Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 43 · 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.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they stop shaking (b) they look nice (c) they bend, not break (d) they are cheap
2. 2.True or false: stacking loose bricks makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
3. 3.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) using a heavy roof (c) stacking loose bricks (d) having a wide base
4. 4.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) building tall and narrow (c) keeping a simple shape (d) having a wide base
5. 5.🏚️ 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 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
6. 6.True or false: having a wide base makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
7. 7.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) using a heavy roof (c) building tall and narrow (d) adding cross bracing
8. 8.True or false: having a wide base makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
9. 9.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 80 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
10. 10.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) building tall and narrow (c) stacking loose bricks (d) making brittle joints
11. 11.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) making brittle joints (c) using a light roof (d) having a wide base
12. 12.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) on a thin pole (b) low down (c) hanging outside (d) on the very top
13. 13.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) adding steel to concrete (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) keeping a simple shape
14. 14.🏚️ 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 50 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 A (c) tower C
15. 15.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) having a wide base (b) using flexible joints (c) stacking loose bricks (d) using a light roof
16. 16.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
17. 17.🏚️ 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 40 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 A (c) tower B
18. 18.🏚️ Does keeping a simple shape make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
19. 19.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding cross bracing (b) using flexible joints (c) building tall and narrow (d) having a wide base
20. 20.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 120 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 180 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
21. 21.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) keeping a simple shape (c) using flexible joints (d) fitting rubber base pads
22. 22.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) leaving out steel bars (d) stacking loose bricks
23. 23.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
24. 24.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
25. 25.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
26. 26.🏚️ Does using a heavy roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
27. 27.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) adding steel to concrete (c) leaving out steel bars (d) using a light roof
28. 28.🏚️ 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 70 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
29. 29.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
30. 30.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
31. 31.🏚️ 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 40 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
32. 32.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing 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 60 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 320 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
34. 34.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) leaving out steel bars (d) making brittle joints
35. 35.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) having a wide base (c) using a light roof (d) raising heavy tanks high
36. 36.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
37. 37.True or false: making brittle joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
38. 38.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
39. 39.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
40. 40.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a light roof (b) using flexible joints (c) using a heavy roof (d) adding steel to concrete

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