Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 101 · 40 questions

Engineer's tip (Low, wide, flexible): Safer: wide base, flexible joints, bracing, steel in concrete, light roof, rubber pads, simple shape. Less safe: heavy tops, narrow bases, loose bricks, no steel, brittle joints. Tipping: compare height ÷ base width — the smaller it is, the steadier the block.

1. 1.True or false: stacking loose bricks makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
2. 2.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
3. 3.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) using a light roof (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) making brittle joints
4. 4.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is taller (b) it is harder to tip over (c) it is lighter (d) it is colourful
5. 5.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 60 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
6. 6.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) making brittle joints (c) stacking loose bricks (d) building tall and narrow
7. 7.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) keeping a simple shape (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) having a wide base
8. 8.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) having a wide base (c) keeping a simple shape (d) fitting rubber base pads
9. 9.🏚️ Does using a heavy roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
10. 10.🏚️ Does raising heavy tanks high make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
11. 11.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
12. 12.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 60 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 180 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
13. 13.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) hanging outside (b) on a thin pole (c) low down (d) on the very top
14. 14.🏚️ Does having a wide base make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
15. 15.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
16. 16.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 100 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
17. 17.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 240 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
18. 18.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
19. 19.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) using a light roof (d) making brittle joints
20. 20.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
21. 21.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) adding steel to concrete (c) making brittle joints (d) keeping a simple shape
22. 22.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 20 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
23. 23.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 20 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
24. 24.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
25. 25.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) having a wide base (c) adding steel to concrete (d) fitting rubber base pads
26. 26.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) building tall and narrow (c) stacking loose bricks (d) having a wide base
27. 27.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
28. 28.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they stop shaking (b) they look nice (c) they bend, not break (d) they are cheap
29. 29.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a microscope (b) a shake table (c) a fridge (d) a telescope
30. 30.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) making brittle joints (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) leaving out steel bars
31. 31.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
32. 32.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) making brittle joints (c) using a light roof (d) leaving out steel bars
33. 33.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using flexible joints (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using a light roof
34. 34.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
35. 35.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) using flexible joints (c) having a wide base (d) leaving out steel bars
36. 36.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 180 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
37. 37.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) keeping a simple shape (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) using flexible joints
38. 38.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
39. 39.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) having a wide base (c) stacking loose bricks (d) leaving out steel bars
40. 40.🏚️ Does using a light roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes

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