A graphical comparison of earthquake energy release
25 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in economics of media and culture, economics of natural disasters Tags: earthquakes
Rare colour photograph of San Francisco after disastrous earthquake/fire, today 1906
18 Apr 2016 Leave a comment
in economic history, economics of natural disasters Tags: San Francisco earthquake
Rare color photograph of San Francisco after disastrous earthquake/fire which started today 1906: #Ives http://t.co/AEyZzRrjYC—
Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) April 18, 2015
In Wellington CBD, average value of commercial building is almost halved with a red or yellow sticker
17 Dec 2015 Leave a comment
in economics of natural disasters, economics of regulation, politics - New Zealand, urban economics Tags: earthquakes, efficient markets hypothesis, entrepreneurial alertness
Within the Wellington CBD, the average value of a commercial building is almost halved if it receives a legally binding earthquake-prone declaration. Discounts on specific buildings will vary around this average level, reflecting a number of factors such as costs of remediation and the nature of existing rental agreements.
Where do cyclones occur?
27 Nov 2015 Leave a comment
in economic history, economics of natural disasters Tags: cyclones, hurricanes
The storm track of every tropical cyclone from 1985 to 2005
– http://t.co/hM6YQZdCUp—
Amazing Maps (@Amazing_Maps) July 22, 2015
Mitchell And Webb – The soothsayer
25 Nov 2015 Leave a comment
in economics of media and culture, economics of natural disasters, economics of religion, environmental economics Tags: Mitchell and Webb
US natural disasters map
16 Jun 2015 Leave a comment
in economics of natural disasters, politics - USA Tags: maps, natural disasters
Natural disaster risk maps http://t.co/fXvRR0Fbtf—
Charts and Maps (@ChartsandMaps) April 11, 2015
Why was the Nepalese earthquakes so bad?
04 May 2015 Leave a comment
in development economics, economics of natural disasters, growth disasters, growth miracles Tags: capitalism and freedom, earthquakes, Nepal, richer is safer, The Great Escape, The Great Fact, wealthier is healthier
Prosperity strengthens resilience against disasters. buff.ly/1JORl8y #Nepal #EarthQuakeResponse http://t.co/yx4E98QJn6—
HumanProgress.org (@humanprogress) April 28, 2015
The demand and supply of war movies
25 Apr 2015 Leave a comment
in economics of natural disasters, movies, war and peace Tags: Anzac Day, Armistice Day, World War I, World War II
A Century of Movies About World War: reddit.com/r/dataisbeauti… #dataviz http://t.co/sGsb0d0s3J—
Randy Olson (@randal_olson) February 24, 2015
Great Alaska earthquake, magnitude 9.2.
22 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in economic history, economics of natural disasters Tags: Alaska, earthquakes
BBC – How to survive a disaster
05 Mar 2015 Leave a comment
in economics of natural disasters Tags: Dad's army, disasters, panic, Psychology
Rather than madness, or an animalistic stampede for the exits, it is often people’s disinclination to panic that puts them at higher risk…
The prevailing psychological explanation for these kinds of behaviours – passivity, mental paralysis or simply carrying on as normal in the face of a crisis – is that they are caused by a failure to adapt to a sudden change in the environment.
Survival involves goal-directed behaviour: you feel hungry, you look for food; you feel isolated, you seek companionship. Normally, this is straightforward (we know how to find food or companions).
But in a new, unfamiliar environment, particularly a stressful one such as a sinking ship or a burning aircraft, establishing survival goals – where the exit is and how to get to it – requires a lot more conscious effort…
But it’s a good idea to imagine that you will: to be aware that there are threats out there, and that you can prepare for them, without sliding into paranoia.
“All you have to do is ask yourself one simple question,” says Leach. “If something happens, what is my first response? Once you can answer that, everything else will fall into place. It’s that simple.”
Should car insurance be run like earthquake insurance in New Zealand?
07 Feb 2015 1 Comment
in economics of natural disasters, politics - New Zealand Tags: Christchurch earthquake, disaster relief
Would you think it is a good idea that you have two car insurers if and only if your car is hit by a pink car? That’s how they run earthquake insurance in New Zealand.
This is how the system of earthquake in insurance in New Zealand would run for a car: if your car is in an accident with a pink car, the first say $2000 of the damages is paid for by a special insurer. After that, your normal car insurance policy applies.
I don’t know of anyone who insures their car with two different people depending on the probability of different events, possibly because I don’t know that many people who are extremely stupid.
In New Zealand, the first $100,000 of earthquake damage is insured by a government insurance company called the Earthquake Commission. After that, your normal homeowners insurance covers the rest of the earthquake damage. The premium for the earthquake insurance with the Earthquake Commission is collected as part of your normal insurance premium to your home insurance provider.
Fortunately for you, if this scheme of insurance applied to your car, the repairs are not delayed for several years with High Court litigation over whether the Christchurch earthquake was a single event or a succession of separate earthquakes. If the two major earthquakes in Christchurch together with the thousands of after-shocks was a succession of separate earthquakes, the first $100,000 of damages for each of these several thousand after-shocks is the responsibility of the Earthquake Commission, not the normal insurer of the house.
Would it make sense to insure cars in the same way earthquake insurance is run in New Zealand? The answer is no. Any sensible person buys their insurance from one company and lets that insurance company sought out reinsurance of major and rare events with the global reinsurance pools.
With global reinsurance pools, there is no reason for a separate government insurance against earthquakes in New Zealand. The Earthquake Commission and its separate scheme of insurance for earthquakes should be abolished as superfluous and a magnet for litigation over insurance company liabilities in the case of major earthquakes.
Politics and disaster aid in the Philippines – The Washington Post
11 Dec 2014 Leave a comment
in applied welfare economics, development economics, economics of natural disasters, growth disasters, growth miracles Tags: corruption, natural disaster relief, Philippines, rent seeking, Tacloban
The good news is that we find that fund allocations do indeed respond to the location and intensity of typhoons and tropical storms.
However, political ties between members of Congress and local mayors, specifically party and clan ties, are also associated with greater funding for a given municipality.
One of the most devastated cities in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan is Tacloban City, with a population of 221,174 people.
Our research suggests that for a municipality of this size, a match in party affiliation between the member of Congress and the mayor increases the distribution of funds by PHP 1.74 million ($40,000), while a match in clan affiliation increases this distribution by PHP 6.23 million ($142,000).
The result that clan ties have a much larger effect than party ties on the distribution of per capita reconstruction funds underscores the relative importance of clan loyalty in decision-making by Philippine congressional representatives.
via Politics and disaster aid in the Philippines – The Washington Post.
The politics of the Philippines’ vulnerability to natural disasters – The Washington Post
11 Dec 2014 Leave a comment
in applied welfare economics, development economics, economics of natural disasters, growth disasters, growth miracles Tags: corruption, disaster relief, Philippines, rent seeking
Regrettably, we find no evidence that poverty, vulnerability to disasters, or other objective measures of infrastructure needs are determinants of road construction and repair expenditures at the local level.
Instead, our evidence highlights the importance of political connections and electoral strategies.
Consistent with the story in many other countries in the developing world, we find that mayors divert construction funding to electorally contested areas where they need to win more votes, while congressmen use their discretionary funding to shore up political connections by allocating funding to localities where the mayor is an ally.
via The politics of the Philippines’ vulnerability to natural disasters – The Washington Post.
Utopia, you are standing in it! 
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