The current California requirement is that high-rise structures must be built to withstand about 0.4 g

ground acceleration, and single family dwellings must be built to withstand about 0.15 g ground
acceleration. Would that standard have protected structures in Northridge in 1994? Why or why not? What will be an ideal response?


Probably not. Record ground accelerations were experienced during the Northridge earthquake that
exceeded the standard by many orders of magnitude. Recorded ground accelerations were as high as
1.8 g. The Uniform Building Code may have to be reconsidered in light of this.

Environmental & Atmospheric Sciences

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