Do we ever learn? How come we humans knowingly and willingly put ourselves and our critical infrastructure in harm’s way time and again? Instead of living with and adjusting to natural hazards, we turn them into natural disasters, by our own doings and short-sighted decisions. That is what Kerry Sieh wrote in 2000 in his article titled Acts of God, Acts of Man: How Humans Turn Natural Hazards into Natural Disasters. In his article, Kerry argues for a different approach to handling the natural hazards that Earth puts beneath our feet, and not just acquiesce to enduring the damage and death brought by natural disasters. Proper engineering is all it takes.

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