Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 163 · 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.🏚️ 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 200 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
2. 2.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) adding steel to concrete (d) using a heavy roof
3. 3.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
4. 4.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) on the very top (b) on a thin pole (c) hanging outside (d) low down
5. 5.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they bend, not break (b) they look nice (c) they are cheap (d) they stop shaking
6. 6.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) making brittle joints (b) using a light roof (c) stacking loose bricks (d) raising heavy tanks high
7. 7.🏚️ 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 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
8. 8.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) making brittle joints (c) using a light roof (d) having a wide base
9. 9.🏚️ 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 hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
10. 10.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) adding cross bracing (c) adding steel to concrete (d) keeping a simple shape
11. 11.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
12. 12.🏚️ Does using a light roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
13. 13.🏚️ Does leaving out steel bars make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
14. 14.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
15. 15.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 30 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
16. 16.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
17. 17.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) having a wide base (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using flexible joints
18. 18.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
19. 19.True or false: stacking loose bricks makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
20. 20.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) making brittle joints (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) using a heavy roof (d) having a wide base
21. 21.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
22. 22.True or false: stacking loose bricks makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
23. 23.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is lighter (b) it is colourful (c) it is harder to tip over (d) it is taller
24. 24.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
25. 25.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) building tall and narrow (c) making brittle joints (d) using a heavy roof
26. 26.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 200 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 30 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
27. 27.True or false: using a light roof makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
28. 28.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) using flexible joints (d) keeping a simple shape
29. 29.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
30. 30.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) building tall and narrow (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using a heavy roof
31. 31.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
32. 32.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
33. 33.🏚️ 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 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 B (b) tower C (c) tower A
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.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a fridge (b) a microscope (c) a telescope (d) a shake table
36. 36.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a heavy roof (c) adding cross bracing (d) having a wide base
37. 37.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) leaving out steel bars (c) stacking loose bricks (d) adding cross bracing
38. 38.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a light roof (b) building tall and narrow (c) making brittle joints (d) leaving out steel bars
39. 39.🏚️ 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 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
40. 40.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) making brittle joints (d) fitting rubber base pads

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