Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 44 · 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.🏚️ 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 80 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 C (b) tower A (c) tower B
2. 2.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) adding cross bracing (c) stacking loose bricks (d) leaving out steel bars
3. 3.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is colourful (b) it is taller (c) it is harder to tip over (d) it is lighter
4. 4.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a telescope (b) a microscope (c) a shake table (d) a fridge
5. 5.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) using a heavy roof (c) using a light roof (d) having a wide base
6. 6.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) using a light roof (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) adding steel to concrete
7. 7.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
8. 8.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a light roof (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) stacking loose bricks
9. 9.🏚️ 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 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
10. 10.🏚️ 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
11. 11.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) leaving out steel bars (c) adding steel to concrete (d) raising heavy tanks high
12. 12.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
13. 13.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) building tall and narrow (c) stacking loose bricks (d) adding cross bracing
14. 14.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 200 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
15. 15.🏚️ 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 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
16. 16.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) leaving out steel bars (c) keeping a simple shape (d) stacking loose bricks
17. 17.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) using flexible joints (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using a heavy roof
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.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they look nice (b) they stop shaking (c) they are cheap (d) they bend, not break
20. 20.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding cross bracing (b) having a wide base (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) building tall and narrow
21. 21.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) building tall and narrow (c) leaving out steel bars (d) fitting rubber base pads
22. 22.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) making brittle joints (d) having a wide base
23. 23.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
24. 24.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
25. 25.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
26. 26.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
27. 27.🏚️ 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 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
28. 28.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
29. 29.🏚️ 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 10 cm tall on a 10 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
30. 30.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) having a wide base (b) using a light roof (c) adding cross bracing (d) leaving out steel bars
31. 31.🏚️ 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 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 280 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
32. 32.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) adding steel to concrete (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) raising heavy tanks high
33. 33.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) using a light roof (c) stacking loose bricks (d) using a heavy roof
34. 34.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a light roof (b) using a heavy roof (c) adding steel to concrete (d) using flexible joints
35. 35.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding cross bracing (b) using a light roof (c) adding steel to concrete (d) leaving out steel bars
36. 36.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
37. 37.🏚️ Does having a wide base make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
38. 38.🏚️ 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 100 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 B (b) tower C (c) tower A
39. 39.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
40. 40.🏚️ Does raising heavy tanks high make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe

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