"The water started to go funny"

Tsunamis (Japanese for "harbor waves") are a series of ocean waves generated by any rapid large-scale disturbance of the sea water, says NOAA (Image of 19th-Century print by Hokusai via the tsunami wave basin research facility at Oregon State University)

"Iraq, Iran and North Korea did not discover the evasive magic of 'dual use' technology," writes Jack of Tiger Hawk, who has been making good use of his commuter time by listening to a "Portable Professor" series of lectures, Professor Margaret MacMillan teaching "Six Months That Changed The World: The Treaty of Versailles and the Road to World War II":

Tough, expansionist governments have been daring Western democracies to go to war over dual-use rearmament for at least 80 years. The question is, how do the countries that can respond choose to respond?

Germany systematically abrogated the terms of the Versailles settlement and cheated its way to more territory and an illegal military. The Allies failed to contain a recovering Germany after the First World War, always choosing "peace" instead of confrontation, as if war delayed would be war avoided. Even today, we cannot measure the awful cost of that "peace."

Fascinating stuff. Plus ça change (pardon our French), not to mention that those who do not study history -- and how many of today's public schoolchildren do in a serious way? -- are doomed to repeat it. We're reminded of that 10-year-old girl vacationing with her parents on the Thai island of Phuket who was able to warn the clueless grownups around her of the oncoming deluge because she had been taught about tsunamis in a geography class:

I was on the beach, and the water started to go funny.  There were bubbles, and the tide went out all of a sudden.

We were particularly struck with a New York Post report that the adults hadn't recognized the word "tsunami" -- Japanese for "harbor wave" -- and started running for high ground only when the little girl said "tidal wave."  Ironic in that tsunamis aren't really tidal waves at all, having no direct causal relationship with the tide.  Instead, they are "a series of ocean waves generated by any rapid large-scale disturbance of the sea water.  Most tsunamis are generated by earthquakes, but they may also be caused by volcanic eruptions, landslides, undersea slumps or meteor impacts."

Comments

[Jack]

Thanks for the link.

I thought the story about the bright ten year-old girl was great. She's going to have a great reason to make sure her own kids have inquiring, engaged minds.

[rafinlay]

The term "tidal wave" is just as legitimate as "tsunami." These waves also do not originate in harbors. The name "harbor wave" refers (perhaps) to the first perception of the "wave" in harbors where the water is shallower, while in deep water offshore it is nearly imperceptible. Note the girl's description of "the tide suddenly going out." Tsunamis, in appearance resemble sudden, strong high tides more than the classical "waves" we see rolling in on surf beaches. It makes sense for people familiar with tides to name these phenomona after the appearance of the event, just as the Japanese did.

[Sissy Willis]

Tsunami literally translates as "harbor wave." No one is saying they originate in harbors. As noted, they are generated by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, undersea slumps or meteor impacts. But the point here is that the adults didn't have a clue one way or the other.