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2016年5月31日VOA慢速英语[科技报道]美国大学研发出地震预警手机应用

A new phone app uses vibrations from smartphones to alertpeople about earthquakes.

The phone app recognizes sudden shaking of the earth'ssurface through sensors in smartphones.

The new app is called MyShake. It is the work of fourresearchers at the University of California, Berkeley. They said they created a worldwide warningsystem that would inform people and give them time to prepare.

Other earthquake apps include QuakeFeed, Quakes and Earthquake. They show whereearthquakes have happened, at what strength, and the aftershocks. Those use data from the U.S.Geological Survey.

The MyShake app is available only for Android phones.
Smart phones are equipped with accelerometers. These instruments measure movement, like thatof a car or airplane. They can also measure the shaking of a machine, building or other structure.

Accelerometers are used in activity trackers and apps that count steps or other exercise. They alsoare used in global positioning system apps, also called GPS.

MyShake uses phone accelerometers to measure seismic activity. It has been programmed toknow the difference between normal activity and earthquake movement. The software developerssay their app is right 93 percent of the time.

A smartphone sends seismic information to the app developers. If the developers receive severalnotifications from one area, it recognizes that an earthquake may be taking place or will take placesoon.

Using information sent from the app, the network then estimates the location and strength of thequake in real time. MyShake can record magnitude 5.0 earthquakes at distances of 10 kilometersor less.

MyShake uses very little power, according to its developers. Only when seismic activity is sensedby the app does it become active and sends data to the network.


The app works best when your phone is resting on a flat surface, like a table.

The developers hope that MyShake can add to information collected by the U.S. GeologicalSurvey. That U.S. agency has created the Earthquake Early Warning System, also known as theEEW. The EEW has deployed sensors for measuring quakes in many areas. In places where nosuch equipment exists, MyShake may be the only method of early quake detection.

The app also shows ways to stay safer during an earthquake. The developers say it will becomemore effective as more people use it.

"Our goal is to build a worldwide seismic network and use the data to reduce the effects ofearthquakes on us as individuals and on society as a whole," say the researchers.

The developers say they hope to add a feature that would warn people about a possible tsunami,or the huge waves after an earthquake.

I’m Kathleen Struck.