Never Buy a Pet: Spending money is a form of support
In the Never Buy a Pet project, my class made dog houses using physics concepts or eco-friendly designs. We did this in groups, and my group was made up of Zach, Savannah, and Alex. We all made prototypes before we came into our groups, and then got to choose the best parts from each blueprint to incorporate into the final design. Our final doghouse includes a green roof, and thermodynamics to maximize heat and cooling efficiency.
My first design:
This is a picture of my personal design's prototype and blueprint. My prototype included the physics concept of thermodynamics, and the eco-friendly design feature of adobe bricks. It was modeled after an adobe house, or pueblo. Here is a short description of my doghouse's features:
The physics concept that I used for my doghouse is thermodynamics, and in specific, heat absorption. I chose to include it in my doghouse design because it will cause the bricks at the bottom of the doghouse to heat. The bricks will absorb the sun’s heat from the windows on the sides of the doghouse and the open roof on the top. The sun will shine on the bricks all day, and the dog will be warm through the night. During the early day, they will have cooled until the cycle starts again. My doghouse also incorporates an eco-friendly design. The aforementioned bricks will be made out of adobe, as will the actual structure. For the walls of the structure, the adobe bricks will be covered in a mud based mortar, but the floor’s bricks will not be covered. Adobe bricks are eco-friendly because they are made from mud, sand, clay, and straw.
The physics concept that I used for my doghouse is thermodynamics, and in specific, heat absorption. I chose to include it in my doghouse design because it will cause the bricks at the bottom of the doghouse to heat. The bricks will absorb the sun’s heat from the windows on the sides of the doghouse and the open roof on the top. The sun will shine on the bricks all day, and the dog will be warm through the night. During the early day, they will have cooled until the cycle starts again. My doghouse also incorporates an eco-friendly design. The aforementioned bricks will be made out of adobe, as will the actual structure. For the walls of the structure, the adobe bricks will be covered in a mud based mortar, but the floor’s bricks will not be covered. Adobe bricks are eco-friendly because they are made from mud, sand, clay, and straw.
Our final designs:
This is my group's final design. We incorporated the brick floor and sunroof from my doghouse, and the green roof and shape from my group member's. Here is the short description that we wrote for the combined components of the doghouse:
A physics concept that our doghouse utilizes is thermodynamics, and in specific heat absorption. This will be achieved because of the bricks that we will use to build the bottom of the doghouse. The sun will shine on the bricks all day, and the dog will be warm through the night, sleeping on the bricks. During the early day, they will have cooled until the cycle starts again. This is also eco-friendly, because the bricks that will be used will be adobe bricks. Adobe bricks are eco-friendly because they are made from mud, sand, clay, and straw, which are all available naturally. Another eco-friendly feature that our design incorporates is a green roof. That will include dirt and plants on our roof, and on a trellis leaning on one of the walls. The plants that we will use will be different colors of petunias for the roof, and clematis konigskind climadors (a breed of clematis) for the trellis. Some of the key environmental benefits from having a green roof include:
A physics concept that our doghouse utilizes is thermodynamics, and in specific heat absorption. This will be achieved because of the bricks that we will use to build the bottom of the doghouse. The sun will shine on the bricks all day, and the dog will be warm through the night, sleeping on the bricks. During the early day, they will have cooled until the cycle starts again. This is also eco-friendly, because the bricks that will be used will be adobe bricks. Adobe bricks are eco-friendly because they are made from mud, sand, clay, and straw, which are all available naturally. Another eco-friendly feature that our design incorporates is a green roof. That will include dirt and plants on our roof, and on a trellis leaning on one of the walls. The plants that we will use will be different colors of petunias for the roof, and clematis konigskind climadors (a breed of clematis) for the trellis. Some of the key environmental benefits from having a green roof include:
- insulative qualities, which means that it will cool off the doghouse on hot days,
- air quality improvement because of the plant's photosynthesis,
- noise pollution reduction, studies show that noise levels in a building can be reduced as much as 40 decibels while using a green roof (which is best for dogs, as they have extremely sensitive hearing),
- extended life of the roof system, moderating temperature swings can prevent a roof system from expanding and contracting, protecting the roof.
Additionally, we made educational triptychs for the project. Within the group, we needed to make at least one triptych about puppy mills and at least one about our physics concept or eco-friendly design. The others can be about anything related to the project. Since I based the first draft of my doghouse idea on an adobe house, I decided to make my triptych about them. Here is my first draft. Later drafts to come.
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Pictures of my group building our doghouse: