TO this day, no scientist has dared to claim the ability to predict earthquakes. This is not the case, however, with tsunami waves that usually follow such tremors. There was a period of 15-20 minutes between the quake and the tsunami that ravaged Banda Aceh last week. The floods even reached Sri Lanka only two hours later, and India's eastern coast one hour thereafter.

The required technology is there, and has even long been used on the other