Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 121 · 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: making brittle joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
2. 2.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) adding cross bracing (c) having a wide base (d) adding steel to concrete
3. 3.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) adding steel to concrete (c) stacking loose bricks (d) leaving out steel bars
4. 4.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
5. 5.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
6. 6.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) keeping a simple shape (c) having a wide base (d) using a heavy roof
7. 7.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 20 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
8. 8.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
9. 9.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a telescope (b) a fridge (c) a shake table (d) a microscope
10. 10.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 60 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 240 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
11. 11.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) making brittle joints (c) adding cross bracing (d) stacking loose bricks
12. 12.True or false: making brittle joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
13. 13.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
14. 14.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 20 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 160 cm tall on a 40 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 C (c) tower B
15. 15.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) using flexible joints (c) making brittle joints (d) stacking loose bricks
16. 16.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
17. 17.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) on the very top (b) hanging outside (c) on a thin pole (d) low down
18. 18.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is taller (b) it is lighter (c) it is harder to tip over (d) it is colourful
19. 19.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 10 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
20. 20.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) having a wide base (c) making brittle joints (d) using a light roof
21. 21.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) building tall and narrow (c) adding steel to concrete (d) keeping a simple shape
22. 22.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 30 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
23. 23.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a heavy roof (c) building tall and narrow (d) stacking loose bricks
24. 24.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) making brittle joints (b) using a heavy roof (c) leaving out steel bars (d) keeping a simple shape
25. 25.🏚️ Does using a light roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
26. 26.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 120 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
27. 27.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
28. 28.🏚️ 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 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
29. 29.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) stacking loose bricks (d) making brittle joints
30. 30.🏚️ Does having a wide base make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
31. 31.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
32. 32.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
33. 33.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
34. 34.🏚️ 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 200 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 20 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
35. 35.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) using a heavy roof (c) using a light roof (d) making brittle joints
36. 36.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) making brittle joints (c) having a wide base (d) adding cross bracing
37. 37.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) making brittle joints (c) using a light roof (d) building tall and narrow
38. 38.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) adding steel to concrete (c) using flexible joints (d) having a wide base
39. 39.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) using a light roof (d) adding steel to concrete
40. 40.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True

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