Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 311 · 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 160 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 180 cm tall on a 30 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
2. 2.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) building tall and narrow (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) adding cross bracing
3. 3.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) stacking loose bricks (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) raising heavy tanks high
4. 4.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) on a thin pole (b) on the very top (c) hanging outside (d) low down
5. 5.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they are cheap (b) they look nice (c) they bend, not break (d) they stop shaking
6. 6.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
7. 7.🏚️ 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 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
8. 8.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) stacking loose bricks (c) adding cross bracing (d) fitting rubber base pads
9. 9.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) making brittle joints (c) stacking loose bricks (d) using a heavy roof
10. 10.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 30 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
11. 11.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
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.🏚️ 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 20 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 30 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.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
15. 15.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is colourful (b) it is lighter (c) it is harder to tip over (d) it is taller
16. 16.🏚️ 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 40 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
17. 17.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) adding cross bracing (c) using a heavy roof (d) leaving out steel bars
18. 18.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) using flexible joints (c) adding cross bracing (d) using a light roof
19. 19.True or false: stacking loose bricks makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
20. 20.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
21. 21.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) making brittle joints (b) building tall and narrow (c) adding steel to concrete (d) using a heavy roof
22. 22.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 40 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
23. 23.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 240 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
24. 24.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
25. 25.🏚️ 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 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 70 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
26. 26.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) stacking loose bricks (d) making brittle joints
27. 27.🏚️ Does leaving out steel bars make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
28. 28.🏚️ Does using a heavy roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
29. 29.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
30. 30.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) making brittle joints (b) having a wide base (c) leaving out steel bars (d) stacking loose bricks
31. 31.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) having a wide base (c) adding steel to concrete (d) using a light roof
32. 32.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a shake table (b) a fridge (c) a microscope (d) a telescope
33. 33.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
34. 34.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) using flexible joints (c) leaving out steel bars (d) having a wide base
35. 35.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) using a heavy roof (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) making brittle joints
36. 36.🏚️ Does having a wide base make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
37. 37.True or false: using a light roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
38. 38.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using flexible joints (b) having a wide base (c) adding steel to concrete (d) raising heavy tanks high
39. 39.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 60 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 C (b) tower B (c) tower A
40. 40.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using flexible joints

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