Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 271 · 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 100 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
2. 2.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) using a heavy roof (c) building tall and narrow (d) adding steel to concrete
3. 3.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) making brittle joints (c) building tall and narrow (d) using a heavy roof
4. 4.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) adding steel to concrete (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) having a wide base
5. 5.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
6. 6.🏚️ Does using a heavy roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
7. 7.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a telescope (b) a microscope (c) a fridge (d) a shake table
8. 8.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
9. 9.🏚️ Does raising heavy tanks high make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
10. 10.🏚️ Does having a wide base make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
11. 11.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) adding cross bracing (c) leaving out steel bars (d) adding steel to concrete
12. 12.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) adding cross bracing (c) using flexible joints (d) fitting rubber base pads
13. 13.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) adding cross bracing (c) adding steel to concrete (d) using a light roof
14. 14.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
15. 15.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) stacking loose bricks (d) making brittle joints
16. 16.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
17. 17.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) using a light roof (c) making brittle joints (d) building tall and narrow
18. 18.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is taller (b) it is harder to tip over (c) it is lighter (d) it is colourful
19. 19.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) having a wide base (c) using a heavy roof (d) raising heavy tanks high
20. 20.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 160 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 240 cm tall on a 40 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 B (c) tower A
21. 21.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) adding cross bracing (c) adding steel to concrete (d) raising heavy tanks high
22. 22.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding cross bracing (b) adding steel to concrete (c) making brittle joints (d) having a wide base
23. 23.🏚️ 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
24. 24.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) using a light roof (c) leaving out steel bars (d) using a heavy roof
25. 25.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
26. 26.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
27. 27.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
28. 28.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
29. 29.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) using flexible joints (c) stacking loose bricks (d) having a wide base
30. 30.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) having a wide base (c) building tall and narrow (d) using flexible joints
31. 31.🏚️ Does leaving out steel bars make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
32. 32.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
33. 33.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
34. 34.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) leaving out steel bars (c) using flexible joints (d) raising heavy tanks high
35. 35.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
36. 36.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
37. 37.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
38. 38.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 20 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
39. 39.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they bend, not break (b) they are cheap (c) they look nice (d) they stop shaking
40. 40.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) making brittle joints (b) building tall and narrow (c) having a wide base (d) raising heavy tanks high

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