Disaster And Failure Final
.
- 1.A Truss is a
- A.
A load bearing column that holds a bridge up
- B.
A strongly held anchor a bridge is secured with
- C.
Lattice works used to relieve the deck of tension and compression forces
- D.
Span between piers which caries a live load
- 2.To design and build a safe bridge, an engineer must understand all of the following except
- A.
The forces caused by things that interact with the bridge
- B.
How the materials will react to the forces over the life of the bridge
- C.
The force of gravity
- D.
Aesthetically pleasing architecture
- 3.The relative ease of using the materials wood, stone, concrete and steel (From poorest to best) are
- A.
Wood, stone, concrete, steel
- B.
Stone, steel, concrete, wood
- C.
Wood, concrete, steel, stone
- D.
Stone, steel, wood, concrete
- 4.Which bridge is best suited for carrying heave loads such as trains
- A.
Suspension
- B.
Arch
- C.
Cable-stayed
- D.
Cantilever
- 5.One o the major problems leading to the Tay Bridge Disaster of 1879 was
- A.
Use of poor steel quality
- B.
Use of pier and beam bridge where a truss bridge was called for
- C.
Lack of inspection during construction as well as after the bridge went into service
- D.
The hiring of an incompetent job foreman
- 6.Which of the following was NOT a major factor in the Quebec bridge construction disaster
- A.
Attempts to cut construction costs
- B.
Lack of on site experience personal
- C.
Use of substandard quality materials
- D.
Failure to test design changes
- 7.Torsion forces tend to
- A.
Tear structures apart (like two people pulling your arms in opposite directions)
- B.
Push structures in on themselves (like the crushing effect of a head-on car collision)
- C.
Twist structures apart (like having the top half of your body twisted in one direction and the bottom half twisted in the opposite way)
- D.
Tear structures like ripping pages
- 8.Static equilibrium refers to forces which
- A.
Equal force pushing in opposite directions that exactly balance each other
- B.
Balance achieved with electromagnetic forces
- C.
Are stronger than gravitational forces
- D.
Result from the dead load of a bridge
- 9.Which of the following statements concerning the Silver Bridge Disaster (1967) is NOT true
- A.
It was the worst bridge disaster in US history
- B.
It was sort of, but not exactly, a suspension bridge
- C.
It was aggravated by heavy Christmas Traffic
- D.
The resulting bridge inspection program continues to ensure safe bridge today
- 10.The Tacoma Narrows Bridge Disaster (1940) was due, in part, to
- A.
The use of excessively wide deck spans
- B.
The construction material was too light
- C.
Ice build up around the piers in cold weather
- D.
The difficulty in securing the 2 cantilever arms
- 11.A hypothesis is
- A.
Plan
- B.
Fact
- C.
Theory
- D.
Law of nature
- 12.Systematic error in a set of measurements is usually the result of....
- A.
Some limitation in the data collection process
- B.
Some uniform problems in the data collection
- C.
Improper measurement techniques
- D.
A problem with the system being observed
- 13.Which of the following is NOT a category of knowledge gained by studying disasters according to our class notes?
- A.
How we build things
- B.
The quality of our technical education system
- C.
Our understanding of science
- D.
Insight into ourselves
- 14.A suspicious coin comes up head 70 times in 100 flips. What is a good estimate for the probability of heads occuring
- A.
30%
- B.
50%
- C.
70%
- D.
Can't decide on the basis of the data provided
- 15.A scientist is most apt to engage in which of the following activities
- A.
Advancing our understanding of natural phenomena
- B.
Only accepting what can be proven true
- C.
Application of knowledge to solve problems
- D.
Arguing the absolute truth of strongly held beliefs
- 16.Random error is usually addressed by
- A.
Using better equipment
- B.
Rounding the least significant measured digits
- C.
Taking fewer measurements
- D.
Taking more measurements
- 17.In testing a hypothesis, if discrepancies between the tests and hypothesis occur one may have too...
- A.
Modify the hypothesis to account for the new behavior discovered in testing
- B.
Abandon the hypothesis for being wrong
- C.
Use a different set of test for the hypothesis
- D.
Ignore the data not fitting the hypothesis
- 18.For normally distributed values, approximately how many fall within 1 standard deviation of the mean
- A.
68%
- B.
80%
- C.
95%
- D.
99%
- 19.All but ONE of the following represent some of the tools used in testing a hypothesis. Which one isn't?
- A.
Perform a simulation of the problem
- B.
Report the problem in scholarly journals in the hope that someone else has solved it
- C.
Use of models or prototypes
- D.
Use of well-accept scientific laws
- 20.If there is a 5% chance of some event occurring, then the probability of occurrence is...
- A.
5
- B.
.5
- C.
.05
- D.
.005
- 21.The apollo 13 accident started with
- A.
Capsule tiles loosened during liftoff
- B.
Human error during a guidance maneuver
- C.
Loss of battery power in the lunar module
- D.
The explosion of 1 of 2 oxygen tanks
- 22.The order (First to last) of the US space programs
- A.
Mercury, gemini, Apollo
- B.
Mercury, Apollo, Gemini
- C.
Gemini, Mercury, Apollo
- D.
Gemini, Apollo, Mercury
- 23.The shuttle has prove to have?
- A.
A effort of limited engineering success
- B.
Provided great insight into interplanetary flight
- C.
Be costly to than earlier launch vehicles
- D.
A string of disasters similar to those of Apollo
- 24.Prior to the use of shuttles, American astronauts were recovered using which technique
- A.
Flying a capsule to Edwards AFB
- B.
Parachuting a capsule to an ocean landing
- C.
Parachuting a capsule onto land
- D.
Parachuting a capsule onto an aircraft carrier
- 25.NASA has been criticized in both the Apollo and shuttle disasters for
- A.
Lacking talented engineers and scientists
- B.
Fixing problems after they arise rather than avoiding them in the first place
- C.
Over reliance on outside review panels
- D.
"Sweeping problems under the rug"- that is, ignoring them until it is too late
Questions: 35 | Attempts: 1196 | Last updated: Jan 8, 2021
-
Sample QuestionWho may be asked to contribute data to Form 5266 on relief operations?
Questions: 7 | Attempts: 651 | Last updated: Oct 28, 2020
-
Sample QuestionTornadoes can negatively affect an ecosystem when -
Questions: 15 | Attempts: 536 | Last updated: Feb 13, 2012
-
Sample QuestionA fine powder is released when photocopier is loaded.
Back to top