 Due to the significantly slower propagation of seismic waves compared to the near @-@ speed @-@ of @-@ light transmission of internet traffic , some Twitter users read about the earthquake seconds before feeling the tremors . For example , Twitter users in such cities as New York City and Boston reported reading tweets about the earthquake from users in Washington , D.C. , or Richmond , Virginia , 15 to 30 seconds before feeling the quake itself . 
