Seth Stein’s You Tube Channel
Receiving AGU’s Bucher medal (December 2022)
Presentation of the American Geophysical Union’s Walter Bucher medal in December 2022, by AGU President Susan Lozier. This lifetime achievement medal is given in recognition of original contributions to the basic knowledge of crust and lithosphere. Recognition of the work colleagues, students, and I have done over many years is a huge honor and thrill. We shared years of hard work leading to the excitement of discovery. At the banquet following the ceremony I thought of Shakespeare’s famous lines “we happy few, we band of brothers.” We hope our work, together with that of the entire AGU community, collectively improves understanding how our planet works and how people can better live with it.
Interview with Caltech Heritage Project (April 2022)
An oral history interview discussing my undergrad days at MIT, graduate school at Caltech’s Seismo Lab and subsequent career.
Lake Superior Podcast (December 2022)
Podcast for National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation explaining how all 5 national parks on the lake reflect Mid-Continent Rift geology.
Earth scientists and the media: some basic ideas (November 2021)
Geoscience interests the public, so it gets lots of media interest. This personal, informal introduction to dealing with the media discusses some ways earth scientists can make dealing with media less scary, easier, & more effective.
Our group’s seismological and tectonics research (October 2021)
An overview of our research in global earthquake seismology and global tectonics. We sought to better understand the physical processes of earthquakes: why, where, when and how they occur, and what level of shaking they will produce. These results will help communities better protect themselves from earthquake hazards. We also studied processes of plate tectonics: how plate boundaries and plate interiors operate today, have evolved in the past, and give rise to natural hazards.
Hiking Isle Royale National Park (November 2021)
Isle Royale National Park, a large island in Lake Superior with spectacular scenery and views, is one of the Midwest’s best hiking and backpacking spots. The video gives an overview of the park’s geology and history, how to get there by boat or seaplane, and some of the hiking and backpacking opportunities on the biggest island on the biggest lake in the world.
Lake Superior and the Midcontinent Rift: The Billion Year Story (EarthScope; December 2015)
This short video tells the “story behind the scenery” covering both the geology and geoheritage – how the MCR gave rise to Lake Superior that is the basis of the area’s water-based history and economy, the copper deposits that shaped the region’s settlement and growth, and today’s tourist industry. Video coproduced by: Abigail Foerstner and Seth Stein, Northwestern University; Carol Stein, University of Illinois at Chicago.
Natural Hazard Uncertainty (Davos Global Risk Forum; October 2016)
Discussion of the issues uncertainty poses to natural hazard risk reduction.
Extreme Geohazards – Communicating Uncertainty (December 2011)
Seth Stein reflects on management of geohazards that integrates uncertainty. This talk “Bad Assumptions or Bad Luck: Why Natural Hazard Maps Fail and What To Do About It?” is from the ESF-COST high-level conference “Understanding extreme geohazards: The Science of the Disaster Risk Management Cycle http://www.esf.org/index.php?id=8974 in Spain November 2011.
Congratulations to “pandemic year” graduates (June 2020)
Illinois Beach State Park (History Channel; June 2017)
Field trip to Illinois Beach State Park illustrates what Chicago looked like before European settlement and how the city’s growth reflects its position as the transfer point between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River.
San Andreas Fault at Crystal Springs Reservoir (December 2016)
Field trip to the San Andreas Fault at Crystal Springs reservoir, south of San Francisco.
San Andreas Fault at Point Reyes (October 2016)
A fence offset by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake at Point Reyes National Monument, California.
San Andreas Fault (October 2016)
Field trip to the San Andreas fault at Point Reyes National Monument, California.
SPREE – Seismometers and Science (March 2012)
How EarthScope seismometers are being used to understand the extent and origin of the North American Midcontinent Rift.
Chicago River Class Kayak Trip (December 2011)
My class kayak trip on the Chicago River, part of a freshman seminar about Lake Michigan and the Chicago River.