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Erik Barnes

Science

Scientists at Hebrew University may have found a way to predict earthquakes

Researchers discover the slow, silent process that ignites earthquakes

Photo credit: Canva

Scientists are getting a better understanding on how and when earthquakes occur.

One of the biggest challenges regarding earthquakes is preparation. Aside from recognizing where faultlines lay and determining which areas are the most prone to earthquakes and earthquake damage, there is very little we can do to prepare for the next “big one.” Earthquakes can occur at any time and happen with little to no warning, at least not enough warning for people to seek safety before they hit. Scientists at Hebrew University in Israel may have found a way for us to predict earthquakes in the future.

Through a study done in Israel, Prof. Jay Fineberg and his team of researchers at the Racah Institute of Physics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem possibly found the causes that lead up to shaking tremors. Through experiments and theoretical models, they theorize that a fault’s geometry along with slow and steady displacement at certain stress points in the Earth’s crust typically precede a seismic rupture that leads to earthquakes.

Richter scaleThis new study could lead into better preparation for earthquakes.Photo credit: Canva

Tremors occur when cracks in the Earth’s crust suddenly give way, and previous studies have shown that slow movements do precede the formation of these cracks. Yet until now, the data of these processes has been relying on two-dimensional generalizations rather than practical or theoretical three-dimensional studies. Fineberg’s team looked into how slow, aseismic stress came into play within earthquake activity, how that stress evolves and nucleates into a budding and sudden tremor.

“Our findings challenge and refine conventional models of rupture dynamics," said Fineberg in a press release. "We show that slow, aseismic processes are a prerequisite for seismic rupture, driven by localized stress and geometric constraints. This has profound implications for understanding when and how earthquakes begin.”

A torn down house and rubble from an earthquakeBeing able to predict an earthquake could help prevent further injuries.Photo credit: Canva

Further testing needs to be made in order to further confirm Fineberg and his team’s conclusions, however this leads to a greater understanding into how earthquakes happen and identify new focal points. Should these solid theories become reality, it could lead to better warnings of earthquakes before they start, leading to better systems to inform the public so they can better prepare before the tremor fully hits.

Meanwhile, if you live near or in an area prone to earthquakes, it’s best to be prepared for the worst. According to experts at the U.S. Geological Survey, if you are caught in the middle of an earthquake, take cover under a heavy desk or table, away from any windows or top-heavy furniture. Stay in place, as most people injured inside a building during an earthquake are those trying to move to a different building or leave their current position. Ready.gov recommends packing an earthquake kit with clothes, water, medication, a first aid kit, a hand-crank flashlight, batteries, cell phone charger, and other such items at the ready in your home or car case you need to leave. There are also apps like MyShake that could give you alerts and other information about earthquakes around your area through your mobile phone, too.

A man and a woman taking shelter under a wooden tableIf you're experiencing an earthquake, hide under a table away from any windows.Photo credit: Canva

It takes time and study to learn how the world around us works, which can take years if not lifetimes before we fully understand it. Even when we get better understanding, it might only provide more prep time for emergencies. Regardless of how much more understanding we obtain about earthquakes, there will always be the need to prepare and to be ready, for ourselves and for our neighbors.

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Community

Strangers rally around a San Antonio bike theft victim and change his life

He was walking more than 3 miles to work each day.

Photo credit: Canva

One person stole his bike, a whole community chipped in to help.

When a resident from San Antonio posted about how his bike got stolen on Reddit, he knew he was aimlessly reaching for a life preserver. However, folks in the thread not only threw him a life preserver, they threw him a whole boat. Well, they threw him a new bike, technically speaking. In an r/sananonio post, a local asked a fair rhetorical question: “Do people steal bicycles in 2025?”

“I commute to work by bicycle every day because I got no other choice,” said the post. “It’s a bike a friend gave me ‘cause he saw the struggle. I got off work today. Couldn’t see it. Started bawling my eyes out.”

Man in a hoodie with pliers riding a bike.Bike theft is incredibly common in North America.Photo credit: Canva

According to the poster, his job was three and a half miles away from his home, making it a big ask to walk there every day. He also couldn’t afford to purchase a new bike. After all, the bike that was stolen was originally a gift from a friend, not something he was able to buy in the first place. And, yes, the bike was locked.

His situation is sadly, not unique. According to 529 Garage, a bicycle registration company, an estimated 2 million bikes have been stolen in North America within the last two decades. Bikes are often taken in public areas, such as parks and on the street. There are several locks and methods to deter bicycle thieves, but it seems that as soon as a strategy becomes effective and popular, a thief has found a way to circumvent it. Many of these stolen bikes are sold in full or Frankensteined together with other stolen bike parts to sell again in a secondary market.

Fortunately for this poster, the community showed up.

“I have a old road bike, will need tires though.”

“Hey OP, I’ve got a spare bike you can have.”

“I have an extra bicycle, if you want it.”

A man in formal clothes riding a bike on the sidewalkFor a variety of reasons, many Americans have to ride a bike to get to work.Photo credit: Canva

By just posting his plea, the poster got what he needed.

“Got a bike y’all. This evening, literally about an hours after asking,” he remarked in an updated post. “And many, many, many people offered to help and I am really grateful. In order to have good, you need evil yk ☯️. So to everybody that offered to help, a billion thanks.”

Several other posters offered advice to help prevent his new bike from getting stolen.

“If you get another, even at home, take it inside or chain it up in back where no one can see it from the street.”

“If you want to be extra safe, consider double locking with a u-lock or cover the bike in duct tape to make it look janky.”

“Glue an airtag on it. Somewhere hidden of course.”

A bike with multiple bike locks on a gateThere's no such thing as too many bike locks.Photo credit: Canva

It’s a shame that the poster had his bike stolen to begin with, and that such petty theft is common in San Antonio and other areas throughout the country. However, it should be noted that when a neighbor needed help, people immediately came to his aid within an hour’s time. People that were faceless strangers that just happened to live in the same city, not friends or even acquaintances. So while the bike theft issue should overall be addressed in terms of what we can do as a society to resolve it, only one person took the bike while many folks offered assistance in some form.

To paraphrase the original poster, evil such as petty theft sucks, but out of it is the potential reminder of how much good is actually out there.

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Health

A man in India was declared dead until his ambulance hit a speed bump and he came back to life

He was being sent back home to be given his last rites.

Photo credit: Canva

A man in India was considered deceased until his ambulance hit a speed breaker.

A 65-year-old man was declared dead but news of his passing hit a speed bump— literally!

Reported by India Today, Pandurang Ulpe, a senior citizen of Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India, suffered a heart attack and was rushed to the hospital. It was there where he was declared dead by his doctors. When Ulpe’s family got the news of his passing, they arranged for his lifeless body to be transported home to be given last rites. That’s when it happened.

As the ambulance drove over a speed breaker on the road, his family looked at the body and noticed something— Ulpe’s fingers moved! Upon noticing this, they alerted the driver and had the ambulance redirect towards the nearest hospital.

At the second hospital, Ulpe received an angioplasty operation and was sent home after a 15-day stay for recovery and observation.

An older man sleeping in a hospital bedA speed bump changed a trip to the morgue to a trip back to a hospitalPhoto credit: Canva

“I had come home from a walk and was sitting after sipping tea. I felt dizzy and breathless,” said Ulpe. “I went to the bathroom and vomited. I don’t remember what happened afterwards, including who took me to the hospital."

Thanks to the alertness of his family, the glimmer of hope upon seeing his fingers twitch, and quick action, Pandurang Ulpe was saved from an early grave. Hope is in short supply, depending on who you talk to. Per recent Gallup polls, just a little over half of Americans see hope in the near future. Thinking negatively is understandable and, for some, instinctual. It helps prevent disappointment or can help better prepare people for legitimate concerns or danger. That’s why insurance was invented, right?

You may think that hope is just wishing for the best or blanket optimism, but according to professor of psychology, Dr. Chan Hellman of the Hope Research Center, that’s just not true. “We often use the word ‘hope’ in place of wishing, like you hope it rains today or you hope someone’s well. But wishing is passive toward a goal and hope is about taking action toward it,” says Hellman.

Remember, Ulpe’s family didn’t just see his fingers move and did nothing while hoping he was still alive. They took action and had the ambulance driver go to another hospital.

Hope doesn’t just provide some spiritual benefits to life but has science to back it up. Per a study posted by Science Direct, hope effectively helped offset anxiety, depression, and despair during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are also studies provided by the National Library of Medicine and the American Psychological Association that suggest that hope can improve a person’s mental health and even create new neural pathways in their mind. These neural pathways not only lead to more resilience to stress in your mind but also access new ways of thinking along with a mentality that welcomes other possible solutions. In short, hope could make you not just feel better, but think better, too.

An x-ray look at the brain thinking, with sparks indicating thought patternsScientific studies show that being hopeful makes you think better.Photo credit: Canva

Having hope isn’t just a lightswitch that you can turn on or off. Hope is a skill that needs to be practiced and honed before it shows its more tangible positive effects. If you’re new to it, don’t be discouraged. Have hope in your hope.

For hope can possibly save lives. That and a second opinion at a different hospital.

A hand holding a note that says "hope"It's better to act with hope, rather than be passive with despair.Photo credit: Canva

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Science

Japanese microforests invented in the 1970s are transforming cities around the world

A microforest can achieve 100 years worth of growth within a single decade.

Wikimedia Commons

A microforest at Edappally Eranakulam

City life has its benefits, but usually at the expense of the environment. However, a trend in urban planning has been growing like weeds throughout various metropolitan areas. They’re called “microforests” and they’re bringing nature back to our streets.

The concept of microforests (also known as “tiny forests” or “Miyawaki forests”) was inspired by the work of Japanese botanist and plant ecologist Akira Miyawaki back in the 1970s. Using what is known as the “Miyawaki Method,” people would plant a diverse set of native plants and trees within a dense pace, usually in plots of land less than 100 square feet in size. If properly cared for, these trees and plants grow rapidly. In some cases, according to Euro News, a microforest can achieve 100 years worth of growth within a single decade when compared to the growth rates of regular forests. Which is good since monoforests are subjected to massive deforestation.

While there have been agreements and efforts to combat deforestation, a study from the World Resources Institute showed that 3.7 million hectares of tropical forest land was lost in 2023 alone. That’s ten soccer fields’ worth of trees lost every minute. With the United Nations projecting that 68% of the human population will live in an urban area by 2050, it’s looking like more and more of our world will be colored with gray concrete instead of lush green. But microforests could offset that.

Over recent years, microforests have become more commonplace throughout the world, in England, Belgium, India, Pakistan, China, Japan, and the United States among other countries. This trend of adopting the Miyawaki Method has been proposed and practiced through all levels, from political action to city planning to just a local citizen getting a petition or permission to grow a microforest. It’s not surprising since microforests are a smaller task and ask compared to other environmental proposals being offered.

Not only that, but microforests are shown to be an effective way to improve the environment of a metropolis. They help cool a city down by reducing carbon emissions and providing additional shade from the tall trees. These healthy forests can also help enrich the local soil and water resources in the city, too. They also double as a local wildlife refuge and living space for animals that have been displaced due to city expansion.

The benefits of microforests aren’t limited to just the environment, and provide more than just an aesthetic contrast to the streets and buildings surrounding citizens. Microforests provide a meeting place for organizations and friends like a public park. The cleaner air doesn’t just combat climate change, but also reduces the amount of pollutants and smog inhaled by city dwellers, per the National Institute of Health.


A microforest in Baumpflanzaktion B\u00f6nningstedtA microforest in Baumpflanzaktion BönningstedtWikimedia Commons

If this is something that interests you for yourself or your community, you can take action. Depending on where you live and if you own property, you could even grow a microforest in your backyard if you wish. If you live in a city, you know how cramped it can be and how cooperation is necessary when living within a mass of thousands of people. Having something like a microforest to cool everyone down, physically and emotionally, can only benefit everyone.

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