The trouble is that the Richter scale is based on orders of magnitude. An 8 isn't 1/7th more powerful than a 7, or even twice, but TEN TIMES more powerful. A 7.9 is 9 times stronger than a 7.0. Humans don't generally think that way, we don't have an instinctive frame of reference.
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-IronRaven

When a man dare not speak without malice for fear of giving insult, that is when truth starts to die. Truth is the truest freedom.