The Gold Rush and the 1906 Earthquake

The Gold Rush and the 1906 Earthquake: How they combined to create the breakthrough discovery of modern seismic science

• Accidents of Gold Rush merchant marine navigation transformed a seismic disaster into a seminal discovery and led to San Francisco's extreme liquefaction vulnerability today.
• Just about everything that we love about the Bay area is brought to us by the faults. We enjoy their daily fruits and so must live with their occasional spoils.
• No one knows when the next damaging quake will strike; we must frame the ‘payback period’ for seismic expenditures in terms of chance.