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Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 573 · 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.

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  1. 1.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  2. 2.🏚️ 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 20 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
  3. 3.True or false: stacking loose bricks makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  4. 4.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  5. 5.🏚️ 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
  6. 6.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using flexible joints (b) adding cross bracing (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) building tall and narrow
  7. 7.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) having a wide base (c) using a heavy roof (d) using flexible joints
  8. 8.True or false: raising heavy tanks high makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  9. 9.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they bend, not break (b) they are cheap (c) they stop shaking (d) they look nice
  10. 10.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
  11. 11.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) using a light roof (c) using flexible joints (d) stacking loose bricks
  12. 12.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) adding steel to concrete (c) adding cross bracing (d) building tall and narrow
  13. 13.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  14. 14.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) making brittle joints (b) using flexible joints (c) having a wide base (d) fitting rubber base pads
  15. 15.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) using a light roof (c) having a wide base (d) leaving out steel bars
  16. 16.🏚️ Does adding steel to concrete make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  17. 17.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  18. 18.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  19. 19.🏚️ 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 50 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 C (b) tower B (c) tower A
  20. 20.🏚️ 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 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
  21. 21.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
  22. 22.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
  23. 23.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  24. 24.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) making brittle joints (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) fitting rubber base pads (d) leaving out steel bars
  25. 25.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) having a wide base (b) leaving out steel bars (c) stacking loose bricks (d) raising heavy tanks high
  26. 26.🏚️ Does keeping a simple shape make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
  27. 27.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 210 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
  28. 28.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) using a heavy roof (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using a light roof
  29. 29.True or false: having a wide base makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  30. 30.🏚️ 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 140 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
  31. 31.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a telescope (b) a shake table (c) a microscope (d) a fridge
  32. 32.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
  33. 33.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) making brittle joints (b) building tall and narrow (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) using flexible joints
  34. 34.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a heavy roof (b) adding steel to concrete (c) building tall and narrow (d) stacking loose bricks
  35. 35.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
  36. 36.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  37. 37.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
  38. 38.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) stacking loose bricks (c) keeping a simple shape (d) using flexible joints
  39. 39.True or false: adding cross bracing makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
  40. 40.🏚️ 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 20 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

Answer key

  1. safer in earthquakes
  2. tower C
  3. True
  4. less safe
  5. low down
  6. building tall and narrow
  7. using a heavy roof
  8. False
  9. they bend, not break
  10. tower B
  11. stacking loose bricks
  12. building tall and narrow
  13. False
  14. making brittle joints
  15. leaving out steel bars
  16. safer in earthquakes
  17. True
  18. less safe
  19. tower C
  20. tower B
  21. safer in earthquakes
  22. tower A
  23. False
  24. fitting rubber base pads
  25. having a wide base
  26. safer in earthquakes
  27. tower B
  28. using a light roof
  29. True
  30. tower B
  31. a shake table
  32. tower B
  33. using flexible joints
  34. adding steel to concrete
  35. safer in earthquakes
  36. False
  37. False
  38. stacking loose bricks
  39. True
  40. tower B

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