and the Hayward Fault is on the right.
Professor Mohan raised the possibility that the extent of the Hayward Fault may have spread last year.
It was claimed that it would run from the north of San Francisco Bay at the top, through Berkeley, Oakland, and Hayward, and down to San Jose.
But even before that, he was treated as a heretic in academia, so even he was ignored.
Prof. Mohan, as he was examining the data from the newly activated observation equipment, came to mind.
“awhile.”
He quickly unfolded a map of California and drew two faults with a pen. Two long vertical lines were drawn on either side of San Francisco.
This time he drew a horizontal line connecting the two faults. The line went right through San Francisco.
If the extent of the Hayward Fault were to spread, the distance between the two faults would be reduced to less than 20 km. There is a sufficient possibility that they directly influence each other.
Unlike the San Andreas Fault, which continues to generate earthquakes, the Hayward Fault was relatively quiet. But what would happen if the earthquake occurrence cycles intersect?
‘If two faults make a strike at the same time… … ?’
Professor Mohan quickly analyzed the data and superimposed the cycles of the two faults. Surprisingly, the cycle intersects after about 50 days.
In other words, it was the end of September of this year!
Professor Mohan felt a cold sweat running down his back.
“Oh My God.”
He was 90 percent sure of the possibility of a major earthquake so far. But now that thought has changed to 99 percent.
It was not known how powerful it would be.
‘Once we run the simulation… … .’
Carrie said to him in shock.
“Answer the phone, Professor.”
“I’m busy right now, so I’ll do it later.”
“This is an important call. Please change it.”
Professor Mohan turned his head.
“Who are you though?”
“I am the representative of Jinhoo Kang.”
No matter how busy you are, it’s a different story if it’s the phone of the person giving you money. Professor Mohan had no choice but to accept the receiver that Carrie gave him.
[Are you okay on the phone?]“I don’t have time, so let’s talk briefly.”
[I would like a briefing. There are people who want to hear the professor’s explanation.]“I don’t have time right now. Can’t we do it later?”
[I’m telling you because I don’t have time. This is very important.]Despite refusing several times, Kang Jin-hoo earnestly asked for it.
[Please, please.]In the end, Professor Mohan reluctantly agreed.
“Hmm, okay.”
[Thank you. We will send you a plane ticket right away.]“What? airplane?”
Of course you didn’t come this way, did you?
But the call has already been disconnected.
* * *
I met Professor Mohan and Carrie at Washington National Airport with Taek-gyu.
This is the second time we met at the California Institute of Technology. Professor Mohan came with his hands full of luggage.
Carry is also full of luggage, starting with a laptop bag.
“Isn’t it heavy?”
Carrie said nothing to my question.
“When I go to the field with the professor, I have a lot more luggage than this.”
Earthquake research isn’t for everyone.
“Ride at once.”
We all got into the limousine.
“Have you eaten?”
Professor Mohan nodded his head.
“I ate dinner. The meal was great.”
said Carrie.
“I also had a glass of wine. I only rode economy class every time, and it was my first time riding first class. It was so good.”
“Hmm, thanks to you, I came here comfortably.
I smiled.
“That’s fortunate. I was originally going to go to the hotel and then move, but the time was delayed a bit. Is it okay if I go straight to the meeting place?”
Professor Mohan nodded his head and said.
“Okay. But where are you going?”
“The White House.”
He closed his eyes at my words.
“White House? What’s going on there… … ?”
“President Ronald is waiting.”
The two were surprised.
“Hey, what does that mean?”
“I told you. There are people who want to hear the professor’s explanation.”
“Didn’t you say that you were the president?”
“Oh, didn’t I tell you?”
Actually, I didn’t say it on purpose. But you told me to come to Washington D.C., so I thought you were guessing to some extent.(Read more @ wuxiax.com)
Professor Mohan said while stuttering with a pale white face.
“No, that’s absurd. You want me to brief you in front of the president.”
“You just have to do it as comfortable as you would in a lecture.”
“I, I am a Democrat.”
Taek-gyu asked.
“Is that related?”
“… … .”
Seeing that you can’t answer, it doesn’t seem to be related.
Professor Mohan seemed to be contemplating whether or not to jump out of the car. But before any conclusion was reached, the car arrived at the White House.
We underwent various security checks by security personnel. Professor Mohan and Carrie unpacked their luggage in their suitcases and tried to operate all electronic devices such as laptops.
After the security check, we were guided to the room by the staff. After a while, a white woman in a suit came in and presented the papers.
“It’s a confidentiality pledge,” she said. From the fact that I came here today, the contents of today’s conversation are all confidential, and if I disclose it outside, I will be punished.”
This will not be just a warning.
The reason why we do it in secret is that the mere fact that we met can give people a misunderstanding that the US administration is seriously considering the possibility of Big One.
There is a risk that the whole of California is already in chaos, and there is a concern that it will cause chaos.
We each signed the papers.
The people who entered the conference room were me and Professor Mohan. Carrie turned on her laptop and checked her data once more.
“You just need to swipe the PPT and flip it to the side.”
I said.
“I will do that. Professor, please focus on the presentation.”
I got her laptop from Carrie.
Following the guidance of the staff, we made our way through the narrow hallway to the conference room. As soon as you enter, you will see a scene that you would only see in an American drama or on the news.
In the middle of the narrow conference room, there was a rectangular table, around which a dozen people were seated.
The first person that caught my eye was Vice President Mike Bauer. From the moment I saw him at his inauguration ceremony, I thought he had a strong impression because of his white, short gray hair and sharp eyes.
All the other characters were familiar. Because I’ve seen your face on the news several times.
Secretary of State Jonathan Anderson, Secretary of Defense Patrick Marshall, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Colin Pratt, Chief of National Intelligence Simon Simpkins, Director of Central Intelligence Jack Mitchell, Advisor Ian Krill and more.
And inside, President Ronald was sitting with his arms crossed.
Indeed, the most powerful leaders of the United States were gathered in one place. Although this is not an official NSC (National Security Council), it is actually an NSC.
It was hard to believe that I was even here.
What would your mother say if she knew?
I looked at Professor Mohan, trying not to look nervous. Professor Noh was shaking his legs in a pathetic way.
Ronald said still with his arms crossed.
“Let the briefing begin.”
