News of the Institute
New EERI Directors Appointed
Welcome to new EERI Directors, Danielle Hutchings Mieler (M. EERI, 2009) and Sissy Nikolaou (M. EERI, 2004). Both were appointed in accordance with recently approved changes to Article III of the Institute's Bylaws, expanding membership of the EERI Board to 11 members.
Danielle Hutchings Mieler, P.E., is the Resilience Program Coordinator for the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG). In her position at ABAG, Danielle works with local governments, infrastructure owners and operators, engineers, planners, and residents to jointly plan and act to create a more climate and earthquake resilient Bay Area. Danielle recently spent a year working as a research engineer for GNS Science, New Zealand’s Crown Research Institute for earth sciences, where she studied the impacts of the Christchurch earthquakes and performed hazard and risk analysis for infrastructure systems and the built environment. Prior to joining ABAG, Danielle spent several years at a geotechnical engineering consulting firm specializing in hazard characterization and seismic design and evaluation of dams and levees. She was an EERI Housner Fellow in the inaugural class, a former director of the Northern California Chapter, and is currently serving as co-chair of the organizing committee for the 2016 EERI Annual Meeting. Read Danielle Mieler's bio and vision statement
Sissy Nikolaou, Ph.D., P.E., is a practicing earthquake engineer with more than 20 years of experience. She is a Senior Associate with Mueser Rutledge Consulting Engineers in New York City, where she directs the firm’s Geo-Seismic Department. Her technical capabilities span from structural to geotechnical engineering in multi-hazard environments with emphasis on performance-based engineering, seismic hazard analysis, liquefaction evaluation and mitigation and risk/resiliency assessment of critical facilities. She is a dedicated EERI member with many leadership roles over the years. She was one of the founding members of the UB student chapter and the New York-Northeast Regional Chapter where she currently serves as President. She is also a member of the Initiatives Development Committee (IDC) and a mentor to several student chapters. Read Sissy Nikolaou's bio and vision statement
John Anderson Receives Bruce Bolt Medal
John G. Anderson (M. EERI, 1980), Professor of Geophysics at the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), was chosen as the 2015 recipient of the Bruce A. Bolt Medal, which is awarded jointly by the Seismological Society of America, the Consortium of Organizations for Strong-Motion Observation Systems (COSMOS), and EERI.
The Bolt medal is awarded to recognize individuals worldwide whose accomplishments involve the promotion and use of strong-motion earthquake data and whose leadership in the transfer of scientific and engineering knowledge into practice or policy has led to improved seismic safety. During his career, Professor Bolt contributed in all of these activities.
Prior to moving to UNR, Anderson earned his doctorate in geophysics at Columbia University, and held research positions in civil engineering departments at the California Institute of Technology, University of Southern California (USC), and University of California San Diego (UCSD). At USC he helped install a strong motion network in the Los Angeles basin and at UCSD, he led the US side of a project to install a network on the Pacific coast of Mexico. The Mexico network quickly achieved one of its objectives when it recorded strong motion records from the 1985 Michoacan, Mexico, earthquake (Mw 8.0). (The primary target of the Mexico network, an earthquake in the seismic gap in Guerrero, has not yet occurred.) The records from the Michoacan earthquake were, for a long time, key components of a very small collection of data originating from magnitude 8 earthquakes in subduction zones, influencing models for ground motions in Cascadia among other applications.
Anderson has numerous research contributions with the objective of understanding strong ground motions. His 1984 paper, co-authored with Susan Hough, introduced kappa as a parameter in the description of high-frequency acceleration spectra. Other papers articulated the importance of the ergodic assumption in probabilistic seismic hazard analysis, evaluate the use of precariously balanced rocks and other fragile geological features for testing the predictions of likely ground motion from future earthquakes, and examine details, suggest models, or provide overviews of the physical processes that affect strong earthquake ground motions.
Anderson has served as director of the Nevada Seismological Lab
at UNR for 11 years. He is a member of the Nevada Earthquake Safety Council and on various national committees. Currently he is chairing the National Seismic Hazard and Risk Assessment Steering Committee in support of the U.S. Geological Survey National Seismic Hazard Maps and serving as a guest editor for Earthquake Spectra. For more information on the Bruce A. Bolt Medal, visit the EERI website at www.eeri.org/about-eeri/honors-awards/the-bruce-a-bolt-medal/
Announcements
Call for Papers: 6th ICRAEG August 2016
The 6th International Conference on Recent Advances in Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering and Soil Dynamics will take place at the IIT Roorkee Greater Noida Campus, Greater Noida (NCR), India, August 1–6, 2016. Earthquake, civil, structural and geotechnical engineers, seismologists, geologists, scientists, teachers, builders, consultants, architects, land use planners and other professionals worldwide are invited to contribute original and unpublished papers for discussion at this conference and publication in the proceedings. The deadline for submission of abstracts is July 15, 2015. For more information, visit the conference website: http://6icragee.com/6IC/
Call for Proposals: 16th World Conference on Earthquake Engineering
The 16th World Conference on Earthquake Engineering will take place in Santiago, Chile, January 7–13, 2017. The conference organizing committee is now accepting submission of proposals for special sessions dedicated to topics related to earthquake engineering and research project reports. The deadline for submissions is July 13, 2015. Read more at the conference website: http://16wcee.com/
NSMP Requests Feedback on Ambient Noise Data Acquisition from Structural Arrays
The U.S. Geological Survey National Strong Motion Project (NSMP) is looking for feedback on its monitoring program, in particular with respect to ambient noise data acquisition from structural arrays. A brief survey with only three questions can be found at the following link:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/196Da87i-x158IgJithGzhJGJNWKAMLTrX2cYY_8iAEg/viewform?c=0&w=1
In addition to this quick survey, the NSMP invites you to explore their recently updated web pages. They include map based search capabilities to see where and what instruments are deployed, along with access to station data and metadata. New structural array pages provide access to schematic diagrams and site photos.
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/nsmp/
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/nsmp/stations/map/
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/nsmp/structures/
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/monitoring/nsmp/data.php
Publications
Earthquake Spectra: Preprint Manuscripts
Eight preprint manuscripts have been posted to the Earthquake Spectra website prior to formal publication. The papers to be published are:
"Cyclic Shear Behavior of Gypsum Board-to-Steel Stud Screw Connections in Nonstructural Walls" by Esmaeel Rahmanishamsi, Siavash Soroushian (M. EERI, 2011) and Manos Maragakis (M. EERI, 1984)
"Evaluation of Seismic Response Factors for EBFs using FEMA P695 Methodology" by Ahmet Kuşyilmaz and Cem Topkaya
"Finite Element Modeling of a RC Frame with Masonry Infill and Mesh Reinforced Mortar Subjected to Earthquake Loading" by Laura Redmond (M. EERI, 2009), Pourang Ezzatfar, Reginald DesRoches (M. EERI, 1995), Andreas Stavridis (M. EERI, 2004), Guney Ozcebe, and Ozgur Kurc
"Nonlinear rotation of capacity-protected foundations: the 2015 Canadian building code" by Perry Adebar (M. EERI, 1999)
"Building Damage Assessment Using High-Resolution Satellite SAR Images of the 2010 Haiti Earthquake" by Hiroyuki Miura (M. EERI, 2012), Saburoh Midorikawa (M. EERI, 1999), and Masashi Matsuoka (M. EERI, 1998)
"Evaluation of Liquefaction Potential for Large Areas Based on Geomorphologic Classification" by Masashi Matsuoka (M. EERI, 1998), Kazue Wakamatsu, Mitsufumi Hashimoto, Shigeki Senna (M. EERI, 2014), and Saburoh Midorikawa (M. EERI, 1999)
"Predictive Equations to Quantify the Impact of Spectral Matching on Ground Motion Characteristics" by Clinton Carlson (M. EERI, 2010), Dimitrios Zekkos (M. EERI, 2002), and Adda Athanasopoulos-Zekkos (M. EERI, 2007)
"Scaling Legitimacy for Design of Lead Rubber Bearing Isolated Structures Using a Bounding Analysis" by Gökhan Özdemir (M. EERI, 2013) and H. Polat Gülkan (M. EERI, 1993)
To read all current preprint manuscripts posted, visit Earthquake Spectra preprints.
Workshops/Trainings
Webinar on FEMA P-50 and FEMA P-50-1
Applied Technology Council (ATC) will host a free webinar on FEMA P-50 and FEMA P-50-1, Simplified Seismic Assessment and Retrofit Guidelines for Detached, Single-Family, Wood-Frame Dwellings on Wednesday, April 15, 2015, 12:00 pm–1:30 pm Pacific time.
The webinar is funded by the National Earthquake Technical Assistance Program (NETAP), is free to U.S. registrants, and limited to 500 registrations. Website Registration page
Back to top >25 Ways to Get Involved
Get Involved with EERI
Looking to be more involved with EERI? We've come up with a lot of opportunities for members. Each edition of The Pulse will highlight a way to do more.
Download the 25 Ways flyer (PDF)
#21: Join your closest Regional or Student Chapter
Regional and Student chapters of EERI offer the opportunity for members to interact with other professionals in their area to promote the study of earthquake hazards and advance mitigation activities that benefit the region. Because, together, we can reduce earthquake risk.
List of EERI Regional Chapters
List of EERI Student Chapters