Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 368 · 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.🏚️ 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
2. 2.🏚️ Does raising heavy tanks high make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
3. 3.🏚️ Does using a light roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
4. 4.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
5. 5.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
6. 6.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is colourful (b) it is harder to tip over (c) it is lighter (d) it is taller
7. 7.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
8. 8.🏚️ 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 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 10 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
9. 9.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
10. 10.True or false: having a wide base makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
11. 11.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 60 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
12. 12.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a light roof (c) using flexible joints (d) stacking loose bricks
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 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 10 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
14. 14.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) adding cross bracing (c) having a wide base (d) leaving out steel bars
15. 15.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) using a light roof (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using a heavy roof
16. 16.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) keeping a simple shape (c) having a wide base (d) fitting rubber base pads
17. 17.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 240 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 90 cm tall on a 30 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 C (c) tower B
18. 18.🏚️ 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 200 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
19. 19.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
20. 20.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
21. 21.🏚️ 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 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
22. 22.🏚️ 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 40 cm tall on a 10 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
23. 23.True or false: making brittle joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
24. 24.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) making brittle joints (c) building tall and narrow (d) stacking loose bricks
25. 25.True or false: using a light roof makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
26. 26.🏚️ 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 20 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
27. 27.🏚️ 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 20 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 B (b) tower A (c) tower C
28. 28.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they stop shaking (b) they look nice (c) they are cheap (d) they bend, not break
29. 29.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
30. 30.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) having a wide base (c) using a light roof (d) building tall and narrow
31. 31.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) making brittle joints (b) using a heavy roof (c) adding steel to concrete (d) building tall and narrow
32. 32.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) having a wide base (c) stacking loose bricks (d) building tall and narrow
33. 33.🏚️ Does keeping a simple shape make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
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) keeping a simple shape
35. 35.True or false: leaving out steel bars makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
36. 36.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a telescope (b) a fridge (c) a microscope (d) a shake table
37. 37.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding cross bracing (b) making brittle joints (c) keeping a simple shape (d) using flexible joints
38. 38.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using flexible joints (b) having a wide base (c) using a heavy roof (d) adding steel to concrete
39. 39.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
40. 40.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) making brittle joints (b) stacking loose bricks (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) building tall and narrow

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