Japan: The science of failure

In his editorial, Nam Sang-so, a retired architect-specifications writer, takes a look at the concept of 'failure' as a test bed for 'good' or 'better' practice in disaster management. He writes that "earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons and volcanic eruptions, all of which occur naturally regardless of human activities and which are impossible to prevent, are called 'tensai' in Japanese. They are natural disasters and are separate from human error. Tensai immediately becomes human failure when a levee is flooded, for example, or when there is a failure to issue timely warnings for approaching tsunamis, typhoons or volcanic eruptions."