Newton turned naturally to astronomy because it was the subject of his day, and it was so be- cause finding one’s way at sea had long been a practical preoccupa- tion of the society into which he was born.
I wholly agree with this part. Sometimes science just come from our lives. What a scientist should do is converting his interest or his life into his career.
I define science as the organization of our knowledge in such a way that it commands more of the hidden potential in nature.
I would put reveals rather than commands in this sentence
We cannot turn it into a game simply by taking sides.
I completely agree with this term. As the former sentence states, the world is dominated by science. Therefore, every decision should be made before thorough considerations.
Effective interdisciplinary disaster research requires a foundation of shared language and interactional expertise, and developing these relies in turn on trust and respect within a team.
Is this the part where interactional expertise and contributory expertise go in?
Many other factors, such as funding and institutional reward structures, affect the success of interdisciplinary research projects; but I focus here on developing understanding and effective communication because those are things a team can control.
It seems like the author here is emphasizing the importance of communication and mutual understanding out of so many factors. For me, I am surprising to see the author puts away funding. In my opinion, gathering adequate funds should also be a part of the team's job.
an expert report to the California Legislature emphasized that earthquake hazards encompassed “engineering, architecture, geology, government, and sociology”
I think this report is quite interesting as it breaks down the hazards into five different perspectives, including both human activities and the nature. Besides, it makes me wonder what is the connection between earthquake hazards and government