The karstic caves are favorable sites for tectonic events detecting, representing a conservative medium of three-dimensional framework where the tectonic deformations are well preserved. They also provide an environment conducive to dating and determining the geometrical parameters of past seismotectonic events. During the last three decades the study of dynamic tectonics and recent geodynamics in karst terrains has been subject of numerous publications, but it has not been systematically approached in a comprehensive monograph. This book collects the current state of knowledge on the relationship between karst and dynamic tectonics and presents a new methodology to its study. It puts forward several approaches for studying of recent geodynamics in karst terrains, such as tectonic stress fields reconstructions using structural analysis of the fracturing, geophysical studies of the rock anisotropy and fault-plane solutions from earthquakes, analysis of the spatial orientation and absolute dating of deformed speleothems, instrumental and mechanical measurements, monitoring and modeling – all supported with case studies from several karst areas worldwide, e.g. in Albania, Bulgaria, Cuba and France.

Given the tremendous toll in human lives and attendant economic losses, it is appropriate that scientists are working hard to understand better earthquakes, with the aim of forecasting and, ultimately, predicting them. In the last decades increasing attention has been paid to the coseismic effects on the natural environment, creating a solid base of empirical data for the estimation of source parameters of strong earthquakes based on geological observations. The recently introduced INQUA scale (Environmental Seismic Intensity-ESI 2007 Scale) of macroseismic intensity clearly shows how the systematic study of earthquake surface faulting, coseismic liquefaction, tsunami deposits and other primary and secondary ground effects can be integrated with 'traditional' seismological and tectonic information to provide a better understanding of the seismicity level of an area and the associated hazards. At the moment this is the only scientific means of equating the seismic records to the seismic cycle time-spans extending the seismic catalogues even to tens of thousands of years, improving future seismic hazard analyses. This Special Publication covers some of the latest multidisciplinary work undertaken to achieve that aim. Eighteen papers from research groups from all continents address a wide range of topics related both to palaeoseismological studies and assessment of macroseismic intensity based only on the natural phenomena associated with an earthquake.