HappyFern

A Fox News article I saw recently suggested that increased Hawaiian volcano activity could indicate increased ring of Fire activity, particularly PNW. Is there any truth to this? I thought Hawaii was mid plate, and that made it fairly independent?

Awesome =) I'm from Oregon, and I get a little tired of constantly being told I'm about to die ;) Although better to die where you love than live somewhere with no mountains, eh?

What's the COOLEST thing about volcanos that goes unappreciated, do you think?

So, thought of another. How did it get decided it was safe to build in these zones? How long does an area have to be dormant (not sure if correct term) before a builder can go get permits and build a subdivision? Also, do you know what sort of insurance people carry on homes like those? It seems like it would be a little bonkers, like building on a 50 year flood plane on something. I guess my key questions are, who holds the cards, and what sort of protections are there to prevent loss of property (and potentially life, although I realize with the "way" these volcanoes tend to erupt that's less likely?)

And thank you for doing this AMA! Very interesting.

Total ignorance question here... but how do you even GET samples of lava? What the heck materials can you make stuff out of that you can get sample and not have the whole thing melt/burn? Or do you have to wait until it's cooled then chip it out?