Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Gimme Shelter 2012 - Hurricane Proof Houses

Project Based Lab: Building a Hurricane Proof House



(Click on the first picture to flip through the Seminole Ridge students building Hurricane Proof Houses on April 10-11, 2012)

Hurricane-Resistant House Demonstration, where student teams construct houses using specified paper and plastic materials to determine the strength of the structures against hurricane-force winds using an electrical or gas-powered leaf blower.

Mr. Landstrom's students were asked to design and build the most wind resistant building you can construct, using the materials provided: "drywall" from two (2) sheets of paper (21.5 by 28.0 cm), lumber from six (6) popsicle sticks (11.5 cm), aluminum siding from one (1) sheet of foil (35.5 cm by 26.0 cm), and adhesives from six (6) pieces of masking tape (random sizes). Their home need to cover an area of at least 500 square centimeters, and students showed their blueprints and calculations before construction.

Lab Notes: Hurricane in a Classroom
Music: Stereogum and tape9 - Lockdown Shelter