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Mario Tosti / AFP - Getty Images
People who had been evacuated from a hospital wait in a rescue center in Mormanno, southern Italy, after an earthquake early on Friday.
ROME -- A hospital was evacuated after a magnitude-5 earthquake struck southern Italy early on Friday, authorities said.
The quake hit at 1:05 a.m. local time (7:05 p.m. ET Thursday) about 3.9 miles underground, north of Cosenza in the Pollino mountains area on the border of the southern regions of Calabria and Basilicata, according to data from the Italian Geophysics Institute (INGV).
At least 14 other tremors followed the initial earthquake, according to INGV's website.
Italian media reported that an elderly man who lived near the tremor's epicenter had died of a heart attack.
An Italian police official told Reuters a hospital in the small town of Mormanno had been evacuated as a precautionary measure because some cracks were found in its structure.
No injuries were reported, the official said.
Scientists convicted of manslaughter for not predicting quake
Italian news agencies reported scenes of panic in the hospital and said many inhabitants of Mormanno and surrounding towns had come out in the streets.
Police and firefighters were surveying the area for further damage, officials said.
NBC News' Claudio Lavanga and Reuters contributed to this report.
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After their disgraceful act of cowardice by prosecuting 6 of their geologists and sentencing them to 6 years each, ya think mother nature might be slightly upset at the country of Italy. Well not really but who are they gonna blame for this one. One person died, are they going to prosecute 1 geologist? Feel for the family of the gentleman that died, but it makes one wonder what the state of the world has come to when you prosecute your scientist because they couldn't predict something that is unpredictable. It's the Irresistible Force Paradox! It's like cutting off the body to save the limb. I could go on and on but this one irked me a little because of the recent prosecution of geophysical scientists. Sad just sad!
A revival of the Dark Ages; where religion trumps science again.
Since the scientists have been jailed, they will probably go after fortune tellers and tarot card readers for not giving a heads up.
Seismology is still relatively inexact, and scientists can't know everything. There is still much we don't know about the planet and how it works, so the jailing of the seismologists is incomprehensible. To me.
Take a look at this hurricane heading up the East Coast. Two days ago there was only one weather modelthat showed the hurricane heading up the East Coast of the US; the probability was low, but the model showed it anyway. I read a couple messages on Newsvine that complained that the weathermen were crying wolf.
Now the models show it's going to follow the coastline and head northward, and predictions put it as making landfall somewhere between Ocean City MD and New York. Only one model has it heading out across the Atlantic and every other one has it taking various tracks along the coast. My local meterologist says probability for a major weather event has gone from 60% (early yesterday morning) to 90% (this morning)
Just when we think we have a handle on this planet and we know what to predict on it, the planet throws us a curveball. No one can accurately predict what is and is not going to happen. So whenever you hear warnings, take appropriate precautions, keep an eye on the forecasts (whether for tectonic weather or atmospheric weather) and remember, sh!t happens.
(BTW--did anyone ask the Pope if the Big Guy Upstairs said anything about an earthquake this time? He's got a direct line to God, right?)
They better crucify some more scientists in Rome or they're going to pay for it. :o
Those who worship science can be as stubborn in their beliefs as those who worship God. Forget about hurricanes and earthquakes. No scientist can tell you what happens to a glass of water 10 seconds after you throw it into a river. The system is too chaotic to accurately model.
Nobody worships science, you idiot! They LEARN it. You can actually prove that 1+1=2.
It's based on evidence, not faith. That's a strange concept for you, I know.
Don't worry about it. Go watch TV.
Ahhhh, name calling. The mark of a well reasoned and persuasive argument. Science has conclusively proven that it is impossible to answer all the questions about a system from inside the system. Therefore, those who believe science can answer all the questions about the universe (and, yes, they exist) are worshipping science. That is, in a sense, ascribing supernatural abilities to it. Instead of sitting in front of the TV (or the computer, as the case may be), go read Godel's Incompleteness Theorem. Once you understand it, if you ever do, come back and tell me where I'm wrong. (By the way, Mr. Scientist, you can also prove that 1 + 1 = 10 in a binary number system. Great example you picked.)
Like I said, denver... don't worry about it.
If you're going to bring worship into it, It's clear you'll never understand the concept of science. You're just flapping your gums.
Oh, and christianity is a dead religion. A lot of christians just don't know it yet.
Your binary example is silly... all you did was define different terms. You actually practiced a bit of science yourself! Good boy!
It doesn't change the fact that anyone who feels people worship science doesn't grasp the concept.
Science is proof. god is superstition. That's a fact, and all of your rationalizations can't change it.
Now go watch TV. Maybe the Crystal Cathedral is on. Or the Vatican's annual Pedophile Awards.
If you can't debate a point, be dismissive. Good plan.
I may not understand the "concept of science". That would be the purview of philosophy or epistemology. I may not even understand science, although I do have a college degree in mathematics and computer science, and two years of graduate coursework in applied mathematics. How about you?
In other news, a large number of seismologist have been seen departing the country.
That's called 'scientist karma.'
I couldn't agree more. How absolutely ridiculous is that?
What a sad state of affairs the human species has sunk to. And I'm sorry but I agree that religion has caused this stagnation of man kind. We are not progressing but rather have started to regress. Time to put down the Bible's and start using the common sense God gave us.
Well some of us at least.
The Earth is an ever changing planet. We do not own it, we cannot prevent these things, nor can we predict them. These events don't happen as punishment to us. Anymore than the dog scratching his fleas is some sort of damnation to the flea.
I'm picturing Denver bill's degree from Liberty University, where even the math department is trying to derive equations for how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.
Denver Bill, -god is a tard. His weak name explains it all. Thinking for himself is a chore that involves a bathroom and a magazine with men in tights. Why? Only -god knows. Sad that his brains get flushed at the time,but that is where you put that stuff. S for B.
@ Denver Bill, I'm sorry, but I can't let that blatant misuse and misunderstanding of Godel's Incomleteness Theorem(s) (yes, there is more than one) slip by.
A) It does not prove that you can not prove something about a system inside the system itself. Rather, it proves completely the contrary, that you CAN prove something about a system in the system itself. When Goedel was working on this, he was looking at a formal system called Principia Mathematica, and he invented something called Goedel Numbering, which is a way of converting a well-formed formula in a system to a number which has a unique prime factorization. He did this for PM and was able to convert formulas in PM to numbers, which could be reasoned about in PM itself (which was strong enough to prove things about integers).
B) None of his Incompleteness Theorems have ANYTHING WHATSOEVER to do with physics, so applying them to the universe is complete nonsense.
Please learn some mathematics before you go spouting your mouth off and being ignorant of what the mathematics really means.
Thank you for responding. I tailored my response to the audience I thought I had, and in doing so lost rigor, but I don't believe I misunderstand Godel's writings or that I have misused them
To be precise,Godel's Incompleteness Theorem states that all consistent axiomatic formulations of number theory include undecidable propositions. This was the theorem that caused Bertrand Russell to stop work on the Principia Mathematica. Your statement that some things can be proved using the rules in P.M. is true, but the astounding result of Godel's Theorem is that not everything can be proved from within the system. The statement that is sometimes called Godel's Second Incompleteness Theorem states that if number theory is consistent, then that consistency cannot be proved using first-order predicate calculus (which is what Russell and Whitehead were trying to do in the P.M.) Again, in layman's terms, any formal system that is interesting enough to formulate its own consistency can prove that consistency if and only if the system is inconsistent.
The universe is a formal system. Mathematics is the language of physics. I rest my case.
I have a degree in mathematics. And I wrote a paper about Godel and his theorems that was accepted by the University of Colorado and read as part of a graduate course on number theory. What is your background?
Panic? That might be a bit sensational. No panic over here in Europe or Italy.
They imprisoned some of their seismologists recently for not predicting a deadly earth quake and others resigned because they didn't want to risk the same fate or at least protest on their colleuges behalf,you think GOD is sending a message of miacopa?
Oops...Maybe we shouldn't have locked up our top seismologists. I think the earth is angry now.
According to the USGS it was actually 3.8 Kilometers (not miles) deep which is less than 2.5 miles deep. At M5.3 that would be a very strong shaker at the surface. Haven't seen the shake maps yet as there is probably not enough data yet.
And I agree that convicting the Italian geologists for not predicting previous quakes is beyond moronic. By now, they are probably running out of state sponsored geologists to persecute.
What the hel is this going to do to my stock portfoilo.
Shake it up.
About the scientists, most people assume they were charged for failing to warn, but actually they were charged do to the lack of warning when reports did came in.
"While scientists protested that the seven faced charges for failing to predict the earthquake, the issue is more complicated than that. In L'Aquila, Hall reported, "Prosecutors and the families of victims alike say that the trial has nothing to do with the ability to predict earthquakes, and everything to do with the failure of government-appointed scientists serving on an advisory panel to adequately evaluate, and then communicate, the potential risk to the local population."
"According to the prosecution, they had spread "inaccurate, incomplete and contradictory" statements after preliminary tremors could be felt on the days before 6 April 2009. "
"Boschi (one of the scientists) had called a major earthquake "unlikely", while not entirely excluding the possibility. De Bernardinis (another) had informed the public that there was "no danger".
While I don't agree with the Italy choices, I just wanted to clear some air about the trial.
You do make a valid point. Yesterday on NPR they interviewed several American geologist about the issue and it seems the main argument was that the geologist in Italy did not communicate effectively. Rather than saying "Unlikely" they should have given the citizens of the Italian town more accurate information such as the percentage of risk. They went onto say that clustes of tremblors can indicate a future major earthquake, but not always. They estimated the risk at about 1% which is very small, but still there. That information would have been more useful than the actual information from the Italian geologist which was to drink a glass of wine and chill. The information from the Italian geologist implied there was no risk which was 100% innacurate.
However, a manslaughter conviction and jail time seems a bit excessive. If communication was the problem they who should they blame for training the state geologist on how to communicate earthquake risk? Why not send those people to jail since they are the root cause of the communication problem.
Mouzie :
Thank you for the correction of information. Thing is, no matter what natural event you're trying to predict, there's always going to be 'contradictory' information. The hurricane bearing down on the East Coast initially had six or eight models that showed it heading off out into the atlantic, and only one model showed it coming up the coastline. Now there's six or eight models showing it hugging the coastline and one showing it heading out across the atlantic.
There is no way we will ever know everything about this planet. And the judgment was just plain wrong, as well as setting a dangerous precedent. If a dictator decided he doesn't like what a scientist is telling him, there's noaw a precedent for jailing said scientists. This is a step backward for science.
Thanks for that clarification, Mouzie. It makes one wonder why any seismologist living in Italy would want to down play the risk of an earthquake, though. What would be the possible motivation? But to hold them liable for manslaughter seems a little extreme. It's not like a building that fell down due to a design flaw. Very strange story all the way around.
Why did we waste all those american lives on them in WW2?
I wonder who the Italian government will blame this one on?
Quick....lock up the priests.....lock up god......they didn't warn everybody. What a bunch of MORONS...makes me ashamed to be part Italian.
Why is there a need to involve God in all of this ?
Who are they going to prosecute for this? Already convicted 6 geologist. How many do they have left?
now who goes to jail for missing this earthquake??? the pope better watch his back i guess...
Another example of the Mayan calendar's accuracy- Nostradamus probably predicted this as well! Quick everyone, move to Canada- they're immune from the coming pestilence!
wow, who goes to prison for not predicting this one lol
OK, now that Italy has imprisoned the most knowledgeable people in the country for not properly predicting an earthquake three years ago, maybe the population will get the idea that their own court system is so f*cked up that there will be no rest until the judges and prosecution lawyers are all replaced with people who have at least SOME common sense! The courts of Italy are so off track about prosecuting people for inconsequential 'crimes' that they are ignoring their own downfall. It will be interesting to see who the courts try to blame this natural phenomenon on, and how they try to work in the old 'sex game gone wrong' scenario again.
Just when I thought Italy couldn't get any more ridiculous after the Sandwich Bill, they charge scientists with manslaughter and jail time due to their lack of communication when conveying the risks of an earthquake that occurred three years ago. Seriously? It's pretty clear that those scientists could have stated their theories more concisely, but to hold them accountable for the deaths caused by a natural phenomena sounds absurd. Even before Hurricane Katrina made landfall there were numerous warnings, yet there were still casualties. I highly doubt there wouldn't be human fatalities even if the scientists had adequately warned the public of their findings. Here's an idea, stop building/living in disaster prone areas!
After the last verdict on Italian scientists, I expect them soon to start sacrificing more knowledgeable people and possibly virgins (if any still exist in Italy) to the volcanoes. Time to drop the Catholic Church and bring back Jupiter and his crew.
How many scientists will they convit for this one?
In Italy not predicting am imminent earthquake accurately is considered to be a felony. I think the Pope should be indicted for failing to ascertain the will of the almighty in these matters.
This is God showing his displeasure over the Pope's butler being convicted and sentenced to a jail cell for 18 months.
panic after a 5.0 quake? I lived in California for twenty-some years, went through the 1989 quake and a few other decent ones....really, panic after a 5.0? What would happen if they had one similar to the Loma Prieta quake of 1989? I don't even want to know!!!
MONTY PYTHON had it right: NO ONE expects the Spanish.... ER, Italian INQUISISION !
CRUCIFY THEM! CRUCIFY THEM! They cried !!!
I'm glad I'm not an Italian geologist, they are probably burning them at the stake as we speak. I am a Christian but I also realize that science is a valid subject as I'm a retired electronics engineer. Some one mentioned the "Dark Ages"; yes they are alive and well in Italy!
harrrrrrrrrrrrrppppppppppppp!
Remember Italy, if anyone gets hurt from a natural disaster, prosecute your scientists and throw them in jail.
It amazes me that no one gave an alert to this one. Oooh wait that's right you've locked them all up.