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Junior Cycle · Junior Cycle Applied Technology

Junior Cycle Applied Technology: Structures, forces & stability

How often Structures, forces & stability comes up on the Applied Technology papers, every year it was asked, and questions to try.

CL Asked on 5 of the last 5 Common Level papers, most recently in 2026. banker

Structures, forces & stability, Common Level(7 marks)

Quick ones on Structures, forces & stability.

(a)The legs of a table carrying a heavy load are in?
  1. Tension
  2. Compression
  3. Torsion
(b)A plank sags when someone stands in the middle. What happens to its top surface?
  1. It is twisted round (torsion)
  2. It is stretched (tension)
  3. It is squashed (compression)
(c)What is torque?
  1. A turning force
  2. A squashing force
  3. A pulling force
Show the answers

(a) Compression

(b) It is squashed (compression)

(c) A turning force

Your turn: Common Level questions on Structures, forces & stability.

Common Level

Asked on 5 of the last 5 Common Level papers, most recently in 2026. banker

Every paper, year by year

YearWhere it came up
2026Q3c(i), Q3c(ii), Q3c(iii), Q3c(iv)
2025Q2a(i), Q2e(ii), Q3e(i), Q3e(ii)
2024Q1a(i), Q3b(i), Q3b(iii)
2023Q1e(iv), Q2a(iii), Q2b(iii)
2022Q2d(i), Q2d(ii)

Links open the State Examinations Commission’s paper for that year.

More Structures, forces & stability questions

Structures, forces & stability, 3 marks

Why does a mobile crane rest on wide pads at the ends of its outrigger legs?

  1. To lift the whole crane up higher
  2. To make the crane lighter
  3. To spread the load over more ground
Show the answer

To spread the load over more ground

Spreading the force over a bigger area lowers the pressure, so the legs do not sink into soft ground. The wide stance also keeps the crane stable while it lifts.

Structures, forces & stability, 2 marks

A steel cable holding up a bridge deck is being pulled. Which force acts in it?

  1. Torsion
  2. Tension
  3. Compression
Show the answer

Tension

Tension is a pulling (stretching) force. Cables, ropes, chains and belts can only carry tension. Compression is a squashing force.

Structures, forces & stability, 2 marks

A pair of scissors cutting paper applies which force?

  1. Shear
  2. Torsion
  3. Compression
Show the answer

Shear

Shear happens when two forces act in opposite directions close together, sliding one part past the other. Scissors, guillotines and hole punches all cut by shear.

Other Applied Technology topics

All of Junior Cycle Applied Technology