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Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 459 · 40 questions
TalentJR

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.

NameDateTime takenScore ___ / 40
  1. 1.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  2. 2.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a heavy roof (c) stacking loose bricks (d) leaving out steel bars
  3. 3.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) having a wide base (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) adding cross bracing (d) making brittle joints
  4. 4.🏚️ 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 200 cm tall on a 40 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 B (c) tower A
  5. 5.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) stacking loose bricks (c) using a heavy roof (d) raising heavy tanks high
  6. 6.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  7. 7.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) using flexible joints (c) keeping a simple shape (d) building tall and narrow
  8. 8.🏚️ 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
  9. 9.🏚️ 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 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 180 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
  10. 10.True or false: making brittle joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  11. 11.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  12. 12.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) using a heavy roof (c) using a light roof (d) adding steel to concrete
  13. 13.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) using flexible joints (d) having a wide base
  14. 14.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  15. 15.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) using flexible joints (d) building tall and narrow
  16. 16.🏚️ 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
  17. 17.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a shake table (b) a fridge (c) a microscope (d) a telescope
  18. 18.🏚️ Does raising heavy tanks high 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 safer in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) using a heavy roof (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) making brittle joints
  20. 20.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  21. 21.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 80 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
  22. 22.True or false: using a light roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  23. 23.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) making brittle joints (c) using a heavy roof (d) building tall and narrow
  24. 24.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) hanging outside (b) on a thin pole (c) on the very top (d) low down
  25. 25.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  26. 26.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) keeping a simple shape (d) using a heavy roof
  27. 27.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) using a heavy roof (c) keeping a simple shape (d) raising heavy tanks high
  28. 28.🏚️ 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 40 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
  29. 29.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
  30. 30.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) using flexible joints (c) building tall and narrow (d) having a wide base
  31. 31.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  32. 32.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) building tall and narrow (c) adding steel to concrete (d) making brittle joints
  33. 33.True or false: having a wide base makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  34. 34.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  35. 35.🏚️ 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 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 10 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
  36. 36.True or false: keeping a simple shape makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  37. 37.🏚️ 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 160 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 B (b) tower C (c) tower A
  38. 38.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) leaving out steel bars (d) using a heavy roof
  39. 39.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) making brittle joints (b) using a heavy roof (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using a light roof
  40. 40.🏚️ 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 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A

Answer key

  1. True
  2. adding steel to concrete
  3. making brittle joints
  4. tower C
  5. adding cross bracing
  6. safer in earthquakes
  7. building tall and narrow
  8. they bend, not break
  9. tower C
  10. True
  11. safer in earthquakes
  12. using a heavy roof
  13. raising heavy tanks high
  14. True
  15. using flexible joints
  16. it is harder to tip over
  17. a shake table
  18. less safe
  19. using flexible joints
  20. False
  21. tower B
  22. False
  23. fitting rubber base pads
  24. low down
  25. less safe
  26. using a heavy roof
  27. keeping a simple shape
  28. tower B
  29. less safe
  30. building tall and narrow
  31. less safe
  32. adding steel to concrete
  33. True
  34. safer in earthquakes
  35. tower C
  36. False
  37. tower C
  38. keeping a simple shape
  39. using a light roof
  40. tower C

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