Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 141 · 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: building tall and narrow makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
2. 2.🏚️ Does leaving out steel bars make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
3. 3.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
4. 4.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 80 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
5. 5.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) keeping a simple shape (d) adding cross bracing
6. 6.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a heavy roof (c) stacking loose bricks (d) making brittle joints
7. 7.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) having a wide base (c) using flexible joints (d) building tall and narrow
8. 8.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) using a light roof (c) adding steel to concrete (d) fitting rubber base pads
9. 9.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
10. 10.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they are cheap (b) they look nice (c) they bend, not break (d) they stop shaking
11. 11.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 80 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 180 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
12. 12.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) using a heavy roof (d) stacking loose bricks
13. 13.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
14. 14.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a microscope (b) a telescope (c) a shake table (d) a fridge
15. 15.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
16. 16.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) making brittle joints (b) using a heavy roof (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using flexible joints
17. 17.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) using flexible joints (c) having a wide base (d) making brittle joints
18. 18.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) using a light roof (c) adding cross bracing (d) stacking loose bricks
19. 19.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) adding cross bracing (b) stacking loose bricks (c) using a heavy roof (d) leaving out steel bars
20. 20.🏚️ Does raising heavy tanks high make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
21. 21.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
22. 22.🏚️ 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 20 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
23. 23.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 70 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
24. 24.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
25. 25.🏚️ Does keeping a simple shape make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
26. 26.True or false: using a light roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
27. 27.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is colourful (b) it is harder to tip over (c) it is taller (d) it is lighter
28. 28.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 60 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 10 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
29. 29.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) using flexible joints (c) keeping a simple shape (d) having a wide base
30. 30.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) stacking loose bricks (d) making brittle joints
31. 31.🏚️ 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 40 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
32. 32.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
33. 33.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
34. 34.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
35. 35.🏚️ 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 180 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 C (b) tower A (c) tower B
36. 36.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
37. 37.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) hanging outside (b) on the very top (c) on a thin pole (d) low down
38. 38.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 40 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
39. 39.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) stacking loose bricks (d) having a wide base
40. 40.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) using a heavy roof (d) keeping a simple shape

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