Sand-tracing pendulum drew weird squiggly lines.

The pendulum, which is used for sand tracing, recorded the seismic activity during the 6.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Olympia, Washington in 2001. Scientists believe that the squiggly lines traced by the pendulum captured the intensity and duration of the quake's most intense trembles. This demonstrates the ability of a simple instrument like a sand-tracing pendulum to capture and record seismic activity. The information gathered by the pendulum can help scientists better understand the characteristics of earthquakes and improve earthquake prediction and mitigation efforts.