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"The convection is caused in the mantle by internal heat production by decay of elements such as uranium and thorium," says Becker.
"It's sort of like looking at a boiling pot of honey, with the mantle convecting in this sluggish fashion."
However, what causes earthquakes in the middle of tectonic plates away from boundaries and plumes, is poorly understood.
In the western United States, intraplate earthquake activity is concentrated in a region known as the intermountain belt that stretches from south-western Utah up through Idaho and Wyoming to Yellowstone National Park and north along the Snake River through western Montana and into Canada.
Becker and colleagues used new detailed seismic, GPS and gravity data provided by the Earthscope array, a network of seismic monitors across the western United States.
"The Earthscope experiment has allowed my collaborators and others to develop really detailed models of the Earth," says Becker.
The authors developed a computer model showing how the flow of deep mantle material, 100 to 160 kilometres below the surface, pulls and pushes on the overlying crust, triggering seismic activity.
However Becker says this work won't be the last word on the origin of intraplate earthquakes.
Other contributing factors include the history of a region, such as changes in the thickness of the crust, and in the strength of the lithosphere, which comprises the planet's crust and upper mantle, as well as variations in the gravitational potential energy of a region.
"Gravitational potential energy is the tendency of thick crust to flow apart over long time scales, it's bit like a ball of silly putty left sitting on a table, which after a while will slowly flatten out into a pancake," says Becker.
The authors found preliminary studies in the Mediterranean-Middle East region also showed seismic activity may be influenced by deep mantle flow.
And according to Becker, the mantle flow model could also apply to other continental plates including the Australian plate, because small scale convection underneath Australia may still cause stressing.
"The difference in the geological setting is that we're talking about a very old continental plate in the case of Australia, where the western United States are tectonically much more active," says Becker.
As the Australian plate is very old it is much thicker than the western part of the North American plate, so it is possible that weaknesses caused by changes in the continental crust may be also be a factor, he says.
"I am not sure if the mantle models we have for Australia are at the level we'd need them to be for our analysis. Initial tests elsewhere (we're looking at the Mediterranean right now) are promising, but we haven't look at Australia closely yet."
Swale Academies Trust wish to appoint an additional finance assistant as to enhance our central services team who provide a comprehensive and effective financial and administrative service to schools across the Trust.
The successful appointee will be enthusiastic and motivated with an adaptable and flexible attitude.
This is an excellent opportunity to pursue a rewarding career with the trust, to support our increasing family of schools in educating children in the south east.
The posts is based at our central offices in Sittingbourne although some travel to our schools may be necessary.
Before applying, applicants should ensure they meet the requirements of the person specification and job description and should detail how their skills and experience meet the requirements along with their reasons for applying.
Recruitment packs are available online at website via the button below or from the Trust at the address below. Please note, we cannot accept CVs without an application form.
As you may have heard, daily deals giant Groupon is diving into the red hot mobile payments space, effectively launching a new product suite to help merchants process credit card payments and redeem digital coupons using their smartphones or tablets.
Groupon Payments, as the service is called, will thus rival Jack Dorsey’s Square, which just raised a gazillion dollars, and other formidable competitors like PayPal (Here), VeriFone and Intuit.
For now, Groupon Payments is only available in the United States.
Little did we know about the underlying technology powering the new Groupon service until Les Echos reported this morning (in French) that Paris, France-based payment solutions firm Ingenico is partly behind it.
According to Les Echos’ Maxime Amiot, who cites unnamed sources, Ingenico is powering Groupon Payments by delivering both the hardware dongle that can be plugged into mobile devices, and the software for iOS that is used to encrypt credit card transactions. Les Echos further reports that the commercial agreement betwee...
Ingenico isn’t exactly a scrappy startup. The company says it employs 3,600 employees and has more than 17 million of its payment terminals deployed in more than 125 countries. In 2011, Ingenico sales exceeded 1 billion euros (nearly $1.3 billion today).
The same year, it spent about 8% of its revenue on R&D, the company says.
Ingenico recently announced that it would double down on mobile payment products to “respond to increasing demand for m-commerce solutions” in a presentation to investors.
The company owns a mobile commerce platform and services subsidiary called ROAM Data, which earlier this year introduced (but not launched) ‘NFC Swipe’, an device-agnostic reader with support for both near-field communication and magnetic stripe cards.
It has already partnered with juggernauts like PayPal, Apple and Google.
We’ve reached out to Ingenico and will update this post if and when we learn more about its solutions and the Groupon deal.
They no longer want to feel like they live in forgotten communities.
Those of the Robertville Township have been victims of break-ins and they want their voices heard.
So a crowd of 58 people, most of whom are Pineland, Tarboro, Rivers Hill and Robertville residents, packed the Robertville Community Center last Thursday night and for two hours expressed their concerns and offered suggestions to a panel of Jasper County Council members and a representative from the county's sheriff's ...
The crowd was often disgruntled.
"We are not a priority," a man dressed in a suit shouted from the back of the room.
Cpl. Joe Bailey of the sheriff's office took the brunt of the questions. Bailey spoke to the crowd because Jasper County Sheriff Gregory Jenkins could not attend as scheduled. The crowd was not pleased with Jenkins' absence.
Jenkins, speaking by phone a day later, said he regretted not being there, but missed the meeting because of personal reasons.
Bailey said there have been about 30 reported break-ins in the county during the past few months and although some arrests have been made, no arrests have been made on the "big burglaries."
Jenkins said any burglary is a big burglary but noted the office is still investigating the break-ins that resulted in stolen plasma televisions, video game systems and electronics.
Most of the break-ins have occurred between 7 a.m. and 12 p.m., with backdoors being broken into. Most stolen items have been flat-screen televisions and electronics.
The break-ins take about five to seven minutes.
"We believe they are professional," Bailey said.
The crowd believed there are not enough patrolmen in the area. Bailey said patrol has "beefed up" and those who normally work in the office are out on the road.
Jenkins said during a 12-hour shift there are a minimum of two officers working, who cover 633-square miles. He said he's had to temporarily assign nine investigators to patrol other areas, including Robertville.
But the people also want sub-stations and auxiliary officers.
So does Jenkins. He said he's "looking forward to providing citizens sub-stations" but he does not have the man power to do so now.
A sub-station and more patrolmen will cost money, which is what Councilman Henry Etheridge, who sat on a seven-person panel with council members LeRoy Blackshear and Hubert Tyler, spoke about.
Etheridge said "your safety is number one with us, I promise" but noted "we have not seen anything from the sheriff; he has not asked for money for this year."
Blackshear said the council "can't tell the sheriff what to do" to which Carrie Fair, a Jasper County Northern Neighborhood Association member, quickly replied: "He can request funds."
Jenkins plans to do just that. He said he will request money for an increase in staff members.
"That's a definite fact," Jenkins said.
There is a scheduled budget workshop Wednesday, April 1 at 2:30 p.m.
Spending more money might mean higher taxes for the community, but the community wants more police presence.
"We want to increase patrol," said Gladys Williams, who organized the meeting with Fair.
According to Bailey, the presence is there, but might be going unnoticed.
Marked cars do ride along the area's roads, but Bailey and Jenkins noted there are a number of unmarked cars and SUVs that patrol the area.
"I know we have unmarked vehicles in that area often," Jenkins said. "Bear with us as we continue to serve you with the man power we have."
Audience members asked that the cars not just patrol the roads but also drive to the back of homes and along paths that often do not get covered. They asked for patrolmen to go into peoples' yards and knock on doors to check if everything is OK.
Williams, who noted there were five burglaries in the area in the last two weeks, suggested residents purchase an ADT home security system.
Bailey said to look for suspicious vehicles, especially trucks and vans.
It was a few minutes after 9 p.m. when the meeting ended. Just about each person who walked into the community center two hours earlier, stayed until the end.
Some left still looking for answers ("Some information could have been better with the sheriff," a woman said) and others were pleased their concerns were heard.
Minutes before the meeting concluded, Williams offered a word of advice that most have been following all along.
"Look out for each other," she said.
ST. LOUIS (AP) � Farmers sold pigs to help raise money to build the towering cross on southern Illinois� highest point as a year-round testament to faith. The 11-story monument draws thousands of visitors each year, and supporters say it has promoted self-growth and reflection for nearly half a century.
But over the years, the once-glistening structure about 130 miles southeast of St. Louis began to show its age. The 650 or so white porcelain panels that cover the concrete and steel frame rusted or fell off. Some remained attached with only coat hangers and bailing wire.
A group cobbled together $360,000 of the $550,000 needed to restore the Bald Knob Cross of Peace, including a $20,000 grant from the state of Illinois. Now, a Chicago-area atheist who objects to the grant as a bit of unconstitutional pork has threatened to sue if the group doesn�t return the money to the state.
Pitching the project as the renovation of a major tourist attraction �is a nice cover story,� Rob Sherman said Wednesday in a phone interview. But the retired Chicago-area radio host who successfully fought Illinois� �moment of silence� in public schools said he thinks it would be more appropriate to use the money for ...
That didn�t deter the Friends of Bald Knob Cross. The money was used long ago as a down payment on the renovation of the monument near Alto Pass, Ill., said Bill Vandergraph, a minister and Friends board member.
His group applied for the money only after a state senator said they�d be eligible for it, he said. And the landmark has proved versatile, housing federal government transmission equipment and used by Union County�s conservation department.
Standing sentry over forests and much of the region�s orchards and burgeoning wine country, the cross has been a fixture on the 1,025-foot-high Bald Knob Mountain for nearly a half century.
Their fundraising efforts got a big boost in 1955 when Presley was featured on television�s �This is Your Life.� Donations poured in. Students and Sunday school classes collected coins for the cross.
Widow Myrta Clutts called the cross �the greatest idea I�d ever heard� and pledged $100 to the project when she didn�t have $10 to spare. Clutts considered her pig Betsy an instrument of God when the animal gave birth to 21 piglets, three times the normal litter. She sold 14 of the pigs, paid her $100 pledge and had $4...
Presley set up a barn on Clutts� farm, where more than 1,700 piglets were produced from Betsy�s original litter. Each was given to farmers who raised them and donated money from their sale � by some accounts, at least $30,000 � to the Bald Knob Cross fund.
Sherman previously sued to have a state law requiring a daily �moment of silence� in Illinois public schools overturned. A federal judge ruled in his favor in January 2009, saying the law showed an unconstitutional intent to introduce prayer into schools.
Sony has announced it has sold over 30 million PlayStation 4 consoles worldwide since launch. It puts the company on a strong footing going into the all-important holiday season. Sony claims the figure shows PS4 is the "best place to play."
The figure, revealed in a press release today, makes PlayStation 4 the fastest-selling console in the history of PlayStation hardware. WIRED notes that only 21.3 million PS3 consoles were sold in the first two years of its life.
Andrew House, President and Global CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment, puts the figure of PS4 sales up to November 22 at 30.2 million units worldwide. He said: "We are sincerely grateful that gamers across the globe have continued to choose PS4 as the best place to play since launch two years ago. We are committed to b...
The PlayStation 4's main rival is the Microsoft Xbox One, launched around the same time at the end of 2013. Sony's console has proven to be the most popular of the pair throughout its life, consistently leading in monthly sales comparisons.
Last month, the tables tipped into Microsoft's favour though. For the first time since April, the Xbox One sold more strongly than the PlayStation 4, helped in part by recent price drops and the launch of hit Xbox One exclusive titles Forza Motorsport 6 and Halo 5: Guardians. Sony has also lowered the price of the PS4 ...
It's unknown how many worldwide sales Microsoft has achieved in the past two years. The company no longer releases official sales figures but a chart from VGChartz.com suggests 15.6 million units have been shipped, just over half as many as the PS4.
Going into the holiday season, both systems are looking stronger than ever for new buyers. Microsoft's recently-released Xbox One New Experience update adds in backwards compatibility with Xbox 360 titles and the ability to stream games to any Windows 10 PC in the house. Meanwhile, Sony seems to be working on something...
KKR swooped down with a late bid after Manipal’s negotiations ran into valuation differences.
PAG, which manages assets amounting to well over $20 billion, is set to name Nikhil Srivastava from KKR as the head of private equity operations in India.
Online fantasy sports gaming has become a $1 billion market. It’s expected to reach new heights with the IPL and cricket World Cup this year.
Another area seeing investor action is car & bike pooling, where Quick Ride is learned to have got around $15 million from Naspers.
Swiggy and Zomato, who have between them raised $2 billion since last year, are not showing any signs of slowing down this expansion.
3i Infotech, which counts SBI Mutual Fund and Bayer Crop Science as customers, has over 5,000 employees and over 1,200 customers.
The company has raised over Rs 35 crore from Sequoia Capital India and has been in talks to raise another Rs 200 crore led by Indonesia’s ride hailing giant Go-Jek.
The fresh capital will be largely used for expansion of the new businesses of the company, known as Razorpay 2.0.
The move comes after the Mukesh Ambani-led company said earlier that it plans to enter the e-commerce space.
The largest cholera vaccination campaign in history has been launched in an attempt to put the brakes on a disease which is ravaging parts of Africa.
Nearly three and a half million doses of oral cholera vaccine will be used in campaigns in Nigeria, Malawi, Zambia, Uganda and South Sudan.
There have been an increasing number of outbreaks of the infectious disease in recent years and at least 12 countries or areas in sub-Saharan Africa are currently reporting cholera outbreaks.
The disease causes severe diarrhoea and is contracted through eating or drinking contaminated food or water.
The campaign is part of a renewed focus on the disease, with the World Health Organization’s Global Taskforce on Cholera Control aiming for a 90 per cent reduction in cholera deaths by 2030.
In the 15 years between 1997 and 2012 just one and a half million doses of cholera vaccine were used worldwide. This compares to 2017 when almost 11 million were used. And in the first four months of 2018 more than 15 million doses were approved for use around the world.
The most recent figures from the WHO show there were 132,000 cases of the disease, including 2,400 deaths, in 2016. However, this is thought to be an underestimate because of both a lack of surveillance of the disease and an unwillingness among countries to admit to a cholera outbreak.

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