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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?
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/v/oJAaMQuEFl8&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1]
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
Since no one wants to house the homeless, since alot of them are mentally ill. And no one wants to spend money on them, I think the young man has a good idea. Then the homeless person doesn’t die on the street and can pick up his little dome and leave when the cops are told by good citizens to go run them off. This is a great idea and no one has to have a hissy fit about how much it’s going to cost, and they aren’t unsightly like cardboard, so they won’t devalue the neighborhood. There but for the grace of God go most people.
Hi Max!! I am PROUD of your initiative for having insight to contributing to an ever growing problem. No doubt, you will succeed as a PRODUCTIVE adult who can do much for the world!! Keep up the good work and God bless you!! Susan from Norway.
Hey he is only a kid his ideas should be encouraged even if you all think they aren’t right, maybe one day he will invent something that you will all buy! BESIDES HE IS JUST A KID AND YOU SHOULDN’T CRUSH A KID’S DREAMS!!!!
Speaking about pallet, on my place these are sold and used for building furniture such as cabinet, beds table etc. It’s all about creativity and productivity.
i was expecting to read positive comments, but am suprised at how jealous ppl have commented their useless crap.
why weren’t they brave enough to participate in the contest with their ideas???
That is one innovative young boy who can use his brains positively. Go Max Go!!!! we know soon you’ll come up with even sthing else that will be even much better!!!!
This was a fantastic idea. What an imagination this kid has and so much potential. It looks like a honey comb igloo. The Styrofoam makes a good insulation. The people that put this kid down are jealous and may someday be homeless.
The only thing concerning is what if it gets windy?
Please! Obviously this kid is smart, talented, AND considerate.
Any comments on here that are negative are (also obviously) from losers who can do nothing themselves but criticize behind a computer screen. Ragging on a kid who did a good deed. Shame on you!
This was a wonderful idea. I know several homeless people from my line of work- who would be very appreciative of this type of shelter.
In this economy Max’s invention is a prime example of the kind of progressive and compassionate thinking that we need. Thank God for people like Max.
The intellect,consideration, and motivation to invent this is inspirational. Thank you Max on behalf of all families and folks in need for your contribution to make life for some that much better.
Id like to see ANYONE make that out or REAL trash. Not roles of plastic and gallons of peanuts. This is not a shelter made of trash. That thing was time consuming to create, too expensive for homeless, and NOT PRACTICAL AT ALL.
Ive been homeless. They want something small, sort and warm. Not big, plastic and drafty.
We are now rewarding are children for living like every third world child already knows. The US as lost everything.
@Jason:
>Kind of a dumb idea, who would want to live in that >piece of crap? Maybe someone who is homeless already >and this thing would be better than sleeping on a >doorstep.
Maybe someone who is homeless already, although I’ve heard there are people who become homeless just so that they can live in a box.
I’ve read through several of the comments regarding this article and I really feel like many of the people commenting are entirely missing the point. This kid is not only finding a constructive use for his time and materials that are often thrown in the trash (recycleable or not). He’s also doing the best that he can to try and make a difference for both the environment and the construction of inexpensive housing for a growing homeless population. Why are there so many negative critiques on this site that are not condusive to either and are simply not helpful in any way in general?
Max don’t listen to the ignorant and misguided people who clearly don’t understand your main objective commenting here. Keep giving your passion your all and I look forward to your future creativity and inventions designed for solving various global problems.
I really do applaud this young man’s actually doing something foor the Homeless.
And true his dome intact would be warm and a dry shelter.
Now the trouble all that plastic and packing peanuts getting oose.
A doom suuch as his destroyed and aloud the wind and other natural element to scatter this building material. This would kill birds and fish if ingested.tHen most likely get into our own food chain if enough got into the environment.
Another thing Homeless are on the move most of the time. While this doom is nice for them to rest. it is way too big to carry around. And what about fires?
all that doom material is quite flamable.
Another thiing the idea that homeless people could afford all that duct tape.
The only practical way for that doom is to put it out in a place where few others go as a perminent shelter for several people. There you are having homeless invade private property.While I might be in favor of this .The law goes out of its way to protect the property owners.
Again I salute this young doom inventor for his caring and his idea.
What he needs to do is keep working and perfecting his ideas.
a tip! Work on breaking these shelters down and making them portable but superior to the appliance boxes and tents.
How about a sleeping bag made out of heavy plastic and some other material then plasttic peanuts for insulation. Perhaps hundred of those cursed plastic store bags arranged in such a way to insujlate and give padding for the cold hard ground or ement?
At any rate i wish you well and many more ideas and successe
Good Luck
Mike
I think it’s a great idea and the kid should be rewarded and encouraged for trying to help others, everyone who wants to bash him or judge should take a good long look at themselves and see what they are doing to be a light in others lives instead of endulging the negativity.
so i read this and then read some of the comments.
and for those of you who are bashing a 12 year old boy need better things to do with your lives.
personally for a child that age deserves to win with an idea like that. he’s 12 and created that. i mean come on.
if it helps the homeless then so be it. expecially if it keeps them warm.
not everyone has money to buy a nice sturdy home.
This is the best thing I have seen yet very good invention there are alot of homeless people who die every year because of extreme temps and this is a life saver.Not all homeless people get the chance to stay warm. And not all are in the position they are by choice so thank you for making the world a little bit better.
HE IS A 12 YEAR OLD BOY! Why are grown adults criticizing him for his ideas and inventions. For homeless people, I’m sure it sounds like a great idea. Why is no one giving him credit for being one of the few good kids in their generation. People are always quick to say each generation keeps getting worse and worse and than when one actually wants to help out everyone has something negative to say. I saw give credit where credit is due. How many of you are actually trying to better the environment and help others out when it doesn’t benefit you. It may not be pure architectural work but he’s 12 and I can’t wait to see what further inventions he comes up with as he grows and gains more knowledge.
There is “Green” renewable product that has many uses. It has incredible weight to strength ratio. It uses very little natural resources to manufacture. In fact, it requires carbon dioxide to manufacture and the byproduct of manufacturing is oxygen… It is called a Tree. So get off of your “Green” podiums and go plan a tree.
This kid is awesome! Like the Luka comment. Lol! The US has been gutted by greedy developers, city council members sleeping with them, and a energy corp. evil. And this kid is going to give many of the resulting homeless in the country hope and inspiration. I would have loved something like this when I was homeless. I would put a raised bed underneath, tie the dome down with anchors, and paint it black or green. I love this kid!
Instead, I had a water-resistant (yeah right) military issue sleeping bag that kept me wet much of the time–it was during the massive rains that hit CA prior to Katrina, and had to sleep under a tree, on cement where a drain would drain the extra water. I could have used this and set it up in some brush somewhere and not gotten wet or dirty at all.
wow
i guess all negativity to the 12yr. old invention is jeallousy.. do you remember all tho victims of natural disasters in the past?? my guess is they would have loved to have “some” privacy, “some” shelter… and this might just fit the bill…
keep going kid.. we need fresh ideas.. and they come from people like you.. since, abviously the “tried and true” isn’t working so well… times change and we need not be so closeminded…….
oh, and one of my students become homeless just before christmas… i’m sure they would have preferred one of the “domes” over the street!!!!
(well, they weren’t in the street.. thank goodness we have a mother-in-law suite…
I think that is a good idea. You may argue that the materials used can be recycled but recycling also wastes energy and causes damage to the environment just less in amount. It is better to reuse the materials than to just simply recycle.
I am really happy to know that there are great kids like MAX he is a hero in my eyes and I hope he never looses his stride to make the world a better place
keep up the great work MAX!
wow its very bad ha ha ha ……..
Starting from the top:
You are all fine, shining examples of idiots who criticize the work of others because you can’t or don’t do anything constructive in life. By the way, nobody cares about your opinion. HA! I TOTALLY got you!
Hmmm… I see several problems to start. First, no floor. Second, this model wasn’t sealed very well. Third, when you do seal it very well, yes, it will retain heat, but it will also retain carbon monoxide; maybe his plan is to humanely kill all of the homeless people with CO poisoning? Fourth, where is the portability? It seems to me that unless the homeless recipient was able to easily disassemble it, and carry it discretely, then somebody else would move right in. Fifth, why use packing peanuts, they are expensive; instead, use crumpled up newspaper.
Conclusion: good idea on paper, reality: expensive, not discrete, possibility of accidental death, etc. Oh, and their is no floor.
It could be seen as a stupid idea to make shelters from trash. But at the end of the day the boy has the $10,000 and you and me have nothing!
i dont see why you all are so hard on them,i know good people that have lost their jobs and ended up homeless.i think that some of the ideas are really good i mean imagine your living on the street with nowhere to go well instead of being cold have a dome and some newspaper and mabey if your lucky a blanket.think about that
wow very bad hahaha
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?
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.
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.