The teams tap into their inner artists as they compete to design and build wind-powered kinetic art from recycled materials. The winning sculpture is put on display at the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park in Lincoln, Massachusetts.
- 1) The Challenge (4:31)
Watch the Show
Blue Team's Process
Red Team's Process
- 1) The Challenge (4:31)
- 2) Brainstorm (4:29)
- 3) Design (2:28)
- 4) Build (9:17)
- 5) Test (1:35)
- 6) Judging (5:10)
- How do you build a wind-powered moving sculpture from recycled materials? Blue Team's idea was to recreate storms like hurricanes and tornados.
- They made simpler models to see how the movement of their sculpture might behave on a bigger scale.
- Then, using welding equipment, they heated and bent the steel rods into a spiral pattern, and welded the spiral pieces together to create one large "tornado" shape.
- They added metal cups to get a continuous turning force from a steady wind. Then they mounted the tornado on the base using a single point at the top of the support pole so the sculpture could rotate.
- Thanks to earlier tests it rotated even with little wind and it had a nice combination of shapes and textures. The Urban Tornado won the challenge and was showcased at the DeCordova Museum.
- How do you build a wind-powered moving sculpture from recycled materials? Red Team decided to make a tree whose top was a fishbowl filled with fish.
- First they made the fishbowl's round structure and created fish-shaped objects from odds and ends. With fishing wire they were able to hang all their fish.
- They built a heavy base for the sculpture out of scrap steel pieces. Then they welded a castor wheel to the top of the stand to help it rotate in the wind.
- The steel fins on the sculpture caught the wind, making it move. The castor wheel at the top allowed it to rotate. Also, a steel spring near the base allowed it to sway in the wind.
- Their sculpture worked and the castor wheel helped it rotate more easily. However, it didn't win because the fishing line should have been stronger and the moving parts were too low to the ground.
Build a tower that can support a tennis ball.
Make a sculpture that moves in the wind.