**Talking nonsense is man's only privilege that distinguishes him from all other organisms."
Dostoevsky
LARGEST QUAKES so far today -
5.1 GOLFO DE FONSECA, HONDURAS
5.5 VANUATU
5.1 SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS
6.0 FIJI REGION
Yesterday, 11-12-14 -
5.0 OWEN FRACTURE ZONE REGION
5.5 OFF COAST OF ECUADOR
5.1 IZU ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION
11-11-14 - 5.2 BANDA SEA
5.0 SOUTH OF MARIANA ISLANDS
5.0 SOUTHERN IRAN
5.0 NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
5.3 NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
5.0 LAKE TANGANYIKA REGION
Earthquake swarm in remote Nevada region intensifies - An earthquake swarm that started rocking a secluded region in northwest Nevada this summer intensified over the past week, geology officials said on Wednesday. The swarm, centered just off the state's northwest border some 40 miles (65 km) southeast of Lakeview, Oregon, started July 12 and is being caused by stretching of the Earth's crust.
Two magnitude 4.7 quakes, and over 50 magnitude 3 or stronger temblors have occurred over the past week, representing more seismic activity than in recent months combined. "I've talked to people whose houses are very near this epicenter, and they are already getting shaken up." It would likely take significantly stronger quakes to damage nearby structures or surrounding communities.
The Laboratory said there have been 101 tremors of a magnitude 3 or larger, and eight that clocked in at a magnitude 4 or stronger since the swarm first appeared. Following swarms like these there is a slight increase in the likelihood that a larger earthquake will happen, the Laboratory said, though it is impossible to predict whether such a quake would occur. The current swarm resembles one that happened in Reno, Nevada, in 2008 that shook the area over a two-month stretch with increasingly strong temblors leading to a magnitude 5 quake that caused moderate damage in the area,
4.8 quake shakes Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas - A magnitude-4.8 earthquake Wednesday shook up parts of Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, the strongest of eight temblors that rattled the seismically active region over 24 hours.
TROPICAL STORMS -
No current tropical storms.
HEAVY SNOW / EXTREME COLD -
Ontario and Quebec hit by Arctic blast - Frigid temperatures and snow have expanded into Ontario and Quebec as a wave of cold air moves east. Snow has begun falling in the north of Ontario, and freezing rain is forecast in parts of Quebec. The sharply cooler temperatures are a result of frigid air pushed in by a powerful storm that hit Alaska with hurricane-force winds.
Some areas of the US and Canada have seen temperatures fall by as much as 22C (40F) in days. Almost three feet (92cm) of snow fell in Michigan's upper peninsula on Monday and Tuesday, while up to 18in fell in northern Wisconsin, and parts of central Minnesota saw more than 16in. The cold air is expected to sharply cool off eastern Canada and the eastern US later in the week, repeating the quick change felt across North America. Toronto could see some snow on Thursday, after highs of 17C on Tuesday.
Wintry weather has stopped further west in Canada, but cities like Edmonton and Calgary continued to feel the chill, expecting high temperatures of -14C. High winds and blowing snow on Wednesday caused several accidents in Winnipeg. Snow from the weather system has also been blamed for accidents that killed two in Minnesota.
Wyoming Hits -26°F in Arctic Blast; 3 Feet of Snow in Michigan's Upper Peninsula - A bitter cold blast of Arctic air more typical of late December is plunging south over the Midwest, and will immerse most of the eastern two-thirds of the country in December-like cold for much of the coming week. Casper, Wyoming bottomed out Wednesday morning at a numbing -26°F, their coldest November temperature since weather records began in 1937. Casper's previous November record cold temperature was -21°F, set on Nov. 23, 1985.
Laramie, Wyoming hit -22°F Wednesday morning, a record low for the date, and Yellowstone hit -20°F. The storm brought very strong winds with it, with several mountaintop locations recording wind gusts in excess of 80 mph earlier this week: 81 mph at Pikes Peak, Colorado, and 84 mph at Snowbasin, Utah. According to the Wednesday morning NOAA Storm Summary, a whopping three feet of snow (36.1") fell at Ishpeming in Michigan's Upper Peninsula over the past three days, and numerous locations in Michigan received more than 20" of snow, including Marquette (20") and Negaunee (32.5".)
Snow amounts in North Central Minnesota were as high as 16.5", and northern Wisconsin got a peak of 26" at Gile. The storm and associated intense cold is being triggered by an usually extreme jet stream pattern, featuring a sharp ridge of high pressure over Alaska and a deep trough of low pressure diving to the south over the Central United States. This extreme jet stream pattern is due, in part, to the influence of Super Typhoon Nuri, which caused a ripple effect on the jet stream after the typhoon became one of the most powerful extratropical storms ever recorded in the waters to the west of Alaska last Saturday.
HEALTH THREATS -
RECALLS & ALERTS
World is crossing malnutrition red line, report warns. Most countries in the world are facing a serious public health problem as a result of malnutrition, a report warns.
The Global Nutrition Report said every nation except China had crossed a "malnutrition red line", suffering from too much or too little nutrition. Globally, malnutrition led to "11% of GDP being squandered as a result of lives lost, less learning, less earning and days lost to illness." Malnutrition is an invisible thing, unless it is very extreme. This invisibility stops action happening but it does not stop bad things happening to the children. It does not stop preventing the children's brains from developing; it does not stop their immune systems from not developing. It is a silent crisis and we are trying to raise the awareness of the extent of malnutrition and the damage it does."
The UN World Food Programme estimates that poor nutrition causes nearly half of deaths in children aged under five - 3.1 million children each year.
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