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Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 249 · 40 questions
TalentJR

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.

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  1. 1.🏚️ 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 20 cm tall on a 20 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
  2. 2.🏚️ 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
  3. 3.🏚️ Does using a heavy roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  4. 4.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) having a wide base (b) using flexible joints (c) using a light roof (d) leaving out steel bars
  5. 5.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) using a heavy roof (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) stacking loose bricks
  6. 6.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) using a light roof (c) keeping a simple shape (d) adding cross bracing
  7. 7.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) making brittle joints (b) keeping a simple shape (c) using flexible joints (d) adding cross bracing
  8. 8.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they bend, not break (b) they look nice (c) they stop shaking (d) they are cheap
  9. 9.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  10. 10.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) adding steel to concrete (c) leaving out steel bars (d) fitting rubber base pads
  11. 11.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) adding steel to concrete (c) making brittle joints (d) leaving out steel bars
  12. 12.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  13. 13.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a telescope (b) a microscope (c) a fridge (d) a shake table
  14. 14.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using flexible joints (b) using a heavy roof (c) leaving out steel bars (d) building tall and narrow
  15. 15.🏚️ Does using a light roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
  16. 16.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) making brittle joints (c) stacking loose bricks (d) keeping a simple shape
  17. 17.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  18. 18.🏚️ 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 30 cm tall on a 30 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 C (c) tower A
  19. 19.🏚️ 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 210 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
  20. 20.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  21. 21.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
  22. 22.True or false: having a wide base makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  23. 23.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) using flexible joints (c) using a heavy roof (d) adding steel to concrete
  24. 24.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is lighter (b) it is taller (c) it is harder to tip over (d) it is colourful
  25. 25.🏚️ 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 70 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
  26. 26.🏚️ Does leaving out steel bars make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
  27. 27.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) using flexible joints (c) having a wide base (d) adding cross bracing
  28. 28.🏚️ 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 80 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 10 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) fitting rubber base pads (b) stacking loose bricks (c) building tall and narrow (d) making brittle joints
  30. 30.🏚️ Does raising heavy tanks high make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  31. 31.🏚️ 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 200 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 20 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 50 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 280 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
  33. 33.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  34. 34.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  35. 35.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  36. 36.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) stacking loose bricks (c) using flexible joints (d) building tall and narrow
  37. 37.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) building tall and narrow (c) adding cross bracing (d) having a wide base
  38. 38.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) adding cross bracing (b) building tall and narrow (c) leaving out steel bars (d) using a heavy roof
  40. 40.True or false: stacking loose bricks makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True

Answer key

  1. tower A
  2. low down
  3. less safe
  4. leaving out steel bars
  5. having a wide base
  6. stacking loose bricks
  7. making brittle joints
  8. they bend, not break
  9. True
  10. leaving out steel bars
  11. adding steel to concrete
  12. safer in earthquakes
  13. a shake table
  14. using flexible joints
  15. safer in earthquakes
  16. keeping a simple shape
  17. False
  18. tower A
  19. tower B
  20. True
  21. safer in earthquakes
  22. False
  23. using a heavy roof
  24. it is harder to tip over
  25. tower A
  26. less safe
  27. stacking loose bricks
  28. tower B
  29. fitting rubber base pads
  30. less safe
  31. tower A
  32. tower C
  33. False
  34. True
  35. True
  36. using flexible joints
  37. building tall and narrow
  38. False
  39. adding cross bracing
  40. True

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