Hi John,

I just took a few minutes to read the story and from the outside I understood exactly what the reporter doesn't understand. Honestly, most people who don't have any inkling of what kind of work various scientists do assume everyone knows when earthquakes are going to happen because, after all, that's the field you work in. Wrong. They don't understand geo-scientists, not unlike medical doctors have specialties. In medicine for instance, some specialists actually have a specialty inside of another specialty.

Given the media hype over this prediction I can understand you may feel rather sensitive to folks thinking you predict earthquakes. I do think it interesting though that the man of hour just so happens to be from Russia, the same place which kindled Kennedy's flames over space exploration. While Sputnik was out there going round the world we didn't have diddly on our plate. Today, perhaps this man from Russia will kindle the flame in earthquake prediction and America again will attempt to be a forerunner. I wonder who would be an American counter-person to K.B.? Maybe its time for a woman to take the American lead? I doubt it because there aren't that many women of senior years who have a C.V. to equal his as women in geo-sciences are rather something new in the field. If I were looking for a few good men I think I would ask Bruce Bolt emeritus UCB, Yahuda Ben Zion USC (though probably to young) and Jim Brune, a man who is noted for his intuitive ideas in problem solving.

Ah well. Things will die down for a while, issues will be developed behind the scenes and then it will get interesting again in about six months, I suspect.

Don't worry John, we all know you don't predict earthquakes....LOL

Petra