Well, this is a bit of fresh air, especially with tween news like Baby-Faced Boy Alfie Patten Is Dad At 13.
12-year-old Max Wallack stole the show at Design Squad’s Trash to Treasure contest with his “Home Dome.” The contest asked kids to repurpose trash into practical inventions.
I wonder if the Home Dome gets an honorable LEED Certification?
The dome provides shelter for the homeless and is made from plastic, wire, packing peanuts, and flargstin. Pretty much, trash.
The trash-plex looks like a Mongolian yurt, and let Max walk away with $10,000 and a Dell laptop. He also got a trip to Boston out of it. But Max had this to say, “I don’t really care about the money. I care about helping people.”
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This isn’t his first big win. “When I was six,” Max said, “I won an invention contest that included a trip to Chicago. While there, I saw homeless people living on streets, and beneath highways and underpasses. I felt very sorry for these people, and ever since then, felt that my goal and obligation was to find a way to help them. My invention improves the living conditions for homeless people, refugees, or disaster victims by giving them easy-to-assemble shelter.”
Go Max! We all look forward to your future inventions.
Source and Photo: thedesignblog.org
About Jerry James Stone
hi guys, this is not a fantasy, some non profit organizations known as Dome of the world actually build Dome like houses at 2500 USD using low cost material in INDONESIA for disaster area.
hi guys, this is not a fantasy, some non profit organizations known as Dome of the world actually build Dome like houses at 2500 USD using low cost material in INDONESIA for disaster area.
I haven’t read all of the comments, but did anyone else realize that it’s a tent? He got $10,000, a trip and a computer for taking an idea that already exists and making it worse. Maybe the judges need to get some of the grief being directed at the kid?
It may be “just a tent”, but this kid is the first one that used trash for its unique design.
so basically your just jealous he thought of it before you
Yea, well, it may be just a tent to you, but it’s a FREE one that’s waterproof, insulated, and can be built with trash, or trashbags in just a day or so. EVERYTHING counts. I think this is a great idea…why not be part of the solution, instead of creating problems?
This “tent” would probably be better insulated with the foam peanuts than a regular tent.
However, the air quality in a plastic habitat would surely be many times more toxic than outside air. This idea needs a greener upgrade, before I would give it a prize.
It didn’t look like it was being built out of trash to me.. all those materials looked new and the tools used to build it probably won’t be available to a homeless person or disaster victim.
And a geo dome is not a unique design.. they have been around for decades.
Sorry to sound negative.. its good that he’s trying to do something, but i don’t know how practically useful it is going to be to his intended beneficiaries.
You all fail…
I haven’t read all of the comments, but did anyone else realize that it’s a tent? He got $10,000, a trip and a computer for taking an idea that already exists and making it worse. Maybe the judges need to get some of the grief being directed at the kid?
Has anyone else noticed that you put this twice? But anyway, it may be just a “tent” to you but to a homeless person they would really appreciate it, I bet if you became homeless you wouldn’t be saying it’s just a tent and appreciate the effort this kid used to help out others. At least some people actually try to help out other people other than themselves and their pocketbooks. I admire this kid for what he’s done.
The Canbot.com shows a very cool idea of Recycle. This website shows how to combine origami with recycle soda cans to make robot, panda and dinosaur sculptures. The “i can make it” slogan is quite impressive.
The Canbot.com shows a very cool idea of Recycle. This website shows how to combine origami with recycle soda cans to make robot, panda and dinosaur sculptures. The “i can make it” slogan is quite impressive.
I think the problem is more of people being allowed a place to live than on having a tent.
Most towns governments hate homeless persons because they cannot extort property tax from them. And when the government hates homeless, police follow.
I do not know how many times I have seen a policeman hitting or taking on a homeless person. Of course, they always said that the homeless started. But if you think for a moment, the police are not only allowed to lie by the system but encouraged and trained to do so. How can you expect honor from a force that is trained to be honor-less? How do you know when the police is telling the true or just following their training? The answer is you don’t. Yet when a homeless person and a policemen have counter argument, the system will always side with the police, unless the brutality is blatantly recorded in a video.
“This is what happened sarge, this crazy bum started attacking us and we have no other option but to fire on him.” This happen daily on america.
I think the problem is more of people being allowed a place to live than on having a tent.
Most towns governments hate homeless persons because they cannot extort property tax from them. And when the government hates homeless, police follow.
I do not know how many times I have seen a policeman hitting or taking on a homeless person. Of course, they always said that the homeless started. But if you think for a moment, the police are not only allowed to lie by the system but encouraged and trained to do so. How can you expect honor from a force that is trained to be honor-less? How do you know when the police is telling the true or just following their training? The answer is you don’t. Yet when a homeless person and a policemen have counter argument, the system will always side with the police, unless the brutality is blatantly recorded in a video.
“This is what happened sarge, this crazy bum started attacking us and we have no other option but to fire on him.” This happen daily on america.
Is this home dome created for the homeless available to buy, and if so, where. What if people started wanting to buy one to give to a homeless person? What a great idea. Think of all you can be helped.
Is this home dome created for the homeless available to buy, and if so, where. What if people started wanting to buy one to give to a homeless person? What a great idea. Think of all you can be helped.
Max you are so amazing by making the trash into shelter, what a bright idea. Keep up the good work.
that is really amzing everyday more and moer people turn trash into treasure it is very amazing and creative
Max you are so amazing by making the trash into shelter, what a bright idea. Keep up the good work.
I guess I can say I am happy for the kid, however this is hardly an original design. It looks like he took the Bucky Dome and put it in a smaller scale. That design was put together by a revolutionary architect. And the “trash” is new foam peanuts and new trash bags//plastic. Hardly used trash.
what is so amazing about building a shelter from trash? Homeless people have been doing it for years in my city. Discarded card board boxes, plastic, lumber, newspapers, styrofaom are all things i have seento help make shelter by homeless people on the street. The truth is not every homeless person wants to live in a traditional home, (don’t get me wrong a lot of them do), I remeber plans for a home that was complete with cooking, sleeping and shower/toilet facilaties. They appeared in an addition of “Mother Earth News”. Basically it was about an 8′ x 10′ yard barn that was insulated and outfitted to live in. Hey I have even considered in building one myself to live in except where would I put all my stuff. Like most of America I suffer from Stuffitis!
Anyway the kid deserves the prize he saw two problems and combined them to come up with a viable solution! Although finding a place to put your garbage yurt up will be just as tuff as finding a place to put up any other shelter the homeless have built.
The homeless problem is not one of resources as much as it is one of the paridigm that we operate under. Our perceptions of them and their perceptions of us….
He’s 12-yrs old; I’m grateful so see someone that young thinking about something or someone other than themselves. Who cares is the design/details already exist in the form of a tent…the thought was to use recycled trash, yeah? I haven’t seen Coleman doing that. Good for him.
I dont understand how this is “made from trash”.
Its clearly made from new raw materials and not trash. They used thin metal rods for the frame, new large sheets of plastic, and packaging “material”. Do you find that in trash commonly??
It was build from new material just like anything else.
Either way, its a cool dome and I commend this young, smart kid for his good work. I’m just saying it doesn’t really fit the title of “made from trash”
Ok here’s something to think about. The boy invented the “tent” in a ridiculous form, that although being “efficient ?” could never be afforded by most homeless people. What were the judges thinking? This kid received $10,000, a trip to Boston and a Dell computer for an idea that is totally unworkable. A reinvention of the tent that is totally unaffordable and unavailable to most homeless people.
Oh, and before anybody makes the comment that this is trash we’re talking about here. Take a look in your local trash pile and tell us, Do you see this stuff just readily usable and free for the taking in it? Notice the U.S. is building these things for $2500 for people in Indonesia. How many homeless people have that kind of money? Then notice, he used a hammer and other tools. How many homeless people have you seen with a set of tools readily available?
The shelter should be called “Obama plan B” about 25% of americans are or are about to become homeless, all the while we continue on with alan greenspan the fed chairman? same as bush, what a doof…. And why is this kid recieving awards for design of homeless shelters? because nearly everyone identifies with it because of the economy.
this is all fine and wonderful but where are you going to put them? the homeless are not able to stay in one place (get it) not to mention that these makeshift shelters wouldnt last long when torn by a twig or branch and have you ever tried to clean up that popcorn stuff? keep in mind that home less people are not stupid and not criminals they are home less, lest a good majority of them are not only extremely sensitive caring individuals who probably either didnt have the finances nor the voice to squawk loud enough to keep the homes they were in , and that a good number of them are well educated, hard working, and very talented. and have many many innovative, ecologically friendly, recycled practical means of shelter (just no place to put them) all the while the NON PROFIT funding for all this gets eaten up by this kind of RESEARCH? i believe it is really up to the PARENTS of these well meaning children to educate themselves a little better with some common sense. and start using this type of funding to purchase some land say the size of az to build a place for OUR nations homeless people to live with dignity and respect. as it could very easily be their mother , father , brother , sister tomarrow. then what?
sigh! why are there so many negative people on the planet? at least the kid is thinking. what have you done lately other than whine?
“The dome provides shelter for the homeless and is made from plastic, wire, packing peanuts, and flargstin. Pretty much, trash.”
how can u have the luxury of calling all these things trash..
Good for him!
That does not look like a yurt. It looks like Buckminster Fuller’s design for a geodesic dome, which has been in evidence for many years. It’s a brilliant priciple, creating shelter using a far less materials. Congratulations to Max Wallack for again calling attention to this great application and finding another way to create it.
How much does it keep it warm? How does it handle rain? Kudos to this great kid!
Great idea but unfortunately the plastic is still ending up in the food chain and causing havoc too life on the planet. Some scientists think that platic will sterilize the human population in a few generations. We need to stop making it.
The only practical application I see from this is to provide stoners with a convenient place for a clambake. Homeless people? Not so much.
Wow that was very clever Packing Peanuts recycled into a cool tent. Great very explendid idea.
i need a house. i am currently living in hawaii on the big island. i want one built using concrete and cinder blocks. help please
This is a very clever idea from a 13 year old, but cannot compete with the practical solutions of adults.
The dome does not look waterproof: there are gaps between the panels which are not covered. Air can get in, which is important, but so can water.
The plastic skin, and probably also the peanut filling, will disintegrate in the sun after a few months.
The inside is unsuitable for anything but sleeping or resting. It is unsuitable for cooking and would probably not do well as a bathroom.
The bottom line, of course, is that it suffers the same problem as tents – finding free land to put it on.
Leave it to a kid to figure out the right way to start thinking about dwellings. Great post and blog.
Plastics are very hard to eliminate. The molecular bonds of plastic makes it so durable that result to low natural processes of degradation. Likewise, burning plastic can release toxic fumes. Max’ idea of making a house out of trash like plastic is already one way of eliminating plastic and helping our environment.
Where can you buy one of these? Does anyone know?
hahahhaha… he really creative kids…
hahahhaha… he really creative kids…
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