Database On How Structures Stand Up to Earthquakes is Now Available On The Internet

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- From seismic building codes in Memphis to articles that describe how to tie down your hot-water tank before an earthquake strikes, thousands of references to materials concerning earthquakes and earthquake engineering are now available for free through the QUAKELINE® database to anyone who has access to the Internet.

QUAKELINE is the database of the Information Service of the National Center for Earthquake Engineering Research, headquartered at the University at Buffalo.

It is available to Internet users through BISON, the computerized information system of the UB libraries. Prior to loading QUAKELINE on BISON, the database was only available for a fee on BRS, a commercial network. The UB community can access QUAKELINE directly on the BISON system, without having to log on to the Internet.

One of only a handful of databases in the world that provides information on earthquake engineering, earthquakes and other natural disasters, QUAKELINE offers technical papers and conference proceedings generally not available through other information sources, as well as general consumer information, such as newspaper stories about earthquakes.

"We're seeing an explosion in information availability," said Patricia A. Coty, manager of the Information Service.

She noted that by putting QUAKELINE on the Internet, the information will have a much wider reach internationally.

A key advantage of QUAKELINE is that the UB libraries own all of the materials indexed in the database.

"The problem with doing literature searches is that you come up with wonderful citations, but then you can't get the full paper because it may be very obscure," said Carol Kizis, database coordinator for the Information Service. "The UB libraries own all of the materials indexed in QUAKELINE, so we will photocopy, fax or loan the items to anyone requesting them."

Materials in the database also are available through the interlibrary loan system.

Nominal fees may be charged to users from profit-making organizations to cover the loan of certain materials, such as slide sets.

In addition to information on building structures to withstand earthquakes, QUAKELINE includes articles and papers on hazard mitigation, search and rescue operations, and many other aspects of earthquakes and natural disasters, including their socioeconomic and psychological effects.

Use the telnet command to connect with ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu. Select BISON from the NETMENU. Once connected, choose INDX from the Database Selection Menu and then select QKLN. To exit, type STOP at any screen. QUAKELINE also may be accessed on the LIBS INTERNET ACCESS SOFTWARE.

Now that QUAKELINE is on Internet, Information Service staffers are working to produce the database on CD-ROM. They hope to complete an initial CD this year.

For further information, contact Patricia Coty or Carol Kizis at the Information Center at 716-645-3377.