Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 233 · 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.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) leaving out steel bars (d) building tall and narrow
2. 2.🏚️ 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 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 210 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
3. 3.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) keeping a simple shape (c) having a wide base (d) stacking loose bricks
4. 4.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) making brittle joints (c) using a heavy roof (d) using flexible joints
5. 5.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
6. 6.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is lighter (b) it is taller (c) it is colourful (d) it is harder to tip over
7. 7.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
8. 8.🏚️ Does using a heavy roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
9. 9.🏚️ 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 20 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
10. 10.🏚️ Does using a light roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
11. 11.True or false: using a light roof makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
12. 12.🏚️ 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 40 cm tall on a 20 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 B (c) tower A
13. 13.🏚️ 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 70 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
14. 14.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
15. 15.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
16. 16.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
17. 17.🏚️ 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 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
18. 18.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a shake table (b) a telescope (c) a fridge (d) a microscope
19. 19.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
20. 20.🏚️ 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 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 A (c) tower B
21. 21.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
22. 22.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
23. 23.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) having a wide base (c) stacking loose bricks (d) leaving out steel bars
24. 24.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 280 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 50 cm tall on a 10 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 B (c) tower A
25. 25.🏚️ 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 10 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
26. 26.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) stacking loose bricks (c) building tall and narrow (d) having a wide base
27. 27.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
28. 28.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) leaving out steel bars (c) keeping a simple shape (d) using flexible joints
29. 29.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they are cheap (b) they bend, not break (c) they stop shaking (d) they look nice
30. 30.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) adding steel to concrete (c) leaving out steel bars (d) using flexible joints
31. 31.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) adding steel to concrete (c) stacking loose bricks (d) building tall and narrow
32. 32.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
33. 33.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) low down (b) on a thin pole (c) on the very top (d) hanging outside
34. 34.🏚️ 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 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
35. 35.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) keeping a simple shape (c) adding cross bracing (d) raising heavy tanks high
36. 36.🏚️ 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 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
37. 37.🏚️ 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 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
38. 38.🏚️ 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 150 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 A (c) tower B
39. 39.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
40. 40.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True

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