TEXTO:
Earthquake science
A team of scientists say they can explain why many
more people died in the earthquake in Haiti compared to
the much larger quake in Chile.
The geophysicists, from the U.S. Geological Survey
5 and from Harvard University, said that strict building
regulations in Chile had undoubtedly saved lives. The
country has a long history of earthquakes and as a
consequence has some of the toughest building codes
in the world.
10 But Doctor Walter Mooney, who’s studied dozens
of earthquakes around the globe, said there were also
other factors behind the relatively low death toll: “First
and foremost, people are used to earthquakes in Chile
and so they did know that they have to evacuate from
15 dangerous structures. Secondly, this earthquake had a
slow and gradual build-up.They had some 20 or 30
seconds to look at each other, realize that the ground
shaking was crescendoing, and building up, and they
made the right decision in almost all cases by getting
20 out of the dangerous structures and running out into the
open area. Thus, education, and a bit of luck is the
answer to why so many people survived.”
Doctor Mooney contrasted that with the Haitian
quake, which split open the hard rock beneath the capital
25 Port Au Prince within seconds. Buildings collapsed
instantly, giving people no time to escape.
Despite the relatively low loss of life in Chile,
Dr Mooney said the country must learn from this disaster,
particularly with regards to building along the coast. Many
30 of those who died were killed not by the quake, but by
the tsunamis that followed it, which swept away coastal
villages.
And the geophysicists said that even if Chile took
precautions, it would remain highly vulnerable to
35 earthquakes. They said that the north of the country was
a particular worry. It hasn’t suffered a big quake for around
a hundred years and is probably due for one soon, they
said.
LONG, Gideon. Earthquake science. Disponível em: . Acesso em: 6 jun. 2010.
Fill in the parentheses with T (True) or F (False).
Scientists say that many more people died in the earthquake in Haiti than in the one in Chile because:
( ) Chile’s strong rules about building improve its population safety.
( ) Although Haiti’s building structures are solid, its population lacks education.
( ) As earthquakes are very common in Chile, its population follows the correct procedure when they occur.
( ) People in Haiti hardly had any time to get out of dangerous situations during the quake.
According to the text, the correct sequence, from top to bottom, is
