science Earthquakes

Introduction: The earth’s crust is made up of pieces of rock called plate tectonics that are always moving. Slowly sliding around, sliding past one another and bumping into each other. This constant movement causes pressure to build up between two plates, until it suddenly breaks were the plates meet. This is called a fault line. When the rock breaks energy is released in seismic waves that radiate from where the earthquake starts, a place called the focus. These Seismic waves are what cause the intense shaking at the Earth’s surface that can cause buildings and roads to collapse. All across the world governments are going to great lengths to ensure the safety of their citizens by building resistant structures that are designed to withstand earthquakes and prevent the immense damage their shock waves do.

Body:
To build are earthquake proof structure that is able to withstand the sudden movements, many components must be added to the design. These include; a lightweight roof, Light floors, Tall structures, trusses and base isolators.
Lightweight roof: Where possible the roof should be made of light-weight material. It should be a flexible material too, able to move with the shock waves but strong enough to not fall apart and remain in place after the worst shock waves and retain strength for the aftershocks. The lighter the roof the less pressure there is on the foundation during the earthquake, preventing it from caving in and crushing its occupations.
Taller structures: The taller a building is, the more structurally sound it is because it is more flexible. This means that less energy is required to keep it from toppling or collapsing when the earth’s shaking makes it sway. A shorter building has a more rigid structure which will crumble and collapse during the movement caused by an earthquake.
Truss: Reinforcement is a key part of building an earthquake proof structure. Trusses are strategically placed diagonal beams usually found on the base of