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Intern Programs Home SURE UseIT Mentor(s): David D. Jackson, Prof. Yan Y. Kagan, Senior researcher, and Qi Wang, graduate student
SCEC and CSEP (Collaboratory for the Study of Earthquake Predictability) have developed criteria for testing large scale probabilistic earthquake forecasts. There are many published forecasting and prediction methods that don't quite fit into the CSEP format, but might with some adjustment. Alternately, the CSEP testing methods might adapt. In this project a student would identify ways that published methods could be evaluated using past earthquakes, and propose tests based on future ones. Research Location: UCLA Institution: University of California, Los Angeles Number of Interns Needed: 2 Required Skills/Coursework: Basic probability and statistics Programming skills: Matlab or C++ or Fortran Desirable Skills/Coursework: General Time Span: July 1 - Sep 1, 2009 Mentor(s): Emily Brodsky
When earthquakes happen, faults grind rock past each other. The grinding wears down the rock face leaving a fingerprint of the mechanical effects of the earthquake. In this project we will use state-of-the-art technology to measure the degree of wear on rocks from natural and artificial faults at the micron-scale. We will figure out how different rocks are worn differently and what effect that might have on the earthquake physics. Research Location: University of California, Santa Cruz Institution: University of California, Santa Cruz Number of Interns Needed: 2 Required Skills/Coursework: Mineralogy. Petrology. Calculus. Geophysics. Desirable Skills/Coursework: General Time Span: Mid-June - end of August Mentor(s): Zhigang Peng
Non-volcanic tremor is a seismic signal with long durations and no clear body wave arrivals, is often found during episodic slow-slip events away from volcanoes. Tremor was first identified over a broad region in the subduction zone southwest of Japan, and was subsequently found at many places in the circum-Pacific subduction zones, and along the San Andreas fault (SAF) in central California. Non-volcanic tremor provides an exciting new tool for tracking the aseismic processes at the deep root of active fault zones, which may lead to better understandings of loading and releasing of tectonic stresses, and breakthroughs in deciphering the physics of earthquakes and faults. Recent studies have shown that non-volcanic tremor can be triggered instantaneously during the surface waves of large teleseismic events. We plan to involve an undergraduate intern to continue our global search of triggered tremor. In particular, the intern will learn how to analyze seismic data, and identify additional triggered and regular tremor in California and Taiwan. The obtained results would be useful for better understanding the necessary conditions for the occurrence of triggered tremor, and the relationship between triggered and regular tremor. Research Location: Atlanta, Georgia Institution: Georgia Institute of Techology Number of Interns Needed: 1 Required Skills/Coursework: Basic UNIX; Computer Programming (Matlab and/or C preffered) Desirable Skills/Coursework: Introduction to Geophysics; Basic physics/geology courses. General Time Span: Two months in Summer 2009. Best start on June 1st or before. Mentor(s): Dr. Jeremy Zechar and Dr. Kurt Frankel
Estimates of fault slip rate are essential to understanding crustal deformation processes and analyzing seismic hazard. Computing slip rates requires two fundamental ingredients: estimates of the displacement along the fault of interest and the age of an offset landform or deposit. Because both of these measures contain uncertainty, slip rates are uncertain. Methods to compute and report slip rates have not been standardized, and therefore slip rate data are presented inconsistently and are frequently ambiguous; in particular, slip rate uncertainty is often insufficiently characterized. We have developed a probabilistic approach to computing and reporting intermediate- to long-term fault slip rates; we have also developed a prototype software implementation that provides standard age and displacement uncertainty models. We seek an intern to implement a web-enabled, fully-functional, GUI-based version of our fault slip rate computation prototype. Depending on the interests and skills of the intern, we envision two distinct lines of further research that may be pursued. If the intern is interested in earth sciences research, we will develop opportunities that emphasize the following: * uncertainties in physical measurements * how uncertainty is propagated through calculations * importance of mathematical rigor * techniques for computing slip rates * importance of slip rates in determining seismic hazard * techniques for obtaining ages Having been exposed to these ideas, we can offer the intern the choice of a number of related activities, ranging from geological field work to laboratory sample preparation to the development of educational material related to slip rates and seismic hazard. If the intern is more interested in computer science research and software development, the internship experience will emphasize: * programming best practices and software design principles * presentation of scientific data in illustrations * principles of user interface design * database design and implementation * importance of being able to work with someone else's code In this case, the intern may extend the prototype implementation to include a database component whereby researchers can contribute their computations to an archive of fault slip rates; entries in this archive may then be contributed to existing fault databases. Research Location: Georgia Institute of Technology Institution: Columbia University/Georgia Institute of Technology Number of Interns Needed: 1 Required Skills/Coursework: Basic understanding of concepts from probability Enthusiasm Desirable Skills/Coursework: Some light programming experience would be helpful. General Time Span: Summer 2009 Mentor(s): Meghan S. Miller and M. Beatrice Magnani
Active and passive source seismic data was collected from the NSF funded BOLIVAR project from 2003-2005 in the southeast Caribbean. The BOLIVAR (Broadband Onshore-offshore Lithosphere Investigation of Venezuela and the Antilles arc Region) project was a multi-disciplinary investigation to examine how island arcs, marginal basins, and oceanic plateaus become accreted to continents. Processed and interpreted seismic data from the region encompassing the Leeward Antilles island arc and the Venezuelan coast and mainland will be used to create a 3D geologic model. By investigating the location and relationship between the stratigraphic framework, faults throughout the region, and the distribution of seismicity we will be able to better understand the complex tectonic history of the Southeast Caribbean region. The 3D model will be used to visualize and assemble subsurface maps and cross sections of the southeast Caribbean Sea providing scientists a detailed visualization of an active plate boundary. This internship project involves setting up a 3D model in sophisticated commercial software, along with evaluation, reformatting, and input of seismic data. The final goal will be to provide a geologic and tectonic interpretation of this complex region. The intern will gain an appreciation for the nature and origin of crustal structure, computational tools in geoscience, and scientific data analysis. Research Location: Los Angeles, CA Institution: University of Southern California Number of Interns Needed: 1 Required Skills/Coursework: UNIX operating system experience, completed course on tectonics, and completed course on stratigraphy Desirable Skills/Coursework: Completed course on introduction to geophysics or seismology (preferred) General Time Span: June through mid-August Mentor(s): Profs. Thorsten Becker, Danijel Schorlemmer (USC), and Kevin Milner (SCEC/USC)
Seismic activity is recorded in earthquake catalogs, which form the foundation of numerous scientific studies, such as attempts to identify deterministic patterns in earthquake occurrence. However, it is well known that even the best published catalogs are highly uneven in space and time, and strongly affected by imperfect seismometer distributions and uncertainties about the crust's velocity structure, to name a few. It is therefore crucial to obtain and convey a solid, quantitative understanding of regional catalog reliability and robustness to students and researchers alike. To this end, we wish to further expand the Solid Earth Research and Teaching Environment (SEATREE, http://geosys.usc.edu/projects/seatree/) as a user-friendly computing platform to expand existing seismology teaching modules. SEATREE implements an object-oriented and transparent way of using research software tools at all user levels, from undergraduate to post-graduate level. With assistance from Becker, Milner and Schorlemmer, the intern(s) will continue to implement currently used earthquake inversion tools (e.g. NonLinLoc, HASH, FPFIT, HypoDD) and Earth Science databases (e.g. SCEC network recordings and velocity model). This machinery will feed into the existing SEATREE graphical user interface and infrastructure by means of writing Python computer language scripts. The goal is to assemble flexible computational modules that can be used to interactively perform event relocations, focal mechanism inversion, etc. using realistic datasets. By changing input parameters such as event/station distribution and Earth structure models, and evaluating graphically the predicted catalogs characteristics, new insights into local network performance and the reliability of catalog based inferences will be gained. The tools can be used for actual research as well as teaching purposes because the SEATREE design allows "looking under the hood" as well as "point and click", intuitive learning. The student will gain an appreciation for the nature and origin of crustal seismicity, inverse theory, and scientific data analysis. She/he will use learn advanced, object-oriented programming techniques and experience the fun of python programming. The final product will be shared openly on the web within the SEATREE framework and made available to all interested students, teachers, and researchers in the field. The intern(s) will interact with the resident SCEC/It interns, participate in their field trip, and is expected to present her/his work at the annual SCEC meeting. Research Location: USC Institution: Number of Interns Needed: 1-2 Required Skills/Coursework: An intro Earth science class and basic computer skills. Desirable Skills/Coursework: Some exposure to math, physics, and computing would be helpful. Exposure to the LINUX operating system, the python programming language, and Fortran and/or C a definite plus. General Time Span: 2 months Mentor(s): Sally McGill
Two interns are needed to collect GPS data at various locations in the San Bernardino Mountains, Riverside/San Bernardino Valley and high desert areas. The goal of this project is to monitor elastic strain accumulation in the vicinity of the San Andreas fault. The interns will travel throughout the San Bernardino Mountains and surrounding valleys to set up GPS equipment and monitor it throughout the day. Many of the sites are remote and will require strenuous hiking, carrying the GPS equipment as well as batteries or a solar panel. Some sites will require car camping. The interns should be in good physical condition and should enjoy hiking. The intern will have access to CSUSB’s 4WD vehicle (if they have a valid CALIFORNIA drivers license), or may be reimbursed for mileage on their own vehicles. There will be a 6-day intensive data collection campaign from Friday June 26 through Wednesday July 1, during which GPS data will be collected from numerous sites simultaneously. This will be preceded by training sessions on June 24 and 25. During the remainder of July and early August the interns will collect GPS data at other sites that were not observed during the primary campaign. Interns will also learn how to interpret GPS time series from previously collected data and to conduct one-dimensional elastic modeling of GPS date for fault slip rates in southern California. Interns may rent a dormitory room at Cal State San Bernardino if they do not live within easy commuting distance of San Bernardino. Interns will pay for the cost of the room and other living expenses out of their stipend. Research Location: San Bernardino and vicinity Institution: California State University, San Bernardino Number of Interns Needed: 2 Required Skills/Coursework: Trigonometry Introductory Geology Good physical condition Willingness to hike in steep terrain Desirable Skills/Coursework: Neotectonics, Tectonics or Structural Geology California driver's license General Time Span: Definitely June 23 - July 1. Interns may start before June 23, but I will have only limited time to spend with them prior to that date. Mentor(s): Dr. Corné Kreemer, Dr. Ilya Zaliapin
The first-order signal recorded by GPS observations of position displacement over time is the steady accumulation of elastic strain due to plate motions. Other important signals such as the subtle motions related to aseismic slip on a fault are more difficult to detect, particularly when the source is unknown. The enormous amount of data that is being gathered by continuous GPS networks can potentially provide many new insights in such transient motions. The challenge is to detect an anomalous signal at multiple GPS stations and to relate it to the same process. This project will use a new method to detect transient signals in GPS time-series that was previously used in the analysis of biological and finance data. The method involves the decomposition of the time-series on the basis of an hiercharcy of linear trends. This method will be tested in a SCEC exercise involving the detection of synthetic transients in GPS time-series using a number of different techniques. If successful, we will customize the approach to be used on real GPS data. The student will work with a geodesist and statistician. A background in mathematics and interest in the Earth sciences is therefore desired. There may be opportunities for the intern to come along along on some short (1-4 days) field work trips in which geodetic data will be acquired in Nevada/California. Research Location: Reno Institution: University of Nevada, Reno Number of Interns Needed: 1 Required Skills/Coursework: Matlab Desirable Skills/Coursework: UNIX, Fortran General Time Span: June 1 - July 31 Mentor(s): Yuri Fialko - professor Sylvain Barbot - graduate student
Large earthquakes are usually followed by slowly decaying deformation of the Earth's crust. The origin of such postseismic transients is not well understood and is a subject of current research. Among the proposed mechanisms are viscoelastic and poroelastic effects. This project is intended to improve our ability to model and understand the observed time-dependent response of the Earth to stressing by large earthquakes. One specific goal is to test a computer model of poroelastic rebound. Our current model involves a combination of finite-difference and analytic solutions and is implemented for a parallel architecture. The role of the student will be to help with benchmarking (and possibly with code development) to allow faster and more accurate simulations. Research Location: SIO/UCSD Institution: University of California, San Diego Number of Interns Needed: 1 Required Skills/Coursework: The candidate should be familiar with or willing to learn such numerical techniques as Fourier analysis or finite differences. He/she must be comfortably familiar with one of the major computer languages (Fortran 90 is preferred). Desirable Skills/Coursework: A general interest in continuum mechanics, geophysics, or earthquakes is a plus. General Time Span: Mid-June - end of August (somewhat flexible) For more information contact: SCEC Education Programs Office of Experiential Learning & Career Advancement internships@scec.org 213-821-6340 |
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SCEC Internship Programs
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