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Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 321 · 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.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  2. 2.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  3. 3.True or false: using a light roof makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  4. 4.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
  5. 5.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) leaving out steel bars (c) adding cross bracing (d) fitting rubber base pads
  6. 6.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) building tall and narrow (c) stacking loose bricks (d) leaving out steel bars
  7. 7.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) hanging outside (b) on a thin pole (c) low down (d) on the very top
  8. 8.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) using a heavy roof (d) using flexible joints
  9. 9.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) building tall and narrow (c) using flexible joints (d) using a light roof
  10. 10.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
  11. 11.🏚️ 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 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 180 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
  12. 12.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) having a wide base (c) leaving out steel bars (d) using flexible joints
  13. 13.True or false: having a wide base makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  14. 14.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  15. 15.🏚️ 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 20 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 B (b) tower C (c) tower A
  16. 16.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a fridge (b) a telescope (c) a microscope (d) a shake table
  17. 17.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using flexible joints (c) using a light roof (d) building tall and narrow
  18. 18.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  19. 19.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 200 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 B (b) tower A (c) tower C
  20. 20.True or false: making brittle joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  21. 21.🏚️ 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
  22. 22.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) having a wide base (c) making brittle joints (d) building tall and narrow
  23. 23.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  24. 24.🏚️ 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 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
  25. 25.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) having a wide base (d) adding cross bracing
  26. 26.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) stacking loose bricks (d) leaving out steel bars
  27. 27.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  28. 28.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) having a wide base (c) stacking loose bricks (d) using a light roof
  29. 29.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) leaving out steel bars (c) making brittle joints (d) adding cross bracing
  30. 30.🏚️ 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 140 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 180 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
  31. 31.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  32. 32.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they stop shaking (b) they bend, not break (c) they are cheap (d) they look nice
  33. 33.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 140 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 180 cm tall on a 30 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
  34. 34.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a heavy roof (c) stacking loose bricks (d) making brittle joints
  35. 35.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  36. 36.🏚️ 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 40 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
  37. 37.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  39. 39.🏚️ Does having a wide base make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  40. 40.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 10 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 40 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C

Answer key

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

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