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Question

On the Richter scale, an increase in the magnitude of say 4 units means that the destructive power of the earthquake increases by 4 times?


A
True
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B
False
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Solution

The correct option is B False

Richter scale:

  1. It is a logarithmic scale, which implies that each one-point rise on the scale corresponds to a ten-fold increase in quake magnitude.
  2. That is, the wave amplitude in a level 5 earthquake is 10 times bigger than in a level 4 earthquake, and between a level 5 and a level 7 earthquake, the amplitude increases 100 times.
  3. An earthquake's magnitude, or the amount of energy produced during an earthquake, is measured using the Richter scale.
  4. So an increase in the magnitude of 4 does not mean that the destructive power of the earthquake increases by 4 times, it may rise by 10000 times.
  5. As the Richter scale is not linear, it's logarithmic.

Thus, an increase in the magnitude of 4 units does not mean that the destructive power of the earthquake increases by 4 times.

Hence, the statement is false.


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