Assignment # Name: Robert Buchanan Period: 2 Date: 2-12-13

www.inhabitant.com/image

Will My Building Withstand an Earthquake? Architect Frank Lloyd Wright was an innovator in designing buildings that could withstand earthquakes. For example, Wright designed the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, which withstood that citys severe 1923 earthquake with only minor damage. Many modern cities located in earthquake prone areas have enacted building codes designed to reduce damage to structures, thereby reducing the incidents of injury or death. Architects often go beyond these safety codes to ensure public safety. For example, the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco is stronger than required by the citys building code. It also has features built into its base that are designed to dramatically reduce how much the building will sway during an earthquake.

Problem: What design strategies keep structures safe in an earthquake? Hypothesis: If my structure of 19 centimeters tall can withstand an earthquake, then the design strategy of anchoring (cross bracing, using a wide base, anchoring, a low center of gravity, rigid frame, or flexible frame) will be the most important factor in keeping it safe and minimizing damage. Materials: 40 Toothpicks 5 mini marshmallows or 25 grams of clay Sheet of paper (to build structure on and put names and group number on) Procedure: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Make your hypothesis if you havent already done so. On the back or bottom of this sheet, sketch a plan how you and your partner are going to build your structure. How are you going to use the materials? Draw an example of your structure. Have the teacher check and sign off on your drawing. Before you start building get a group number___. Once the teacher has given you your group number, you may start building your model. After you have finished making your model, fill out the data table for your group below. Place your model on the counter with a piece of paper underneath it and be sure your names and group number are on it. Collect data from all the other groups so that your data table is filled out. Results: Class Data Table for Period # _____ Group Height of Width of # of Anchored to Low # model base cross the paper (yes center of (centimeters) (centimeters) braces or no) gravity (majorit y of the mass is lower than halfway down (yes or no) Rigid (clay) or Flexible (marshmallow) (choose one) Time lasted on the shake table (seconds)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11.5 8.5 10.0 19.5 15.0 13.5 9.6 13.5 6.5 14.0

6.0 4.0 9.3 13.5 4.5 5.5 6.5 7.0 8.8 13.0

4 0 0 8 3 7 6 3 9 9

No no No No No No No No Yes No

Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes

Flexible Rigid Rigid Rigid Rigid Rigid Rigid Rigid Rigid Rigid

6 2 1 1 DQ 2 10 3 5 3

11 12 13

11.0 10.0 15.5

8.0 7.5 5.5

7 5 0

No No No

Yes Yes Yes

Rigid Rigid Rigid

1 13 3

Observations of your model during shake test. (Must be qualitative and quantitative.) Our model got destroyed in 0 time. We got DQ instead of EQ. The anchor broke in 3 pieces. The crusher hit it at least 3 times. Conclusion: According to textbook pages 204- 205 base isolators, cross braces, tension ties, shear walls, dampers, and flexible pipes, are good to have during an earthquake because they are seismic- safe for building. In this lab we tested what structures could withstand an earthquake. I hypothesized that my structure of 19 centimeters, could withstand an earthquake, and the anchoring would be the most important thing to use. Over the course of 0 seconds my structure was not able to even withstand staying up at all. The structure broke before it could head over to the shake table. Then, our structure was demolished to bits by the crusher. Zero out of thirteen structures lasted the full fifteen seconds on the shake table. One out of thirteen structures used anchoring, but it lasted over the class average of three and an eighth of a second. Eight percent of the structures used anchoring. I did not do my hypothesis, so I will need to redo the lab to test if my structure with anchoring could withstand an earthquake.