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.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
- 2.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
- 3.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
- 4.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) building tall and narrow (b) stacking loose bricks (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) adding cross bracing
- 5.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 150 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 90 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
- 6.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) having a wide base (c) using a light roof (d) building tall and narrow
- 7.True or false: having a wide base makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
- 8.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) using a light roof (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) leaving out steel bars
- 9.🏚️ Does making brittle joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
- 10.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) having a wide base (b) leaving out steel bars (c) making brittle joints (d) raising heavy tanks high
- 11.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) making brittle joints (b) using flexible joints (c) leaving out steel bars (d) building tall and narrow
- 12.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
- 13.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a light roof (b) stacking loose bricks (c) adding cross bracing (d) using flexible joints
- 14.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
- 15.True or false: adding steel to concrete makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
- 16.🏚️ 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 240 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
- 17.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a telescope (b) a fridge (c) a microscope (d) a shake table
- 18.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 150 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 160 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower C (c) tower B
- 19.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) on the very top (b) low down (c) hanging outside (d) on a thin pole
- 20.🏚️ 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 140 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 80 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
- 21.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) leaving out steel bars (c) adding steel to concrete (d) using a light roof
- 22.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a heavy roof (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) keeping a simple shape (d) having a wide base
- 23.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
- 24.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) making brittle joints (c) raising heavy tanks high (d) building tall and narrow
- 25.🏚️ 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 120 cm tall on a 20 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 C (c) tower B
- 26.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is lighter (b) it is taller (c) it is colourful (d) it is harder to tip over
- 27.🏚️ Does leaving out steel bars make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
- 28.🏚️ Does using a light roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
- 29.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 70 cm tall on a 10 cm wide base, tower B is 120 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
- 30.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) using a light roof (b) using a heavy roof (c) having a wide base (d) using flexible joints
- 31.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they are cheap (b) they bend, not break (c) they stop shaking (d) they look nice
- 32.🏚️ 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 150 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 30 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
- 33.True or false: using a heavy roof makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
- 34.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) fitting rubber base pads (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) building tall and narrow (d) stacking loose bricks
- 35.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
- 36.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) fitting rubber base pads (c) adding steel to concrete (d) adding cross bracing
- 37.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 40 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base and tower C is 60 cm tall on a 30 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower C (c) tower A
- 38.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) making brittle joints (c) having a wide base (d) keeping a simple shape
- 39.True or false: stacking loose bricks makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
- 40.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) stacking loose bricks (b) making brittle joints (c) having a wide base (d) using a heavy roof
Answer key
- True
- safer in earthquakes
- safer in earthquakes
- adding cross bracing
- tower C
- building tall and narrow
- True
- using a light roof
- less safe
- having a wide base
- using flexible joints
- safer in earthquakes
- stacking loose bricks
- tower A
- True
- tower A
- a shake table
- tower A
- low down
- tower C
- leaving out steel bars
- using a heavy roof
- True
- adding steel to concrete
- tower B
- it is harder to tip over
- less safe
- safer in earthquakes
- tower A
- using a heavy roof
- they bend, not break
- tower A
- True
- fitting rubber base pads
- False
- leaving out steel bars
- tower B
- making brittle joints
- False
- having a wide base
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