Comments on: Making it Meaningful https://blog.learnlets.com/2021/08/making-it-meaningful/ Clark Quinn's learnings about learning Tue, 31 Aug 2021 22:41:06 +0000 hourly 1 By: Rob Moser https://blog.learnlets.com/2021/08/making-it-meaningful/#comment-1139295 Tue, 31 Aug 2021 22:41:06 +0000 https://blog.learnlets.com/?p=8038#comment-1139295 The earthquake example I find really interesting. Growing up as a Californian, earthquakes are just a thing. I remember a couple of big ones that happened at notable moments – like the 89 World Series – but mostly never thought about them at all. Now I live in New Zealand – also solidly on the Ring of Fire, and quake-prone – and people are _much_ more freaked out by earthquakes here. Lots of buildings with warning signs on them saying they may not be safe in a quake. Signs at all the beaches telling you how to get to high ground in a quake. Larger modern buildings with big expensive floating foundations, and signs to reassure visitors that they have one.

There are a couple of quite-reasonable reasons for that. The Bay Area had a lot of modern buildings built to modern earthquake codes, and Wellington has a lot of old 1900s brick buildings built on landfill (you know, like the bits of San Francisco devastated by the 1906…) And I believe the sea shelf is much shallower here, which makes New Zealand much more prone to tidal waves. But it still struck me as interesting how profoundly differently the locals treat familiarity with the same experience.

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