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Almost a month after the Japan quake and tsunami, UC Berkeley Ph.D. candidate Ry Beville, a researcher in Japan, writes about the continuing search for bodies, the survivors’ will to live, and a visit to an ancient shrine. He returned to the devastated coastal city of Rikuzentakata, where he is translating and helping with relief efforts.
Special Topics archive
Nuclear science meets social science in novel summer program
July 28, 2011: A summer school program designed to improve the social scientific literacy of nuclear engineers will use Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear crisis as a case study. The six-day program, to be held in Berkeley from July 31 to Aug. 5, is being organized by faculty at UC Berkeley and the University of Tokyo.
Media Advisory: Researchers return from Japan, share assessment of quake and tsunami damage
April 27, 2011:
A U.S. research team presents their initial assessment of the damage caused by Japan’s magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami after returning from an NSF-funded field investigation.
PEER sends researchers to Japan to investigate earthquake
April 11, 2011:
The Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center is coordinating a team of researchers traveling to Japan to discuss and investigate last month’s magnitude 9.0 Tohoku earthquake. The team, funded by the National Science Foundation, left for Japan on April 9 and will remain there for one week.
Dispatch from Japan: Untold disaster stories
March 31, 2011: There are “tens of thousands” of untold stories about the March 11 Japan quake and tsunami, writes UC Berkeley Ph.D. candidate Ry Beville, who has been a researcher in Japan for four years but, following the disaster, also is working as an interpreter and with relief efforts. In his first dispatch to campus, he sends news from the devastated coastal city of Rikuzentakata.
APASA appeals to campus for Japan relief aid
March 23, 2011:
In an open letter to the Berkeley campus, the Asian Pacific American Systemwide Alliance (APASA) is appealing for donations to charities aiding relief efforts in Japan.
Environmental health expert reaffirms low risk to U.S. residents from Japan radiation
March 22, 2011: Tom McKone, an expert on human health risk assessment associated with environmental toxins, weighs in on concerns by U.S. residents about radiation exposure from Japan.
Haas students cancel Japan trip, start fundraising
March 22, 2011: Berkeley MBA students — including eight from Japan — who organized a spring-break trek to Japan for classmates have canceled the trip and are now turning to fundraising for the earthquake-ravaged nation.
Panel discussion: Is California at risk like Japan?
March 21, 2011: Like Japan, California sits on the so-called “Ring of Fire”, the boundary of the Pacific Plate whose potential for seismic activity poses a serious threat to populated areas. But, how big is the risk to California in particular? A panel of experts will give their perspectives on this broad question as it pertains to the potential for large seismic activity in California.
Campus air monitor sniffs out potential increases in radiation from Japan
March 18, 2011: Is there something in the air? In an effort to detect potential increases in atmospheric radiation from a troubled nuclear power plant in Japan, engineers have installed an air monitor on the top of Etcheverry Hall. Results are posted online by the Department of Nuclear Engineering.
Radiation fears unfounded, campus expert says
March 17, 2011: Epidemiologist Kirk Smith discusses the danger to the U.S. from radiation released by Japan’s troubled nuclear reactors.
Japan travel warning
March 17, 2011:
The UC Education Abroad Programs (UCEAP) in Japan have been suspended, and travel assistance providers are available to help to return to the U.S., Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost George Breslauer announced in a campuswide CalMessage on Thursday.
Look to overweight, not overseas, for source of U.S. health problems, says surgeon general
March 17, 2011: U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin came to Berkeley’s Alumni House Thursday to deliver her “vision of a healthy and fit nation.” But the day’s most burning health question, at least in the minds of the news media gathered at her subsequent press conference, was this: Should people be worried about radiation from Japan’s ongoing nuclear crisis? Her answer: “No.”
Nuclear experts say U.S. residents safe from Japan radiation
March 17, 2011: Radiation from a tsunami-crippled nuclear power plant in Japan does not pose a public safety risk to people outside of the disaster area, UC Berkeley nuclear engineers told an overflow audience of about 100 people at the Institute for East Asian Studies on Wednesday.
UC Berkeley emergency procedures
March 17, 2011:
UC Berkeley’s Office of Emergency Preparedness reminds the campus community of resources and steps each person can take in the event of an emergency.
UC Berkeley professor Junko Habu reports from inside Japan
March 17, 2011: UC Berkeley anthropology professor Junko Habu reports from post-quake Japan. She was at the Graduate University for Advanced Studies in Hayama near Tokyo when the earthquake and tsunami hit. In her blog reportage, she applauds the courage of the people of her country, but also fears for their future.
Crisis in Japan: Ongoing coverage of the earthquake, tsunami and aftermath
March 16, 2011: Check here for unfolding coverage of how UC Berkeley is responding to the March 11 Japan earthquake and tsunami and for other campus news related to the disaster. You’ll find events to attend, comments from campus experts, updates from campus officials, and more.
American Red Cross Club at Cal: Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami Relief
March 16, 2011: As a symbol of hope for relief and healing for those affected during this difficult time, the American Red Cross Club at Cal is collecting 1000 paper cranes in honor of those impacted by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific. Come to the American Red Cross at Cal table this week 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. through Friday for crane-making instructions and supplies. The International Committee is meeting Thursday at 7 p.m. in 126 Barrows to discuss other ways to get involved in the relief effort.
How to Help: Relief organizations aiding Japan quake and tsunami victims
March 15, 2011: Wonder how you can help the victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan? Many international, national and local relief organizations and funds are asking for donations.
Quake-related stress tips, radiation monitoring news…
March 14, 2011:
News reports and vivid images of the death and destruction wrought by Friday’s 8.9-magnitude earthquake-driven tsunami in eastern Japan have triggered stress and anxiety worldwide. To help UC Berkeley’s campus community cope with post-quake shock and excessive worry, among other things, University Health Services has compiled a resource list that includes tips and services available to the campus community, including contact information for making donations to the American Red Cross.
The essential lesson from the Japan quake for the U.S.
March 14, 2011: UC Berkeley seismologist Richard Allen writes in Scientific American about the Japanese quake and tsunami and lessons for earthquake preparedness in the United States.
Message from the chancellor about Japan’s earthquake and tsunami
March 11, 2011: Chancellor Birgeneau writes to the campus community about the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and his concern for those affected by the unfolding disaster.
Dispatch from Japan: Professor’s post-quake communiques
March 11, 2011: UC Berkeley assistant professor Duncan Ryuken Williams was traveling in Japan and headed to an airport when Friday’s earthquake hit. He shares some of his experiences in the often chaotic aftermath with the NewsCenter.
