Engineering Worksheet: Earthquake-Safe Buildings

Engineering lesson 21: Earthquake-safe buildings · Set 847 · 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 90 cm tall on a 30 cm wide base, tower B is 70 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 100 cm tall on a 20 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
2. 2.🏚️ Does keeping a simple shape make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
3. 3.🏚️ Does fitting rubber base pads make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
4. 4.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
5. 5.🏚️ 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 160 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 C (b) tower B (c) tower A
6. 6.🏚️ Where should heavy water tanks go in a quake zone? (a) low down (b) on the very top (c) hanging outside (d) on a thin pole
7. 7.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) adding cross bracing (c) using a heavy roof (d) keeping a simple shape
8. 8.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 60 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 100 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
9. 9.True or false: making brittle joints makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
10. 10.🏚️ Why are flexible joints good in an earthquake? (a) they look nice (b) they bend, not break (c) they stop shaking (d) they are cheap
11. 11.🏚️ 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 150 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 A (c) tower C
12. 12.🏚️ 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 60 cm tall on a 10 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 A (c) tower C
13. 13.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) having a wide base (c) using a light roof (d) using a heavy roof
14. 14.🏚️ Why is a wide base safer? (a) it is colourful (b) it is lighter (c) it is taller (d) it is harder to tip over
15. 15.🏚️ 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 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base and tower C is 120 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
16. 16.True or false: fitting rubber base pads makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
17. 17.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) building tall and narrow (d) fitting rubber base pads
18. 18.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) adding steel to concrete (b) keeping a simple shape (c) building tall and narrow (d) fitting rubber base pads
19. 19.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using a light roof (b) adding cross bracing (c) adding steel to concrete (d) raising heavy tanks high
20. 20.Which of these makes a building safer in earthquakes? (a) leaving out steel bars (b) building tall and narrow (c) stacking loose bricks (d) having a wide base
21. 21.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) keeping a simple shape (b) having a wide base (c) building tall and narrow (d) adding cross bracing
22. 22.🏚️ Does building tall and narrow make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
23. 23.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) adding cross bracing (b) raising heavy tanks high (c) stacking loose bricks (d) making brittle joints
24. 24.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 280 cm tall on a 40 cm wide base, tower B is 60 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 A (b) tower B (c) tower C
25. 25.True or false: stacking loose bricks makes a building less safe in earthquakes. (a) True (b) False
26. 26.True or false: building tall and narrow makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
27. 27.🏚️ 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 90 cm tall on a 30 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
28. 28.🏚️ Does adding cross bracing make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) safer in earthquakes (b) less safe
29. 29.True or false: using flexible joints makes a building safer in earthquakes. (a) False (b) True
30. 30.🏚️ 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 50 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower B (c) tower A
31. 31.🏚️ 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 60 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower A (b) tower B (c) tower C
32. 32.🏚️ 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 60 cm tall on a 20 cm base and tower C is 200 cm tall on a 40 cm base. Which is the easiest to tip over? (a) tower C (b) tower A (c) tower B
33. 33.🏚️ What do engineers use to test models of buildings for earthquakes? (a) a microscope (b) a shake table (c) a telescope (d) a fridge
34. 34.🏚️ Does stacking loose bricks make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
35. 35.🏚️ Does using a heavy roof make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
36. 36.🏚️ Does using flexible joints make a building safer or less safe in an earthquake? (a) less safe (b) safer in earthquakes
37. 37.🏚️ Three solid model towers are made of the same material. Tower A is 60 cm tall on a 20 cm wide base, tower B is 60 cm tall on a 30 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
38. 38.🏚️ 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 210 cm tall on a 30 cm base and tower C is 40 cm tall on a 10 cm base. Which is the hardest to tip over? (a) tower B (b) tower A (c) tower C
39. 39.Which of these makes a building less safe in earthquakes? (a) using flexible joints (b) using a light roof (c) stacking loose bricks (d) adding steel to concrete
40. 40.🔍 Which is the odd one out? (a) raising heavy tanks high (b) having a wide base (c) using flexible joints (d) adding steel to concrete

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