Rock Melt (IMAGE) Duke University Caption Researchers twist rock discs against one another under large amounts of pressure at high speeds to simulate what happens during earthquakes at fault lines. New models from Duke engineers are the first that can accurately reproduce how the amount of friction decreases as the speed of the rock slippage increases and the rock undergoes a phase change. Credit Giulio DiToro (University of Padova), Elena Spagnuolo and Stefano Aretusini (National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, Rome) Usage Restrictions None License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.