Naturally as with anything from NASA, the system gets its own acronym. The system is called READI. Other than just being able locate the source and strength of an earthquake more quickly so emergency workers can be dispatched, NASA is also concerned about providing advance notice of tsunamis.

The tsunamis that destroyed parts of Japan and Indonesia were caused by massive offshore earthquakes. Any major earthquake that happens along the western United States has a potential of sending tsunami across the ocean where it could cause damage. As much advance notification of an incoming tsunami as possible is needed to protect lives. It’s interesting to see or GPS system used for things you might not think about such as earthquake preparedness.

What you need to do during earthquakes is simple: drop, take cover, and hold on. There’s a risk in the second step because you might find yourself crushed to death if the thing that you’re crouching under isn’t very strong or sturdy. That’s where this table designed by Arthur Brutter and Ido Bruno from Jerusalem’s Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design comes in.

The earthquake-ready desk will be featured in the 2012 Design Bonanza Bezalel exhibition in Milan from April 17 to April 22, and has been nominated for London Design Museum’s design of the year award. It’s more than just a concept design, though. The table is currently licensed by school furniture manufacturer A.D. Meraz Industries Ltd. for distribution in Israel.

The table has been engineered to withstand the impact of objects that weigh up to 1,000 kgs (or 1 ton) from a drop of eight to ten feet. Under ordinary tables, you would probably be crushed along with everything else on top of you. It’s about 2.5 times as expensive as current school desks, but there’s no amount of money in the world that can out-value a human life, don’t you think?

[via Oh Gizmo!]

The sculpture measures 12 inches in length and 8 inches in width. The 3D printing was done using rapid prototyping technology from a 3D image, obtained by rotating the graph. This isn’t Jerram’s first disaster sculpture. He’s also done one on the Hiroshima atomic bomb explosion. Next month, he plans on creating a glass version of this sculpture since he’ll be the artist in residence as the Washington Museum of Glass.

This piece is on display at the Terra exhibition at Jerwood Visual Arts in London from November 9th to December 11th.

[via Wired]

I predict that by the time you’ve figured out what your seismic updater is telling you there is a good chance you will already have been crushed by falling debris so I’m not sure this is money well-spent. But if you’d like to know more about this product, I can refer you to the simple and easy-to-read diagram below, which I’m sure will clear up any questions you might have about this product.

OK, what I think we’ve all learned here is that unfortunately it looks like unless you can read Japanese pretty proficiently, ordering/understanding this gizmo online is not going to be a walk in the park. The US $4,200 price tag might also be a slight hindrance for you. But if you’re either a) fluent in Japanese, b) insanely wealthy, c) addicted to potentially useless gadgets, d) terrified of earthquakes, or e) all of the above, then feel free to check out the product page and let me know if I’ve missed any key details.

[via Trends in Japan]