True or false: When engineers design buildings to withstand earthquakes, they need to consider how big the loads will be on the buildings.

• True
• False

True or false: In an earthquake area, the way a building is constructed is more important than its age or weight.

• True
• False

True or false: Heaviest buildings are always the most stable.

• True
• False

When engineers plan their designs for any building they have to be sure that it won’t fall down. Look at the diagram below. From your experiences in the classroom when you built structures to support sandbags, which shape do you think engineers would find helps to give the most strength and stability to their designs for buildings?

• square
• rectangle
• triangle
• circle

Engineers also have to consider the effects of different types of loads (forces) on the building. Which of these four loads does not change from day to day?

• The dead load—the weight of all the building materials
• The live load—the weight of the furniture and people in the building
• The horizontal load—external forces such as wind
• The snow load—the weight of snow that falls on the building

Which of the following forces are NOT important to consider when developing a building able to withstand a severe earthquake?

• Torsion

• Magnetic

• Compression

• Tension

• Bending