Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 334 · 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.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a telescope (b) a shake table (c) a fridge (d) a microscope
2. 2.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
3. 3.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) having a wide base (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) stacking loose bricks (d) using flexible joints
4. 4.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
5. 5.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
6. 6.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 140 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
7. 7.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
8. 8.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) having a wide base (b) adding cross bracing (c) making brittle joints (d) fitting rubber base pads
9. 9.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
10. 10.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) using flexible joints (c) adding cross bracing (d) keeping a simple shape
11. 11.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
12. 12.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they bend, not break (b) they stop shaking (c) they are cheap (d) they look nice
13. 13.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) using a light roof (c) building tall and narrow (d) fitting rubber base pads
14. 14.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
15. 15.True or false: making brittle joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
16. 16.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) making brittle joints (c) using flexible joints (d) adding cross bracing
17. 17.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) stacking loose bricks (c) making brittle joints (d) building tall and narrow
18. 18.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
19. 19.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) adding cross bracing (c) stacking loose bricks (d) raising heavy tanks high
20. 20.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 40 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 200 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 30 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 safer in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) using a heavy roof (d) using flexible joints
22. 22.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
23. 23.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) stacking loose bricks (c) leaving out steel bars (d) keeping a simple shape
24. 24.🏚️ Does leaving out steel bars make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
25. 25.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
26. 26.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) adding steel to concrete (c) having a wide base (d) building tall and narrow
27. 27.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is lighter (b) it is colourful (c) it is harder to tip over (d) it is taller
28. 28.🏚️ 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 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
29. 29.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
30. 30.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 180 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 80 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 B (b) tower C (c) tower A
31. 31.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) making brittle joints (b) keeping a simple shape (c) stacking loose bricks (d) using a heavy roof
32. 32.🏚️ Does having a wide base make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
33. 33.🏚️ 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 30 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 20 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
34. 34.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a heavy roof (c) using flexible joints (d) using a light roof
35. 35.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
36. 36.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) hanging outside (b) on the very top (c) low down (d) on a thin pole
37. 37.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 40 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 30 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
38. 38.🏚️ 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 40 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 B (b) tower A (c) tower C
39. 39.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
40. 40.True or false: making brittle joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False

Free engineering lessons, practice and worksheets at talentjr.in/engineering-for-kids