Refining is inevitable in science when you have made measurements of a phenomenon for a long period of time.
Charles Francis RichterRead
Magnitude may be compared to the power output in kilowatts of a [radio] broadcasting station; local intensity, on the Mercalli or similar scale, is then comparable to the signal strength noted on a receiver at a given locality. Intensity, like signal strength, will generally fall off with distance from the source; it will also depend on local conditions at the point of observation, and to some extent on the conditions along the path from source to that point.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote explains how magnitude and intensity of a phenomenon can vary based on distance and local conditions.
Charles Francis Richter illustrates the relationship between magnitude and intensity by comparing it to radio broadcasting. He emphasizes that the intensity of a signal, akin to an earthquake's impact, diminishes with distance from the source and is influenced by local circumstances at the observation point, highlighting the complexity of measuring such phenomena in different environments.
Themes
MagnitudeIntensitySignal StrengthDistanceLocal Conditions
In practice
Example use cases
In a presentation about earthquake preparedness, one could quote this to explain how intensity varies based on location.
More from Charles Francis Richter
All quotes →Only fools, liars, and charlatans predict earthquakes
Charles Francis RichterRead
I have a sense of humor; but over the years that sense has developed one blind spot. I can no longer laugh at ignorance or stupidity. Those are our chief enemies, and it is dangerous to make fun of them.
Charles Francis RichterRead
Similar quotes
Unless a price can be put on carbon emissions that is high enough to force power companies and manufacturers to reduce their fossil-fuel use, there seems to be little chance of avoiding hugely damaging temperature increases
Rajendra K. PachauriRead
It could be that at some earlier time, somewhere in the universe, a civilization evolved by probably some kind of Darwinian means to a very, very high level of technology- and designed a form of life that they seeded onto perhaps this planet. And I suppose it's possible that you might find evidence for that if you look at the details of biochemistry, molecular biology, you might find a signature of some sort of designer.
Richard DawkinsRead
The invention of the scientific method and science is, I'm sure we'll all agree, the most powerful intellectual idea, the most powerful framework for thinking and investigating and understanding and challenging the world around us that there is, and it rests on the premise that any idea is there to be attacked. If it withstands the attack then it lives to fight another day and if it doesn't withstand the attack then down it goes. Religion doesn't seem to work like that.
Douglas AdamsRead
Part of knowing how to think is knowing how the laws of nature shape the world around us. Without that knowledge, without that capacity to think, you can easily become a victim of people who seek to take advantage of you.
Neil Degrasse TysonRead
Science fiction was one of those places, particularly during the McCarthy era, where you could write whatever you wanted because it was beneath contempt. They didn't bother censoring it.
William GibsonRead
Cancer is like the common cold; there are so many different types. In the future we'll still have cancer, but we'll detect it very, very early, so that it won't kill anybody. We'll zap it at the molecular level decades before it grows into a tumor.
Michio KakuRead