Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings
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.
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- 1.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a fridge (b) a microscope (c) a telescope (d) a shake table
- 2.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) making brittle joints (b) stacking loose bricks (c) adding cross bracing (d) using a heavy roof
- 3.🏚️ 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 140 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
- 4.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) building tall and narrow (c) having a wide base (d) stacking loose bricks
- 5.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a light roof (b) having a wide base (c) stacking loose bricks (d) using flexible joints
- 6.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they stop shaking (b) they are cheap (c) they bend, not break (d) they look nice
- 7.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
- 8.🏚️ 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 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
- 9.🏚️ 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 70 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
- 10.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) leaving out steel bars (c) making brittle joints (d) using a light roof
- 11.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) building tall and narrow (d) using a heavy roof
- 12.🏚️ 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 280 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 B (b) tower C (c) tower A
- 13.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
- 14.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
- 15.🏚️ 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 60 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 280 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
- 16.🏚️ Does using a light roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
- 17.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
- 18.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 10 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 80 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 A (b) tower B (c) tower C
- 19.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) having a wide base (c) adding cross bracing (d) making brittle joints
- 20.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) on a thin pole (b) on the very top (c) hanging outside (d) low down
- 21.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
- 22.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) having a wide base (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) leaving out steel bars
- 23.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
- 24.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a heavy roof (c) using flexible joints (d) adding cross bracing
- 25.🏚️ Does having a wide base make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
- 26.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
- 27.🏚️ Does keeping a simple shape make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
- 28.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) making brittle joints (c) using a light roof (d) using a heavy roof
- 29.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) adding steel to concrete (c) using flexible joints (d) having a wide base
- 30.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
- 31.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
- 32.🏚️ 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 30 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 20 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
- 33.🏚️ 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 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
- 34.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is taller (b) it is lighter (c) it is colourful (d) it is harder to tip over
- 35.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) building tall and narrow (b) making brittle joints (c) leaving out steel bars (d) using flexible joints
- 36.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) keeping a simple shape (d) adding cross bracing
- 37.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
- 38.True or false: using a light roof makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
- 39.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) using flexible joints (c) adding cross bracing (d) having a wide base
- 40.🏚️ 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 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
Answer key
- a shake table
- adding cross bracing
- tower B
- having a wide base
- stacking loose bricks
- they bend, not break
- True
- tower C
- tower B
- using a light roof
- adding steel to concrete
- tower A
- True
- safer in earthquakes
- tower C
- safer in earthquakes
- False
- tower C
- making brittle joints
- low down
- less safe
- leaving out steel bars
- True
- using a heavy roof
- safer in earthquakes
- True
- safer in earthquakes
- using a light roof
- leaving out steel bars
- less safe
- False
- tower A
- tower A
- it is harder to tip over
- using flexible joints
- raising heavy tanks high
- safer in earthquakes
- True
- stacking loose bricks
- tower B
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