Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 389 · 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.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
2. 2.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they look nice (b) they bend, not break (c) they are cheap (d) they stop shaking
3. 3.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 60 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 210 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 C (b) tower B (c) tower A
4. 4.🏚️ Does leaving out steel bars make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
5. 5.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
6. 6.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
7. 7.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
8. 8.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) using a heavy roof (d) stacking loose bricks
9. 9.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) on a thin pole (b) hanging outside (c) on the very top (d) low down
10. 10.True or false: having a wide base makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
11. 11.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 210 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
12. 12.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
13. 13.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) adding cross bracing (c) leaving out steel bars (d) making brittle joints
14. 14.🏚️ 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 210 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 A (b) tower B (c) tower C
15. 15.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) making brittle joints (c) using flexible joints (d) using a heavy roof
16. 16.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a fridge (b) a shake table (c) a microscope (d) a telescope
17. 17.True or false: making brittle joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
18. 18.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
19. 19.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) using a heavy roof (c) adding steel to concrete (d) using flexible joints
20. 20.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) building tall and narrow (c) keeping a simple shape (d) stacking loose bricks
21. 21.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) leaving out steel bars (d) keeping a simple shape
22. 22.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) making brittle joints (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) using a light roof
23. 23.🏚️ Does raising heavy tanks high make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
24. 24.True or false: using a light roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
25. 25.🏚️ 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 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
26. 26.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) adding steel to concrete (c) keeping a simple shape (d) having a wide base
27. 27.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) using a light roof (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) leaving out steel bars
28. 28.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) adding steel to concrete (c) stacking loose bricks (d) using flexible joints
29. 29.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 60 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 320 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
30. 30.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) adding cross bracing (c) building tall and narrow (d) adding steel to concrete
31. 31.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) adding cross bracing (d) stacking loose bricks
32. 32.True or false: using a light roof makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
33. 33.🏚️ Does using a heavy roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
34. 34.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
35. 35.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) leaving out steel bars (c) having a wide base (d) raising heavy tanks high
36. 36.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is harder to tip over (b) it is lighter (c) it is colourful (d) it is taller
37. 37.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) having a wide base (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) making brittle joints
38. 38.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
39. 39.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) keeping a simple shape (d) making brittle joints
40. 40.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False

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