World News
New app to identify tremors early─── 07:14 Sat, 13 Feb 2016
Berkeley, California - Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have unveiled a free Android app, which harnesses a smartphone's ability to detect whether its movement is likely caused by an earthquake or by human activities.
Al Jazeera reports the MyShake app, launched yesterday, then transmits the data to a processing centre where it can be used, along with the information from millions of other smartphones, to potentially warn users of imminent tremors from nearby quakes.
The app runs in the background and consumes only a small amount of power.
The app has the potential to warn of impending tremors, but Roger Musson, a seismologist with the British Geology Survey, says it is only of practical use when the community at risk is some distance from the earthquake.
The researchers admit the system does have limitations, including the fact the accelerometers in smartphones are relative poor quality. Also, the ability to accurately detect earthquakes relies on the app being installed in a large number of phones, all in close proximity to each other.
-news24.com
The app runs in the background and consumes only a small amount of power.
The app has the potential to warn of impending tremors, but Roger Musson, a seismologist with the British Geology Survey, says it is only of practical use when the community at risk is some distance from the earthquake.
The researchers admit the system does have limitations, including the fact the accelerometers in smartphones are relative poor quality. Also, the ability to accurately detect earthquakes relies on the app being installed in a large number of phones, all in close proximity to each other.
-news24.com
