The UMass Geoscience Dept. is home to a very cool lab that uses clay to simulate crustal faulting. I recently made this video to show how the lab works and explore the results of several experiments generating strike-slip faults, the results of which have been written in a recent paper in the Journal of Structural Geology. The Physical Modeling Lab was started by head of the Geomechanics research group at UMass, Dr. Michele Cooke (full disclosure, she’s my advisor). In addition to physical models, the Geomechanics group also uses physics-based numerical computer simulations to improve our understanding of fault zones. Check out the video, and please let me know if you have any thoughts or questions!
Laura Fattaruso
The Life Geologic 