Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 208 · 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.🏚️ Does having a wide base make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
2. 2.🏚️ 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
3. 3.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a telescope (b) a microscope (c) a shake table (d) a fridge
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 60 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 200 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
5. 5.🏚️ 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 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 70 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
6. 6.True or false: using a light roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
7. 7.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
8. 8.🏚️ Does using a light roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
9. 9.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) using a light roof (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) making brittle joints
10. 10.🏚️ Does keeping a simple shape make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
11. 11.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
12. 12.🏚️ Does raising heavy tanks high make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
13. 13.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
14. 14.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
15. 15.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
16. 16.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
17. 17.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) having a wide base (c) keeping a simple shape (d) stacking loose bricks
18. 18.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
19. 19.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they are cheap (b) they stop shaking (c) they look nice (d) they bend, not break
20. 20.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
21. 21.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 150 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 20 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
22. 22.True or false: having a wide base makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
23. 23.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is taller (b) it is lighter (c) it is colourful (d) it is harder to tip over
24. 24.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
25. 25.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) stacking loose bricks (c) using a heavy roof (d) making brittle joints
26. 26.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
27. 27.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 120 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
28. 28.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) building tall and narrow (c) adding cross bracing (d) having a wide base
29. 29.🏚️ 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 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
30. 30.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
31. 31.🏚️ 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 70 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
32. 32.🏚️ 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 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
33. 33.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
34. 34.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) adding steel to concrete (c) leaving out steel bars (d) keeping a simple shape
35. 35.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) using a light roof (c) adding cross bracing (d) fitting rubber base pads
36. 36.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) adding steel to concrete (c) using a light roof (d) leaving out steel bars
37. 37.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) having a wide base (b) using a heavy roof (c) adding steel to concrete (d) adding cross bracing
38. 38.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 320 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
39. 39.🏚️ Does leaving out steel bars make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
40. 40.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True

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